Couch to 5K- the first day of the rest of your life :)

[cinnamongreyhound]

Come and join us if you're thinking about starting, have started or have finished and are loving running! Lots of support, advice and general cheering on for everyone. Find the old thread here.

Thanks cinnamongreyhound! I'm even dreaming about running now. I had a dream that I was arguing with a volunteer at the parkrun who was refusing to give me a time because I wasn't wearing swimming goggles . Ha ha!

Ezza!

Well done nurse. Slow and steady is fine, especially with a sore ankle. I dreamt about on Friday night, before the parkrun.

Ezzza
super run, you deserve

running with the run England ladies Thurs

I run pretty slow, I think Cinnamon. I do 3.3km in 30 minutes jogging/running, do you think I am going too fast?

I was a bit of a wimp, and did Wk1r3 again, but found it much easier today than I did Friday. Almost as easy as run 1 so shall be going for wk2r1 Wednesday if my thighs allow it!

Well done all, I hope I will be doing as well as you all in a few weeks!

Please tell me that running through snow uses more energy! I'm repeating w7 this week because I don't seem to find it easier each time - maybe that's because the snow came half way through the week and it's more tiring -I hope... I almost felt like stopping today and Saturday for the first time! I do hope I'll find it easier on Wednesday. Any thoughts?

Hi everyone,

Have been lurking but not posted yet!

Attempted W2R1 today but it didn't go well. I had to stop after the 3rd run and come home. I couldn't breathe properly. Think it must have been a combination of things, will try again tomorrow, and use my inhaler before I start.
Incidentally, I'm doing this on a treadmill (I hate the cold!). After a run I always feel fantastic but felt dreadful after this failed attempt today :(. Any advice? I'm just under 19st at the moment, and found W1 not too bad. Hoping I stick with it :(

Everyone seems to be doing so well, I hope I can get as addicted as you lot!

Well I guess I'd better get on and run 5K now that Ezzza has gone and done it!

Seriously though it is really good to have this thread and the people on it to keep me motivated. I don't really feel like going out, but I know I'll feel better afterwards.

Ran Sunday at 7.30pm in the end as that was when my friend could make it. Couldn't go last night and I'm not tonight as I'm going to the cinema later and dh wants to train so I'm being kind , really want to go now I can't!

It definitely does fireandlife, it's a bit like running on sand plus I think you're more worried so it messes up your natural stride a bit too. Could just be a bad run, they happen from time to time. I find being dehydrated really affects my run too so make sure you drink plenty and hour or so before you go.

Welcome WishYouWereMine! I think sometimes you just have bad runs, if you are asthmatic then that is something you will have to think about and see how it goes as to when you need your inhaler. I think with breathing the more you think about it the worse it is, so try and just breath and think about something else. I was almost 15st when I started and weight does make it harder (am 9 1/2 now) but still doable. Try slowing your pace, I found it was better to slow down and get through than to have to stop. Speed can come later, just keep your legs moving. Good luck with your next run :)

I did my second 25 minute run yesterday, and it was good. Even felt I wasn't too out of breath when I finished . And my shins are much less sore than they were before, so I'm hopeful that this will be OK as I move to longer runs.

I did it my first ever 5k. My leg now hurt and so does my neck but still

Woo hoo!

Brilliant. How long did it take you?

Congratulations frenchfancy, you'll start to find yourself getting fitter and fitter now. And congratulations to you to BecauseImWorthIt, glad your shins are less painful.
Monday (term-time) is always my rest day - just too busy to squeeze a run in. But I've been out tonight - it was trying to snow, but not settling at the moment, just very cold and an added wind-chill factor. I had a great run today. I'd had a hard, long day at work and felt really tired, but I went out (as I always do on a Tuesday). And it just felt good. Picked up speed as I progressed through my 5.5k. I now feel less tired and more at peace with the world.

Thanks Cinnamon! I really recognised all those things you said about being extra careful and worrying a bit too. I'm happy to stick with week seven this week as the snow is clearly making me work a bit harder. I could run on the path but I'm happier hiding on the very snowy sports fields! Everyone's doing so well. Traditionally I hate running but a decent sports bra and the nhs podcasts seem to be working for me. I reached last Summer feeling horribly stressed, unfit and with awful sciatic back pain and am determined not be in the same position come this Summer holiday. With literally no time for anything else, I was left with running as the activity starts the moment you leave the house and I'm suspicious of DVDs... Good luck to all those who have just started.

I'm not sure how long it took, I forgot to look at my watch when I left the house. Bit stiff this morning but not too bad.

Hope the snow clears up for you all soon.

I def have good and bad runs, though it gets easier and the bad runs are fewer. I went out on Monday hoping to do a long run, but only managed 6k. Though on saturday it was my dts birthday and I went for a quick run thinking if I was still tired I'd just do 3k and did 6 that day too! Our snow mostly disappeared pretty quick, but Monday the forest was badly flooded and I think I got tired too quickly, running through deep mud and hurdling streams!

I'm off out today again, but very tired again. dd had a school concert last night, so it was a late night. Will take it easy and see how it goes. The sun is peeking out though, hoping it hangs around!

Well done frenchfancy!

Yay for running to bring some peace pennygallops!

Hope you have a lovely sunny run chopstheduck

So looking forward to the clocks going forward at the weekend, will be able to run in daylight for the next 6 months yay!!! Got training tonight and then running Thursday with my friend. Maybe park run Saturday as we are not going to in laws anymore!

Did W8R2 today and, as Monday, I managed to keep going all the way around my 5k loop again! I?ve noticed the ankle warms up and stops being so stiff at about the 30 minute mark, allowing me to run almost normally. Well today I ran the loop 37 seconds faster than I did on Monday , so 5k in 41m55s, which is still a heck of a site slower than when not injured ( park run was under 40 mins and I walked 10-15 of those!) but I guess I have to be patient. I feel a bit like a bike with a flat tyre ? still moves but slow going.

Well done on completing week one dementedmom!

fireandlife, running in snow definitely takes more energy.

WishYouWereMine, welcome to the thread. We all have bad runs. Don?t worry. If you found week 1 ok then just keep going with week 2. Are you pushing yourself to run fast? I found when I was forced to slow down by my ankle that my lungs were thanking me for it and let me keep running for ages longer than before. Could you slow down a bit? At the moment I?m running so slowly I?m barely able to overtake people walking in the park but I can keep going much longer because of it.

Well done on the 5k frenchfancy! Glad to see you didn?t adopt the Ezzza method (i.e. nobble yourself so you can?t run very fast so your lungs let you run the whole way) for pacing yourself to last the distance!

Now I know what it?s like to want to go out but not be able to cinnamon. When I had to rest my ankle just after I?d done it I kept seeing joggers around the city and feeling very . Will you get a chance to go out today?

Well done on the 25 minutes BecauseImWorthIt, I found it got really good from that point.

I was like that when I broke my foot NurseEzzzaChapel, everywhere I went I saw runners! I'm going to training tonight, assuming dh is home in the next 15mins

Still lots of snow here but a tractor had squashed some of it making tracks so I ran on these which were still icy and tricky but a bit better than the deeper snow. A better run! I'm glad I haven't used the snow as an excuse not to go out - almost did though! Keep running!

Well done fireandlife!

Went to training and my god it was hard!! Was doing 4m20-4m30 Kms! I usually run at about 5m40 per km. We ran in groups of three, each person doing 2 laps then one lap rest but each lap you run with a different person so you all rotate. Two lots of 20 min plus a jog there and back. My triceps are still wibbly!

I did wk2r1 last night. I have now woken up in absolute agony with my knees (I have osteoarthritis). I just hope they ease by tomorrow, as I need to stick at this! Signed up to Race for Life with a friend which is in 3 months, and I really want to complete it!

Not surprised they are wibbly Cinnamon! I hope to be able to do the same one day.

I thought this was interesting from Runners World

What's the Burn? A Calorie Calculator
You can use the formulas below to determine your calorie-burn while running and walking. The "Net Calorie Burn" measures calories burned, minus basal metabolism. Scientists consider this the best way to evaluate the actual calorie-burn of any exercise. The walking formulas apply to speeds of 3 to 4 mph. At 5 mph and faster, walking burns more calories than running.

Your Total Calorie Burn/Mile
Running
0.75 x your weight (in lbs.)
Walking
0.53 x your weight (in lbs.)

Your Net Calorie Burn/Mile (i.e. accounting for the calories your body would have burned just sitting on the sofa anyway - this is the figure you want to use if you want to eat back your exercise calories)
Running
0.63 x your weight (in lbs.)
Walking
0.30 x your weight (in lbs.)

Adapted from "Energy Expenditure of Walking and Running," Medicine & Science in Sport & Exercise, Cameron et al, Dec. 2004.

Ezzza and cinnamon, I know what you mean too! Struggled out tonight for the first time since I've had flu! Definitely not breaking any speed records but did manage the full half hour (still running with the C25K podcasts, really must do something about that!) I was really pleased about that since as an asthmatic, any flu or cold sort of thing has a tendency to make me cough and wheeze so I was really relieved to be able to run OK. Not sure my legs are thanking me for it though But now I am sitting down with
Would never have believed a few months ago that I would be desperate to be out running...

Been out tonight too, my friends dh was back late so didn't go until 8 on a fullish stomach so not too fast but a nice run. Hoping to go tomorrow and then park run Saturday.

Glad you're feeling up to running again SarahWithAFringeOnTop :)