Suggestions on how to increase walking speed?

[klh-or]

I need to shave 4-5 minutes off my pace between now and January. I've been walking fairly consistently since January and I've definitely improved, but the bottom line is I'm very overweight and I'm 50 years old! I'm at a very comfortable 20 minute mile on my 3-4 mile mid week walks now. Am I dreaming to think with hard work I can get to a 15-16 minute mile for a full 1/2 marathon by January 12?

I try to be aware of my technique...heel strike, roll, push off. I've only recently started stretching after my walks, and I think that is helping with flexibility AND not being as sore. I walk with my dog most days, and he's a great walking buddy, but that limits a natural arm swing, so I need to work on that. My crosstraining day(s) I usually do a Leslie Sansone walking video that includes kicks, side steps and knee raises, in addition to walking, and it is a very quick pace. That seems to help.

I'm doing the marathonwalking.com 14-week training; this is week 2. That includes 3-4 miles on Tues/Thur, crosstraining Wed and Sunday, progressively longer walk on Saturdays, rest days Monday and Friday.

ANY suggestions on things I can do to gradually increase my speed would be really appreciated. I so, so, SO want to avoid those dreaded sweepers!!

Thanks for your help!!

 

[bekkiz]

I was where you are a few months ago. I think interval training really helped me. Set your watch to beep every 2 minutes, and go as fast as you can for the full two minutes, and then recover for the next two. Repeat for the length of your workout. Although your overall pace for that walk will average out to about the same, you are conditioning your body to move faster. Over time, you can lengthen your fast intervals to 3,4 or 5 minutes, and keep the recovery time about the same.

I don't know what equipment you have now, but I LOVE my Garmin 205. It has interval setting which help so much! Good luck!

 

[windwalker]

You are welcome to join our walking thread, to log your walks. (Walkers wanna compare notes). Several of us WISHers are walkers.

Ok lets start at the beginning: You need good shoes, look for light weight running shoes with lower heels. Do not buy walking shoes, they are worthless. Do you know how to get fited for shoes?

Are you going to the Tower of Terror event? We are going to share ideas on walking style there.

Don't even concern yourself with being over 50. I'm 56 and many of our good marathon walkers are 50+. Age is only a limitation you put on yourself. You have a good 30 more years to compete in races so you might as well get good at it now. Wendy does an amazing amout of half and full marathons.

Weight is of course a concern to all of us. Several of us are fighting that demon along with you. As you increase the amount of miles you put in that will help alot. Lots of good support on here for that battle also.

Fast walking is about efficiency in your form. I'm going to post some links for you to look at. But here are some things to remember: your arm swing should be more toward the back and your feet need to be in a straight line.

http://www.parkracewalkers.us/

http://www.thewalkingsite.com/gear.html

I hope these sites help.

John Bingham's book Marathoning for Mortals has some good training plans for walking.

Please keep us posted on your progress.

Dave

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I am by no means a walking expert as I am new to this (switched over from running).

Things I have had to do....

on the extreme side--I had knee surgery 2 years ago--turns out my meniscus tear was my inhibitor..could walk fast if you had a million dollar publisher's clearning house check dangling on a stick in front of me.

Since then...

I use the treadmill so that I can "feel" how a fast walk should be. I notice a huge difference in form and how I am walking when I am walking a comfortable 20 minute pace and a comfortable..but fast 15-16 minute pace.

I have NO IDEA what is different--but for me it really helped to know what the body was supposed to be doing when it was walking fast.

What I know others have tried also is to set an incline on the treadmill--takes more effort to go a certain pace...and then on the road...it helps translate into a faster speed on the flat surface. I haven't tried this as I don't want to risk my knees even though it is non-impact.

I also take my garmin with me and I have been working with the average pace setting--so that I an monitor how I am doing without having to do math. I will push a little harder just to get the avg pace to go down by 1 second.

I have no idea what this means physically for my body...but so far so good.

Another thing--count your steps. IIRC--for walking, you goal is 70 steps per minute (both feet total). If you have more steps than that but still not fast enough...you need to take longer strides..if you have less than that...shorten your stride to get to 70 and that should decrease your time. The goal is to keep it at 70 and with fitness...you should end up at a good pace.

Same theory works with running except i think it is 80 steps per minute.

For me--I counted....I had more than 70 steps but was on the slower side...so I had to increase the stride length to get it down.

 

[getnthinr]

Are you going to the Tower of Terror event? We are going to share ideas on walking style there.

I'm so excited! Dave, please make sure you include me on this! I just went to a race walk clinic last weekend -- there's so much to remember, it's sort of intimidating to me. I know I don't really have to have perfect race-walking form to improve my times though -- and I'd love to learn as much as I can at ToT to practice before January.

klh-or, lots of good advice here already. I will say personally that I have found interval training to be very helpful. My running buddies knew where I was when I started (50 and fat) and suggested I walk as fast as I could for however long I could (telephone pole to telephone pole, or mail box to mail box, or whatever) then slow down and catch my breath, then go at it again for a short distance. Now I try to go really fast for the length of a favorite song on my iPod. The old adage is "to get faster, you've got to go faster" -- and doing it for 20-30 seconds at a time over and over really does help you improve as the weeks pass. You've still got time to improve your pace. Keep working at it!

The reality is that we can't stroll at Disney, and sadly a lot of inexperienced folks think they can. You are way ahead of the curve because you have been putting in the miles and you have goals! A 15-minute pace is doable with practice. I have faith in you!

 

[klh-or]

Thanks, Everybody!! It sounds like my treadmill might be a good tool for helping me get the hang of moving faster. I need to invest in some sort of timing device to use on my outside walks to time intervals. I don't know anything about the Garmins but I'll read up on them. I'd think even a simple stopwatch would be helpful.

Dave, I'm SO glad to hear that I've got at least 30 more years to enjoy competing in races!! Sometimes I think, "Why didn't I do this 20 years ago?" Well, I don't want to be 70 and look back saying the same thing! So, NOW is the time!

I won't be at ToT...darn! I'm in Oregon, and coming to Florida in January is a big deal for me!! Bekkiz, I see you are my neighbor to the north!!

I'm jazzed about pushing harder and improving my speed. Having just done the 10k at the Portland Marathon, I learned that the atmosphere (bands, cheering spectators, etc.) can be a big motivator, so being a true blue Disney girl, I'm banking on the Disney Magic to give me an extra boost, too!!

Thanks for the input!

 

[windwalker]

Thanks, Everybody!! It sounds like my treadmill might be a good tool for helping me get the hang of moving faster. I need to invest in some sort of timing device to use on my outside walks to time intervals. I don't know anything about the Garmins but I'll read up on them. I'd think even a simple stopwatch would be helpful.

Dave, I'm SO glad to hear that I've got at least 30 more years to enjoy competing in races!! Sometimes I think, "Why didn't I do this 20 years ago?" Well, I don't want to be 70 and look back saying the same thing! So, NOW is the time!

A watch is just fine for timing your walks but I personnally wouldn't time the intervals just go by effort. Timing everything is like weighing everyday it will drive you crazy.

When I turned 50 I like Wendy had let myself get fat and out of shape. I would get winded wiping my windshield at the gas station. I lost 8 inches of my waist and 50 lbs of weight. Since I put on a lot of muscle my fat loss was probably more lkie 75 lbs.

I walked in the mall with the 'old people' for a year till I was ready to head out side. I started running again and three years later an achillies injury turned me into a walker.

Last year I went to state level competition and won the honor of representing Kentucky in the Senior Olympics. At the games I placed 8th in the 5K and 9th in the 1500 racewalks. I get to keep my national ranking till the next Olympics in 2009.

One of the corner stone concepts that the Senior Olympics is based on is that "Age is only a limitation you put on yourself". I got to meet people who where still competing strong into their 80s and 90s.

There is lots of support here at WISH and lots of the best kind of advice, the kind that comes from experience.

Good luck with your journey.

Dave

 

[escape]

Klh-or! You can do this! Lot's of good advice already. When I started training for the half this past January, I couldn't do a 16 min mile. It took me until mid-November, I think, to break that barrier. I was 49 and very, very over weight and now I'm 50 and very overweight (I lost one of the verys through all the training. ).

By the way, my DH, Steve, is following the very same plan. He likes it so far. He said that one of the powerwalking sites he visited mentioned that moving your arms faster will help you walk faster. You can visit some of these sites for a demonstration on how to do this. I'm sure Dave can fill you in on this as well.

 

[Goofyin08forErica]

Khl-or,

I welcome you to the awesome world of walking. Don't let age and/or weight
make you feel like you are slow. I will be celebrating my 52nd birthday while doing the Donald, and then turn around and do the Mickey the next day for my 1st Goofy. I am also overweight, but in a lot better fitness condition than most of the people that I know.

You can do this, and there will be plenty of WISH walkers out there with you.


Erica

 

[westcliffemom]

klh-or, lots of good advice here already. I will say personally that I have found interval training to be very helpful. My running buddies knew where I was when I started (50 and fat) and suggested I walk as fast as I could for however long I could (telephone pole to telephone pole, or mail box to mail box, or whatever) then slow down and catch my breath, then go at it again for a short distance. Now I try to go really fast for the length of a favorite song on my iPod. The old adage is "to get faster, you've got to go faster" -- and doing it for 20-30 seconds at a time over and over really does help you improve as the weeks pass. You've still got time to improve your pace. Keep working at it!

I agree with Wendy, intervals are the way to go. It gets your body used to going faster, and eventually you can sustain a faster pace for a longer time. When I started walking & training for events, I was on the TM and I would have a hard time going faster than 15-16 mpm. Eventually, I've worked up to about 13.5. I used intervals, telling myself I only had to keep the faster pace for a minute, or a .1 of a mile. You can do it!

 

[twotoohappy]

Another interval fan here too!
I got a timex watch at Kmart for $40-
and I'm up to a 3min. slow jog/1min. relax walk
for 4miles with no problem. Sat. I increase to
5miles. Just do what you can, and doing your
best is the most important thing!
Keep up the good work and I'll see you in January