Couch to 5k- Cage your inner chimp and get started!

[cinnamongreyhound]

A thread for those thinking of starting, just starting, making good progress or finish the c25k. For all abilities and stages, come and join us for support and advice, we're a lovely bunch!

Old thread

35kg Cinnamon that is amazing! I think we need before and after pic

Happy new year fellow C25/10k ers

I was the first up in my house this morning and was on the treadmill bashing out a hard won 5k at 10am, despite a 2am bedtime [bleary]. Feel fantastic now though. Got home at around 12:15 and DH had only just got up , DD had been up for about 30mins and DS2 & his gf are still asleep. So I'm feeling quite smug virtuous.

Will the rest of you be running today? Have you already been out? The weather is foul here, I almost drowned going from the car to the gym doors so I wouldn't fancy a road run today!

Well done UsedTo. I love the feeling virtuous, but no way was I getting up this morning! It has been foul here today too, so glad to be indoors but I will be up early tomorrow morning to run before everyone else gets up. Week 5 run 2 for me tomorrow, feeling nervous but excited! After all the wine I drank last night, I will need a good run

Cinnamon I am well impressed with your weight loss, and even more with your keeping it off! That is where I have the most trouble. I am probably at least 15kg overweight, but would happily lose 10kg. I am having trouble though, even the running doesn't seem to be shifting anything atm . I think I'm just eating/drinking too much and lack the self-control to do anything properly. Maybe next week...

Wow, I'm on week 7 and haven't lost any weight. Didn't expect to really though with Christmas and all.

Really really want to go running tonight but the weather is cookbook bad. ;-(

Cookbook?!!?! SO bad.

Stupid auto correct.

Was supposed to run today but weather is beyond awful. Wind and rain. Tomorrow is supposed to be better and I ran on Monday so this will be my two day break.

Have ordered the book Running Like a Girl as it has lots of good reviews on Amazon. Has anyone read it?

I'll see what I can find HalleLoujaandHappyNewYear!

Keeping it off was hard to start with lookout and I was logging a bit obsessively on mfp but I had to stop and realised I know my portion sizes and new what treats I could get away with or how to adjust some meals to allow for treats. Running for me now burns 100 calories per 10 mins so really not a lot! The muscle that's build should increase your BMR too so that helps but food is the key imo. I was eating about 4000 calories a day and gaining weight pretty rapidly since I lost weight while pregnant and bf ds2, I average around 1700-1800 calories a day but I am pretty active (walk around 2-3miles a day) and run 3x a week.

Did parkrun today at a new one to me and got a pb! It was an easier course, more paths and less hills but I really enjoyed it :)

cinnamon it sounds like you were pretty committed and I think that's what I lack. I tried low carbing at the beginning of the year and loved it, felt so much better for it, but since the onset of winter, I have been craving carbs something rotten! I'm hoping I can get back on it once ds1 and dh are back at school and we are back into a routine. Atm the lazy days and evenings are just not conducive to me making an effort with food/alcohol . I keep telling myself though, that at least I am making an effort with my fitness, and that that's better than nothing at all.

I also don't drink alcohol helps :). I know I couldn't do low carbing, that would be torture for me!

Hi all,

week 1 run 3 completed and feeling pretty pleased with myself. It was really hard just to manage 2 minute runs (it was run 2min + walk 2min, 6 times) and it's hard to imagine running 5k but it seems everyone feels like that at the start so I just have to stick with it.

I love downloading the runs from my running watch to my laptop - I'm such a nerd but seeing the little map and my time/distance makes me feel a bit professional and is helping me stick to the running. So glad I had vouchers to use so I could treat myself at xmas .

I'm combining the running with dieting - logging everything on MFP and will be back to Rosemary Conley next week. I'm hoping to lose another 2 stone (and maybe a bit more but I'll decide once I get there) and I'm finding being active makes me want to make healthy food choices BUT I'm really hungry all day and I seem to be really feeling the cold. Any tips for filling up?

cinnamon - congratulations on the great weight loss and on maintaining it. You must feel so much better for it.

HalleLoujaandHappyNewYear - I've just read the free sample on my kindle and enjoyed it so hoping for kindle vouchers for my birthday in a couple of weeks. Let me know what you think.

solveproblem - hope the weather is better tomorrow. How are you finding wek 7?

lookout - the exercise def has to be better than nothing and hopefully it'll help you when you decide to go back to the diet. I know I couldn't low carb even in the summer - love my pasta, rice and cous cous although I'd happily give up bread - but I imagine it must be really tough over the winter.

Soups are good for filling up but running definitely makes you more hungry!

Soups are great even when low carbing. In fact they are awesome over the winter: the sweet potatp, parsnip, carrot, squash, lentil combinations are pretty much the only carbs allowed so are great on a day when I allow carbs. I love pasta too, so used to have pasta some weekends, and I'd let myself have gluten free on a running day I reckon. I think I may have a gluten intolerance, I've felt like crap since I started eating wheat again, so will be happy to cut down again really. If only it didn't taste so damn good!

Just demonstrated my first bit of self control of 2014: rather than stay up with dh with another beer and another episode of Dexter, I am off to bed to get at least 7 hours in before my run tomorrow

Rugby, awesome, you've just done week 1!! Well done on getting through it, you're right to feel pleased with yourself. To fill up, snack on nuts and seeds, and have stuff like almonds, avocados, salmon, eggs, chicken which fill you up for longer. Soups with veggie carbs are good for comfort food at this time of year too (thanks to cinnamon for making me think of that!) Out of interest, which watch do you have and what does it do?

Well done rugby I felt exactly the same when I first started, thought I'd never be able to finish the programme. Which leads me to my next point...

WEEK EIGHT RUN THREE DONE!!!

I'm not quite up to 5K but ran for 30 minutes solid. Yippee! I cannot tell you, although I'm sure those who have already finished will know, how fabulous it felt to finish. Such a sense of accomplishment. It's taken me a little over eight weeks and I run fairly slowly, but when I compare that to how unfit I was when I finished chemo I could never imagine how quickly I would improve.

So if you're in the first few weeks and thinking you can't do it, you can! Stick with it, it's definitely worth it.

My plan now is to continue to run for ~30 minutes on my two weekday mornings and then try and run 5km on Saturdays. Then once I can manage 5km I will start using my 5K Forever app to increase my speed. I don't have any strong desire to run further than 5K at the moment.

Oh and rugby I find eggs and cheese are the best for keeping me full for longer. Also I try and eat slowly and mindfully which seems to help. Try to eat things that will keep your blood sugar fairly stable, not too much sugar or simple carbs, as when it spikes and then falls that can make you hungry.

Ok, I know this isn't great shakes but I started the C25k on Boxing Day after not having done any exercise for at least 3 months.
I did week 4 today of the programme I am on, so 5 sets of 4 mins, with a 1 min rest between sets.
The last set was really hard but by the time I had finished it, I honestly could have carried on a little longer...well, the flat bit anyway...the uphill was tough.
I am going to try 6 min sets next just to see what I can do.
Feel free proud of myself and am hoping for some good weather over the weekend so I can try the longer runs (well, very slow jogs)

Well done Ruby and Shiney.

Well today I got well and truly lost as I went running in the woods. I did my 25 minute run and then as I was soooo far from home I did another 10 minutes. I had a little break as I navigated myself out of the mud and the woods. Plus I would haven done more if it wasn't so much uphill.

Am thinking of ditching Laura for a little while and putting on my own music for a change. We will see. I have grown fond of the cheesy music. My podcast app on my android phone kept cutting out. But I think the android runkeeper was more accurate.

Well done everyone! First run of the year for me today and I actually really enjoyed it! It was w5r2, so 8m R, 5m W x2, but I actually did 12m R, 1m W and 8R! I was properly shocked! I can't believe I did 12 minutes running! I was properly dreading the 20m run, but I can totally do it! I never thought I'd be able to run more than a minute! I saw the positive side of it too today, took the DDs out on their new bikes and was chasing them without being out of breath!

Well done everyone on your running!!

Did w5r2 today and found the 8m easier than expected. 20m on Saturday though...

Well done to everyone!!!!

If you're feeling hungry the first thing to try is a glass of water

I went out today with a friend who I haven't run with before and she's much quicker than my friend I normally run with so it was more of a challenge but I enjoyed it. We did 6.5miles in 1hr 1min including stopping to sort the dogs a few times.

lookout, I was soooo nervous about the 20 minute run on week 5 and really didn't think I was going to be able to do it. But I did! So don't worry too much, it's all I the mind at this stage.

It's nice to hear that some if you are low carbing, I am too. I entered ketosis on NYE so today was my first run in ketosis. I expected it to make me more tired but the 25 minute run wasn't any more difficult than it was when I was full of carbs!

Only one run left of week 7 now.

Grrrr, PLEASE tell me that the definition of couch potato is a size 10 regular netball player. I just tried first one and couldn't get through the second run though I walk 8 miles each day in term time.

Thanks for the encouragement solve. I am kind of looking forward to challenging myself now. And it's getting lighter in the mornings already so my run in the woods is less scary!

Starlight Well done for getting started!! I do think jogging has it's very own special fitness category It took me 1 year of Pilates, 6 months of Barre Concept and then 5 months of interval training before I felt I could even attempt running, and even then it was damn hard work. Keep at it though, it does get easier. And so rewarding!

Just realised AllFur that we are on exactly the same run! When are you going for w5r3? I'm going on Saturday morning. Good luck!