Question about running / jogging

Danalynn · Sep 23, 2009

Need some help with a running question. . . .

Does anyone have an idea of approx. how much time it would take a thin 14 yr. old girl to run approx. 3 1/2 to 4 miles? She isn't normally a runner and doesn't excersize often (not sure how much of a factor that would be). It is also raining hard, and she is running against the wind.

She's just had a big fight with her lifelong best friend, and she's fueled by anger and adrenalin. Not sure how much that would factor in either. She runs until she gets a bad pain in her side that forces her to slow to a fast paced walk....

I was also wondering if anyone might know approx. how long it would take a 14 yr. old girl to ride her bicycle approx. 7 miles? This info isn't as important to the story, but I was still wondering. She's peddaling as fast as she can so she won't be late, and it's not raining or anything this time.

ANY ideas/advice/input will be greatly appreciated!

Maryn · Sep 23, 2009

If she is not accustomed to cardio workouts of similar intensity, she probably won't be able to run the whole distance, not even if her life depends on it. Adrenalin will help, but it usually lasts only, what, maybe a half hour, tops?

Her stride is a factor. Say she's the height of an adult woman, which is not unusual for 14. She might run a ten-minute mile or two, then need to speed-walk, catching her breath, for an eight-minute half-mile before she can resume running. Depending on her cardiovascular fitness, she may not be able to go more than a half-mile at a run without needing to slow down and catch her breath (and let her heart rate slow) once she's used up her adrenalin.

2 miles running a ten minute mile = 20 minutes
1/2 mile walking real fast = 8 minutes
1/2 mile running = 5 minutes
1/2 mile walking = 8 minutes

That's 41 minutes for 3.5 miles.

Of course, if she does something that makes her cardiovascular system able to hold up while running, she could do the whole distance in ten-minute miles.

Maryn, who runs only when being chased, these days

Sophia · Sep 23, 2009

Dana-Lynn said:
Need some help with a running question. . . .

Does anyone have an idea of approx. how much time it would take a thin 14 yr. old girl to run approx. 3 1/2 to 4 miles? She isn't normally a runner and doesn't excersize often (not sure how much of a factor that would be). It is also raining hard, and she is running against the wind.

She's just had a big fight with her lifelong best friend, and she's fueled by anger and adrenalin. Not sure how much that would factor in either.

I'm thinking back to when I was 14 and we ran the 400m in P.E. A lot of the girls (all of them thin) basically jogged slowly round. A very few of us could run it flat out all the way. I was a long(ish)-distance runner and remember running the 800m and 1500m in school and county competitions, and IIRC the fastest time for the 800m in those events was around 2 minutes 30 seconds. Keep up that pace for 4 miles, and it would be around 20 minutes.

Even if she's thin, fitness is a huge factor. In my experience, it would be realistic for her to run the first 400m, and then slow to a jog or stumbling walk after that. She definitely couldn't keep it up for over 3 miles unless she's very fit.

Danalynn · Sep 23, 2009

Sorry, I forgot to say she doesn't actually run the whole time. She runs until she gets a severe pain in her side, and then slows to a fast paced walk.

Rowan · Sep 23, 2009

Dana-Lynn said:
Need some help with a running question. . . .

Does anyone have an idea of approx. how much time it would take a thin 14 yr. old girl to run approx. 3 1/2 to 4 miles? She isn't normally a runner and doesn't excersize often (not sure how much of a factor that would be). It is also raining hard, and she is running against the wind.

She's just had a big fight with her lifelong best friend, and she's fueled by anger and adrenalin. Not sure how much that would factor in either. She runs until she gets a bad pain in her side that forces her to slow to a fast paced walk....

I was also wondering if anyone might know approx. how long it would take a 14 yr. old girl to ride her bicycle approx. 7 miles? This info isn't as important to the story, but I was still wondering. She's peddaling as fast as she can so she won't be late, and it's not raining or anything this time.

ANY ideas/advice/input will be greatly appreciated!

I would think you'd be safe to estimate a 10 minute mile (esp if she's running flat out and fueled by anger/adrenaline but then eventually slows to a walk). So 40 minutes? This will hopefully balance out 2-3 faster miles with her slowing down at the end. I can't remember my run times at 14 (it was way too long ago

) Rain actually makes me run faster for some reason... Hope that helps!

vroth · Sep 23, 2009

Hmm. When I was 14, I ran an 8 minute mile at my best, and I wasn't particularly fit. I could run one mile pretty fast and then I had to stop. So I think a 10 minute mile might be too slow, if she does eventually slow to a walk. Generally, people are capable of running pretty darn fast for their first mile, and then they crash miserably.

Rowan · Sep 23, 2009

vroth said:
Hmm. When I was 14, I ran an 8 minute mile at my best, and I wasn't particularly fit. I could run one mile pretty fast and then I had to stop. So I think a 10 minute mile might be too slow, if she does eventually slow to a walk. Generally, people are capable of running pretty darn fast for their first mile, and then they crash miserably.

Exactly - which is why my 10 minute mile was an "average' - thinking if she ran the first mile at say 7-8 minutes, second mile in 8-9 minutes and then she had to walk the last two miles at maybe 10 or 12 minutes per mile, etc. Yes, I tend to overanalyze things!

Linda Adams · Sep 24, 2009

vroth said:
Hmm. When I was 14, I ran an 8 minute mile at my best, and I wasn't particularly fit. I could run one mile pretty fast and then I had to stop. So I think a 10 minute mile might be too slow, if she does eventually slow to a walk. Generally, people are capable of running pretty darn fast for their first mile, and then they crash miserably.

Unless you're me. I am an absolutely terrible runner, due to genetics. When I was in junior high school, they gave us a grade on how fast we ran. I got a C because they couldn't give me a failing grade. We had bean laps (get a bean for each lap completed in a set time), and I was always the one with the fewest beans. I probably would have had to work very hard to get to a 10 minute mile because, when I enlisted in the army, that was my best time--after spending daily runs and road marches (things I never did in school). After that, I was in the 12.5 minute mile range. Yes, I was really that slow!

Uzumaki · Sep 24, 2009

I read somewhere that side cramps from running are caused by insufficient exhalation, so if she's just had a fight with her friend and is upset, she's probably breathing weird to begin with. I don't think she'd make it very far, maybe not even a full mile.

StephanieFox · Sep 24, 2009

OK, so I'm a 56 year old woman and if walk really fast, I can do four miles in just over an hour. Maybe one hour and five or ten minutes. I'm in OK shape, but not regular athlete. Oh, and I have little short legs. This time includes a bathroom stop.

Take away 42 years, and add 20 or so pounds minus about four inches of inseam.

Does this help?

Question about running / jogging

Danalynn

NEVER give up!!!!

Maryn

Baaa!

Sophia

Danalynn

NEVER give up!!!!

Rowan

vroth

...yep.

Rowan

Linda Adams

Soldier, Storyteller

Uzumaki

StephanieFox

Maybull the Bulldog