Run/Walk - Is it actually frowned upon in races?

[jerivera]

I've been training using the Galloway Run/Walk method since I started walking/jogging/running in January. But I keep reading articles where folk who run/walk appear to be the butt of a lot of jokes/complains.

Is run/walk actually frowned upon in races? What about in Disney races? Should I wear a sign in the back of my shirt that says "Makes Frequent Stops" or something like that??? Should I even care???

I'm pretty sure I won't stop doing it until I run my first marathon in January. It's just worked too well for me at this time, and I like it. For now, those walk breaks are my way of managing my own personal Blerch. But it does sort of suck to think that there will be folk there who will be judgmental because I won't run a 10 min/mile, but will run/walk it instead.

 

[RnbwSktles]

I've been training using the Galloway Run/Walk method since I started walking/jogging/running in January. But I keep reading articles where folk who run/walk appear to be the butt of a lot of jokes/complains.

Is run/walk actually frowned upon in races? What about in Disney races? Should I wear a sign in the back of my shirt that says "Makes Frequent Stops" or something like that??? Should I even care???

I'm pretty sure I won't stop doing it until I run my first marathon in January. It's just worked too well for me at this time, and I like it. For now, those walk breaks are my way of managing my own personal Blerch. But it does sort of suck to think that there will be folk there who will be judgmental because I won't run a 10 min/mile, but will run/walk it instead.

Not at all! At least not at Disney. I ran/walked the 2014 marathon and almost everyone in my part of the pack was doing the same. You will even hear all of the beeps from people's watches telling them to run/walk. It's actually confusing

As long as you don't stop in front of someone, you will be fine. I usually pulled over to a side and put my hand up to let people know what I was doing.

I have noticed people at non-Disney races muttering "wow people are walking already" but I try not to let that bother me. At the end of the race I start passing all of the people who tried to run the whole way

 

[roydavid7771]

If it wasn't for the run/walk method, I wouldn't have survived 2 1/2 marathons! I seriously doubt anyone would make fun of you no matter how many breaks you took. Everyone is more concentrated on their own performance to worry about anyone else. Above all else, it's a Disney race. If youi're coming to a Disney race expecting to establish a PR, forget it. Enjoy yourself and stop and take in the fact that you are running in the middle of the Happiest Place on Earth and that you are seeing sights you had never seen before!

 

[FFigawi]

Not frowned upon at all. The Galloway method is one of the most popular training methods these days. I'd even venture a guess that 30-40% of the people running the full in January will be using some form of run/walk. No need for a special shirt. When it's time for your walk break, just put your hand up to alert those behind you, look over your shoulder to make sure no one is about to run you over when you suddenly slow down, and slow down when it's clear. Suddenly coming to a halt will make life miserable for you (as those behind you run into you) and them (as they run into you), so just be careful and considerate, and you'll be fine.

 

[Luv2Run]

I wouldn't say it's frowned-upon, but it can get annoying when run-walkers don't know or adhere to proper race etiquette, i.e. stopping short to walk as soon as their timer goes off right in the middle of the course rather than making their way to the sides so as not to cause a pileup, or walking more than two abreast, especially in bottlenecks. I can't tell you how many times I've nearly collided with the person in front of me because they absolutely-must-stop-to-walk as soon as their timer beeps. I've gone so far as to thank a run-walker who exhibited proper etiquette, because it shows they realize the race isn't just about them.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

Not frowned upon provided that you do it correctly. Please stay ALL the way to the side of the road, especially if your intervals are short. Please do not run next to another person (that goes for straight running, too, actually, not just run/walk) because it blocks people from going around you. When you are going to slow down to walk, put your hand up or say, "Walking" every time you do it.

 

[DOOM1001]

I read somewhere a runner saying raising your hand is actually too distracting,what is the proper etiquette?I'll be doing plenty of walking in the half in January so I'll be fine for the full on Sunday to finish Goofy.In the full I'll go back to my routine of running the first 14 miles and then starting to run/walk.

 

[regul8ter18]

My dad did the Chicago marathon using the Galloway method and he was fine. everyone in my houses uses his method except my sister who is an elitist. She would like that with everything, I am sure the way we tie our shoes isn't good enough for her.

The funny part is she trains her butt off and my dad is still faster than her using galloway.

 

[roomthreeseventeen]

My dad did the Chicago marathon using the Galloway method and he was fine. everyone in my houses uses his method except my sister who is an elitist. She would like that with everything, I am sure the way we tie our shoes isn't good enough for her.

The funny part is she trains her butt off and my dad is still faster than her using galloway.

Not to start a war, but lots of people run without doing a run/walk, and it doesn't make them elitist. Your dad, being a man, might naturally be a lot faster than her.

 

[ANIM8R]

I read somewhere a runner saying raising your hand is actually too distracting,what is the proper etiquette?I'll be doing plenty of walking in the half in January so I'll be fine for the full on Sunday to finish Goofy.In the full I'll go back to my routine of running the first 14 miles and then starting to run/walk.

I always heard that raising one's hand *is* proper etiquette.

I'm not a run/walker (at least not planned ) and I do find people raising their hand very helpful ESPECIALLY when it is crowded - like the stretch between the Transp Ctr and MK or right after MK. Personally, I don't find it distracting whatsoever.

 

[regul8ter18]

No war started we jus think it's funny in our house because she is always putting us down for everything I mean everything

 

[goofeygirl]

I run/walk or rather jog/walk all races. Never had a problem. I start in the proper coral that I am assigned to OR I place myself in the back if its a self assigned race.
I stay to the right or as far right as possible during the walking segments.

When I am jogging and am about to slow down to a walk, I glance around me to make sure no one is right behind me that may slam into me.

I have been to another site for marathons and there were members who had an elitist mentality that anyone that did not run an 8mm or faster were not even worth discussing. I dissed that place and came here. Those are the type of people of whom waste my time.

So just follow the rules as what others have mentioned already and it doesn't matter what everyone else does or think...because we are all thinking the same thing...get to the finish line!

 

[ZellyB]

Not frowned upon provided that you do it correctly. Please stay ALL the way to the side of the road, especially if your intervals are short. Please do not run next to another person (that goes for straight running, too, actually, not just run/walk) because it blocks people from going around you. When you are going to slow down to walk, put your hand up or say, "Walking" every time you do it.

Agree with everyone else that it's a common method for completing endurance races. It's the only way I do long runs and it works really well for me. We are very careful to always signal when we are slowing to a walk with a raised hand. I prefer that to trying to say "walking" because that can be hard to hear for the people behind you. I would say that it's not always best to move to the side of the road or stay there, especially on a crowded course like Disney. I found that often people who wanted to go faster stayed toward the edges to avoid the congestion in the middle of the course. When we would hit a walk interval, we mostly just were sure to check our surroundings and see where the best place to walk was. Sometimes that was staying in the middle and sometimes it meant moving to the side. We typically would look for others who were already walking and slip in ahead of them and slow to a walk. It made for some additional bobbing and weaving, but nothing that bad. It was stressful in the early miles because of the congestion of runners, but once we hit about miles 14-15 and on, the pace of those still around us had slowed considerably anyway (we are slow pokes at Disney ), so it became less of an issue to stay out of faster runners' ways. I really think it's about awareness of those around you and the pace at which they are traveling. I think that's true whether you are running or walking.

Lastly, I couldn't care less if someone wants to make me a butt of their jokes. Running a half or full marathon is an accomplishment that not a lot of people achieve, and I don't let anybody take that away from me. The VAST majority of runners are supportive of other runners regardless of how they manage races. Those who are judgmental or superior in their attitudes I have found to be few and far between and I basically don't think their opinions are worth my time.

 

[Castle2Castle]

Count me as supporting what's already been said: it's perfectly fine for most any race and especially runDisney races (their official training plan), be conscious of other runners around you (signalling, not suddenly stopping), and don't worry about any naysayers you may encounter -- run, walk or some combination of the two, you run your own race.

Run/walk got my fiancee and I through our first half marathons and our first marathon for Goofy in 2013. Even in races I've run without her at faster paces, I still incorporate walk breaks via the same strategies above at less frequent intervals (e.g. each 1-1.5 mile). Run/walk will get us through our upcoming Disney races in lots of similar company, and it will get you through your race as well!

 

[WhereInFlorida]

Exactly what everyone has said, observe etiquette for those around you and understand that with 20k+ others there will likely be others behind you not expecting a quick change of pace. Of course the same goes for everyone and not just run/walkers.

 

[bumbershoot]

Not frowned upon at all. The Galloway method is one of the most popular training methods these days.

Exactly. And given that he gives the official training plans for the Disney races, I'd say it's one series of races where run/walk should be expected!

Not frowned upon provided that you do it correctly. Please stay ALL the way to the side of the road, especially if your intervals are short.

Not actually possible, if you think about it. Not unless every other run/walker is on the same schedule as you, has the same pace as you, and all starts perfectly. I've been on the road with people on the opposite schedule as me, so we're circling around each other for ages (until I slow down even more and they move off).

And once I went all the way to the side (on the trail at TOT), so I wasn't in the way of all the other runners, because I had decided to walk the whole trail. I have poor night vision and didn't want to injure myself, nor did I want to psych myself out by having to walk while not being prepared for it. And as I was all the way over, nothing but wooded area to my side, a runner went crashing past, off trail, right next to me. Can't win!

I would say that it's not always best to move to the side of the road or stay there, especially on a crowded course like Disney. I found that often people who wanted to go faster stayed toward the edges to avoid the congestion in the middle of the course. When we would hit a walk interval, we mostly just were sure to check our surroundings and see where the best place to walk was. Sometimes that was staying in the middle and sometimes it meant moving to the side. We typically would look for others who were already walking and slip in ahead of them and slow to a walk. It made for some additional bobbing and weaving, but nothing that bad.

Exactly.



I'll be running the DL Half with my brother, who is a *runner*. Not sure what he's going to think about this run/walk thing; when his wife tries to do it, he encourages her to keep running (which might be why she doesn't run with him anymore). With me he will have to do it. He said he's going to stay with me and keep my pace for me, and he knows I do a combo...he has done enough races alone, he says. Maybe he's slowing down and this is just his method of "having to" do this.

I can handle it if he teases me, though. He is my brother after all. Goes with the package, LOL. And hey, it's better than me sitting on the couch like I was 3 years ago!

 

[SuzanneSLO]

I agree that staying to the right may not always work on RunDisney races. At the Tink 10K, there were many people sprinting between their stops for character photos. They tended to run on the sides, while those jogging, run/walking and walking bunched up more in the middle.

If you stay aware of your surroundings and are considerate of others on the course, you'll find the best spot for you to run your race. -- Suzanne

 

[goofeygirl]

I have to say this tho...is to really stick to your own coral. I have seen coral jumpers even in Disney. What does irk me is when people who walk/jog or just walk the whole thing (which is totally cool) move up further in the corals to get a head start.
The logic is that since they are walking, they will take longer to finish which is obvious. That said, they think that by jumping or placing themselves in a higher or closer to the front coral will get them that head start they need.
What happens is that they are in the way. This can cause injury because someone will fall trying to pass them...esp is they place themselves fairly close to the front.

I was in one race with THOUSANDS of runners and it was a race where you placed yourself. As always, I go to the back...just cuz. But as the race began, the faster runners were in the front with a lot of walkers...and all these walkers took over the whole road...so when the other corals were released, the runners (the fast one's) would have to run on the medium to get around them.

Then there were a collection of runners sort of stuck behind these walkers during the narrow part of the race (early on in the race)...so no one got a good start because of them.

I think that particular race changed rules after that and started assigning corals.

So that would be my complaint. I am walker too...which is why I will start at the back. I have literally been the LAST person to cross the start line in both half and full marathons in Disney...dead last.

That would be the big issue. I have seen people jump corals in Disney by waiting for the staff to turn or walk away and then jumping the little fence and darting across...then I see them later on walking...not good. They jumped a coral to get a head start on the walking and that's dangerous.

Otherwise walking is good!

 

[ANIM8R]

At the Tink 10K, there were many people sprinting between their stops for character photos.

That's the lesser-known Galloway Sprint/Pose interval strategy.

 

[RnbwSktles]

I have to say this tho...is to really stick to your own coral. I have seen coral jumpers even in Disney. What does irk me is when people who walk/jog or just walk the whole thing (which is totally cool) move up further in the corals to get a head start.
The logic is that since they are walking, they will take longer to finish which is obvious. That said, they think that by jumping or placing themselves in a higher or closer to the front coral will get them that head start they need.
What happens is that they are in the way. This can cause injury because someone will fall trying to pass them...esp is they place themselves fairly close to the front.

I was in one race with THOUSANDS of runners and it was a race where you placed yourself. As always, I go to the back...just cuz. But as the race began, the faster runners were in the front with a lot of walkers...and all these walkers took over the whole road...so when the other corals were released, the runners (the fast one's) would have to run on the medium to get around them.

Then there were a collection of runners sort of stuck behind these walkers during the narrow part of the race (early on in the race)...so no one got a good start because of them.

I think that particular race changed rules after that and started assigning corals.

So that would be my complaint. I am walker too...which is why I will start at the back. I have literally been the LAST person to cross the start line in both half and full marathons in Disney...dead last.

That would be the big issue. I have seen people jump corals in Disney by waiting for the staff to turn or walk away and then jumping the little fence and darting across...then I see them later on walking...not good. They jumped a coral to get a head start on the walking and that's dangerous.

Otherwise walking is good!

While I definitely agree that corral jumping is wrong, I think there are plenty of people who "earned" their spot in an early corral who still run/walk. I don't think being a run/walker means you have to be in the back. I realize that you are probably talking about people who walk the entire thing, but I think this applies to both. Obviously, if you are going to walk from the start line, you should not be in the front with the faster runners.

I run/walk, but my running pace is faster than a lot of other's who are not walking (9-10 min/mile). When I slow down to walk, of course people are trying to pass me, but when I run, I am passing them. There are many running strategies that can get you to the same finish time. Even the runners who run most of the race will still take walk breaks towards the end. Even they will be in the way at some point. I think the most important thing here is race etiquette (as many have already pointed out). IMO as long as you check behind you, signal somehow, and move to the side, you cannot be blamed. I have done many races (Disney included) where runners ran up the shoulder or on the grass because they thought it was easier to get around people. While this may be true, I don't think they can complain there are walkers or slow people in their way.