Does couch 25k actually work?

[JizzPigeon22]

I’ve just finished week one and can’t imagine for a second being able to run for half an hour after just 9 weeks!
Aibu to think this is a big con and I’m going to be disappointed? Currently doing it with my 5 year old and having a lot of fun but worrying ahead of time
Has anyone done it and want to share their running success stories?

Not me but DP. He’s done it twice now! He did it years ago but fell of the wagon so to speak.
He started it at the start of lockdown, unfit, overweight. He’s now two stone lighter, does 5k three times a week, is slowly upping his pace and is happier for it. He’s also eating smaller portions. It’s made him look at various unhealthy aspects of his life and change things for the better. I’m really proud of him.

It definitely works! I'm a non-runner who started C25K at the start of lockdown, and I was embarrassingly unfit - felt like I was going to die after running a minute. But if you stick with it and take it as slowly as you need to (if I was struggling, I told myself 'just don't walk, and don't stop, and that will do'), and don't be ashamed to repeat a week if you need to, it's amazing how your stamina builds.

It sounds corny, but 'trust the programme!'... there was a time when milestones like 8 minutes (or, heaven forbid, the first time I had to run for 20 minutes!) were really daunting, but I am hoping to run 10km for the first time this coming Saturday. I'm still not fast, but it's really satisfying to be able to cover distance, however slowly! Best of luck to you

Yes. I went from couch to half marathon and then to marathon. Stick with it, if you find a week really tough then consider repeating it. My top tip is to run much slower than you think you need to when you start. Like so slow it almost feels silly. Lots of people do the running bits too fast when they start and get massively disheartened. The aim is to be able to keep running for longer and longer periods, speed can come later.

Yes definitely works. I was completely unfit and had never run before in my life. I decided to do a 10k run in memory of someone close. So I started with the C25K
After my first day I was panicking and was already thinking of dropping out. I decided to persevere with the app and literally managed to run 5k. I couldn’t do it within the half hour the final week said but I did it without stopping in 45 mins. I moved on to the 10k app and ran my first 10k in an hour 15 mins.
It 100% works xx

OP I would describe myself as strong but not fit! I can lift a lot of weight (squats and deadlifts) but I struggle with cardio.

I started couch to 5k and really struggled, by week 5 I was running for 20 minutes. I had to stop then due to medical reasons but I really want to get back to it as it is such a sense of achievement

It 100% works. I did it a few years ago and went from struggling to run for a minute to doing a half marathon fairly easily in the space of 6 months. It completely blew my mind! I got injured and didn’t run for a few years but am back on it now and it’s working all over again!

You can repeat weeks if you dont feel ready to move on

A also find it easier to walk for good 10 mins before starting as need to really warm up

No shame whatsoever in repeating a week or any number of weeks. Just don't miss a week. I have done a marathon now but I still remember the waddle round the block at the beginning going slower than walking pace!

I'm one of those slim people that was desperately unfit - before c25k I could not run for more than 2mins without stopping. And I would be winded and hurting.

But it really worked for me! Now I actually enjoy running and I'm still in disbelief about it because I hated it and was so bad at it before.

I finished it yesterday! I've lost a stone, I can run for 35 minutes non-stop now and I absolutely love it. It really does work.

It does work and trust me I couldn't run a minute before. I don't always manage 5k without stopping at mile 2 for a bit but I CAN do it and have plenty of times thanks to the programme.
I do other exercise mostly but I still run at least once a week. I did 5 miles last night (a few stops) but still 5 miles and I feel I am now set for life as long as I keep it up.... I wish I had the programme as a teenager who was always last in cross country!

It’s amazing. Not only did I do it but I loved it at end!! And turns out I was fast! BUT
Warm up and down... or when you get cocky you get injured 🙄😳🙄

I did it on a cross trainer ( bad knees) At the beginning I could hardly do 1 min on the lowest resistance setting without almost expiring. 9 weeks later I could run at level 6-7 resistance for a whole 30 mins.

I've done it several times but only ever got up to running for 25 mins max, usually because weather intervened (I was running on country lanes). There's a big leap of faith when you suddenly have to do 20 mins, but it does work.

The only thing is, C25K turns you into someone who can run. What it can't 100% guarantee is turning you into someone who enjoys running. I hated it, even when I could do it without feeling like I was dying, so I stopped.

Yes, it absolutely does! Started it last September, hated it with a passion. By December I’d done it and ran regularly til February when life got in the way. Started again a month ago and this week I’ve done 2 30 minute runs with a 35 minute one scheduled for Friday.

Just keep going, putting one foot in front of the other! You can work on pace and distance later. I find it really helpful to log my runs on Strava, and this time round I’m doing it with a friend which is great as we keep each other going.

Well done - I remember finding week 3 and week 8 really hard, and I still don’t find the ‘joy’ in running, but it works.

I broke my foot at the beginning of lockdown and last weekend ran 30 minutes, the last ten of which were up a hill I could barely walk up a month ago. So yes definitely, it works!

Yep! I did it and every single session I was convinced I wouldn’t be able to do it, but every time I found I could. I was astonished at how quickly I care to be able to do things which had seemed inconceivable two weeks before. I started out genuinely struggling to run for a minute and finished up regularly running 5ks at park run. I’m pregnant now but can’t wait to get back into it.

But also - don’t get disheartened if you do find any single step to be too much. It’s absolutely fine if you need to repeat weeks / days - that absolutely isn’t a failure.

Yes I’ve done it and continued to run 5K. Although I need to get into it a bit more now. I did it as part of a running group.

Find your pace, you need to still be able to talk in short sentences. I was convinced I would never be able to run 5K!

Yep. I was never a runner but regularly run 5k now.

Not for me, I just can't run for more than 3 minutes. I have tried C25K a few times.

So no, not everyone can run, but I hope it works for you. Good luck!

It worked for me.

I started it almost 3 years ago (aged 53 then).

I am still running for 30 minutes twice a week.

I'm not fast, or competitive, but I feel so much better for it.

So good for your mental health as well as your physical health.

I did not believe it could possibly work, and the people who raved about it must all be sporty closet gym bunnies.

Then I did it

It changed my life

Where did people go running? I am really unfit and I am embarrassed going anywhere that is too public but I have nowhere near that is private. Did anyone else suffer with embarrassment at first?

Another who has done it. I started at the beginning of 2019 and have been running since (bar a broken foot at the end of last year which meant I had to stop entirely for 6 weeks 😭). I've been running 3-4 times a week during lockdown, getting up early and doing 7-8km runs. Running makes me happy these days (I never even liked running when I was younger!) xx