newbie runner,,what should i start with

Hi to all im scott but evryones calls me muldoon,new here so bear with with.just took up running and enjoying it immensly,used to play alot of squash .footy and gym but now in my early 40s and consider myself ok fitness wise,checked out the training plans and really unsure how to go about it tried the run n walk but just doesnt do it for me so have been running  for approx 20/25 mins at jog pace i spose,,any tips about where i need to go from here maybe looking at doing some 5k/10k  next year so just wondered if anyone had any tips,all greatly appreciated,many thx

Muldoon, good to hear from you, and congrats on getting the running bug.

Keep doing your regular running.  All I'd add in initially is some hill work, or sprints if you don't have hills.  This is good to build up stamina and recovery speed.  Prob once a week try one of your runs at a faster than jog speed.

How to do it all is a very personal thing, and like you most running plans just don't work for me.

One piece of advice I was given some time ago which can be helpful is don't run to distance but to time.  So instead of going for 3 miles, go for 30 mins.  Depending how competitive you are it can help you to stop trying to go faster every time and gt some quality training in.

Hope some of that helps.

My key thing is to book a race in to aim for.  Keeps me focussed.

Mr B thx for that ,yes will have to go for sprints rather than hills as in a city so very flat,,when do you think it is good to start increasing time or mileage ,just dont want to be become too bored with it ,spose best way is to book a race in the future i guess n take it from there.

Hi Muldoon, there has been some good advice from the guys here and you will find some good resources on this site to help you. Personally I set out a plan for the week, but be prepared to be flexible on this. I usually chose a time or distance for each run and stick to it. This depends on how I feel or when my next race is. So when you feel good you don't go mad and over do it & when you're feeling tired you can push yourself. Just choose what suits you and have fun, Good luck   

Thx guys taking it all on board,trying to sort thru the training which will become useful,,the technical stuff can wait  about times per mile etc and see where we go.

muldoon: I suggest you should go online and see if you have a local parkrun - they're 5 K (3.1 mile) runs held every Saturday at parks all round the UK, 9am (9.30 am in Scotland). You register once online, print your ID barcode, then turn up at any parkrun (take your barcode!). They're free, timed, friendly and great fun, suitable for all ages and all abilities. It's a great way to give yourself a challenge and avoid getting bored without trying to do too much too soon. My local parkrun is two laps and many people do one lap initially if they're just starting running or are returning after injury. We have all ages from 7 to 70+ and all abilities from fast club runners to people walk/jogging in 45 minutes or more.

Thx Debra will def do that as it shoulds ideal for me ,is there a website for it?Sounds a great way to get introduced no time to join running clubs etc as i cant commet to anything due to work etc but many thx.

http://www.parkrun.org.uk/ - gives you all the info about events, and you can register from there (you have to go through a couple of screens, fill in some basic details). Enjoy!

Many thx again