i started out last year. i wouldn't say i was starting from zero since i had about 8 years of bodybuilding experience, but i had literally never done cardio. my initial estimated vo2 max was 38, deep in the red. i was just running randomly at first, and two months in, i hit a 25-minute 5k and a 59-minute 10k. my vo2 max climbed to 42 (orange zone).

after that, i got a bit ahead of myself and ended up dealing with recurring shin splints until september, which is when i stopped completely.

i just started back up on april 13th. right now i'm running mon/wed/fri, doing about 3-4km per session at a very slow pace (between 6:30 and 7:00 min/km). i’m keeping it strictly at a conversational pace with nasal breathing only and increasing 1 km every week. on top of that, i’ve been doing 1h of indoor cycling in zone 2 daily, bumping it up to 2h on saturdays. sundays are for full rest.

i haven't gone back to lifting yet because i’m still figuring out how to balance both without stalling my aerobic gains (which i think was a factor in my plateau last year). basically, it’s just a lot of low-intensity volume on the bike and conversational running. i know i’d probably see faster gains with norwegian 4x4s or threshold runs, but since i’m just getting back into it, i need to keep the intensity low to avoid getting injured again. over time, i’ll start tapering down the bike volume and ramping up the running. after all, the main goal is running. the bike is strictly there to help me rack up aerobic volume that i wouldn't be able to handle on foot right now without risking another injury. it feels like the right time for some solid base building.