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Thanks everyone. I will keep at it. My big incentive is a friend's wedding at the end of the year and I will be a bridesmaid. I have about 6 months to take it one step at a time and see permanent results.
Just keep running and increasing mileage and your time and weight will reduce naturally. If running a mile, specifically, is of importance to you, you can start to specialize once you're in the 15-20 miles per week area (at that point running a mile all out will be more accomplishable, versus just surviving a mile). At that point you will want to go to a track and do quarters (400m...one lap around) at a fast pace, but not all out. Running a mile for time requires both a speed and endurance component...so your 3+ mile jogs will give you endurance and the quarters/track workouts will increase your basic speed.
I've been somewhat frustrated with my attempts to run a bit faster. I do admit I am overweight and I'm working on losing the extra weight. Besides losing weight, what could I do to make a faster mile? My approx mile time is around 13-14 min...I have to jog real slow without stopping. If I go a bit faster I exhert myself and have to walk, run, walk, etc to finish the mile.
Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated.
When I first started running I had TERRIBLE endurance and would barely get through 2 miles at around 12 minutes/mile. I read a lot about interval training and decided to give it a try. Here's a great interval outline:
After doing this 3-4x a week for about a month, I went from 2 miles in 24 minutes to running 5k's in ~25 minutes with gas left in the tank (my dog got in great shape too). It's challenging but the interval training increases your endurance enough that your regular/steady jog speed will increase pretty significantly. The intervals tend to keep it interesting as well. This training is easier to do on a treadmill because it keeps pace for you, but it works great when running outside as well. Good luck!!
When I first started running I had TERRIBLE endurance and would barely get through 2 miles at around 12 minutes/mile. I read a lot about interval training and decided to give it a try. Here's a great interval outline:
After doing this 3-4x a week for about a month, I went from 2 miles in 24 minutes to running 5k's in ~25 minutes with gas left in the tank (my dog got in great shape too). It's challenging but the interval training increases your endurance enough that your regular/steady jog speed will increase pretty significantly. The intervals tend to keep it interesting as well. This training is easier to do on a treadmill because it keeps pace for you, but it works great when running outside as well. Good luck!!
If you want some good ideas for workouts, try subscribing to a magazine like Runner's World.
But usually it is pretty simple. Just keep moving and eventually you will lose weight. As you lose weight you will run faster which will help you lose weight.
Whatever you do, don't push too hard in the beginning. I learned the hard way that is the path to disaster. Back in '93, I could run 3 miles in 17:50. So when I took running back up a couple years ago I pushed way too hard too fast because I figured I could hit those numbers again in a few months. Wound up hurting my back. Wasn't serious enough to go to the hospital but it kept from running for a couple weeks and then I pretty much gave up.
I've been somewhat frustrated with my attempts to run a bit faster. I do admit I am overweight and I'm working on losing the extra weight. Besides losing weight, what could I do to make a faster mile? My approx mile time is around 13-14 min...I have to jog real slow without stopping. If I go a bit faster I exhert myself and have to walk, run, walk, etc to finish the mile.
Any recommendations will be greatly appreciated.
The best thing you can do is keep doing it and over time your time will get faster. Also as long as your diet is in check you will lose weight.
my practicing to control your breathing, practice jogging at your own pace for a certain amount of time, then gradually increase the speed every time, the fastest I ever did 1 mile is 7.5 mins, but that means I had to run up to 8.4 miles, after I did this I went back to my original speed which is 6 miles, good jogging speed for me, before this it was 5.6 so I'm improving.
I agree that exercising out of doors is more enjoyable. But I have come to appreciate the precision of the treadmill. You can ramp up your speed in such small increments (one-tenth of a mile per hour), and every such small improvement is a source of encouragement.
Also, be very careful of your knees, as you say you are overweight. I would not recommend running every day, both for the sake of your knees and because the body needs a rest one or two days a week. Again to the treadmill; one or two days a week of brisk walking might be a good change of pace, and with the addition of some elevation on the treadmill, you can keep the intensity in the walking. That is, you can exercise hard and still walk. If you don't believe me, just try it by walking as quickly as you are comfortable, then add, say, 3% incline. I am not saying replace your jogging with this incline walking, but do it as a change of pace once or twice a week. And you can add speed (yes, walking speed) and add incline gradually over time. Two or three years ago when I was about 64 years old, I got up to walking up an 8% incline at 4.5 mph for one hour. It took me a couple of years to work up to that point. (I am tall, which gives me a longer stride, so I may be walking at a given speed where shorter people are jogging.)
What worked for me was consistency and running many miles without caring for speed. Eventually you will have brought down your time without noticing.
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Advantages of a treadmill
