Couch to 5k - it's not about speed (thread number 4)

[CruCru]

Would you all like to join me here?

Malefridge- we are at the same place. I'm tackling wk6r3 tomorrow. Am so nervous now about not having any breaks

And yes they do advise at least a day between runs to let muscles recover. Especially in the early days you don't want to overdo it and end up with an injury.

Hi everyone, here I am slinking back in after a 6-month total break from running. I have started at the beginning again, or nearly, started with W2 on Sat, and that was okay. and again on Monday, so today I am already much less achey than I was on Sunday. I always run before breakfast now, settled on that pattern last year, but of course it does not help with motivation in winter!

To the ones worried about the 20min run in W5 - YOU CAN DO IT. Really really if you have suck to the programme with Laura (or someone else!) it really is possible and you will feel so good about it! Go for it.

The rest days are important. You need to give your muscles time to rebuild, especially at the beginning, or risk strain and injury. I only 'dared' two days proper 5k running in a row only after I had settled into months of 5k runs.

That should be 'Stuck to the programme' of course

Ok, you've convinced me ! So a walk tomorrow, then W1R2 on Thursday, yoga Friday, and then W1R3 over the weekend.

W6R1 done. Thanks to all you lovely people who warned that it's a tough one. At first I kept wanting to speed up (though Laura warned me not to ) but I remembered what everyone said here and slowed it right down. Which was good, because I made it to the end, but with no energy to spare.

I looked at the map and measured how far I ran in the 20 minute jog. It's 2 km. So I'd have to speed up a lot to make 5km in half an hour. But I'm not going to do anything about that now. Now I'm building up the time. Speed and distance will have to come later. (And a month ago if anyone had said I could jog 2km I'd have howled with laughter.)

Glad you're off to a good start Bramshott! And yes, I'm very strict about taking a day off in between. Once or twice a week I do go out and walk or swim instead. But there's too much risk of injury without the recovery days between runs.

Don't - you will pick up the pace as the weeks go on. I think surely and I discussed this before. It all falls into place with times around wk8.

Surely - well done! It's an amazing feeling

So good to see everyone making such progress.

I've registered for my local park run this Saturday, and debating a 10k at the end of June. We'll see...

Holy shitbags... I have just run for 30 mins by accident!!!!! W5r3 this morn, was worried so thought I'd try out Laura for the first time for some extra motivation. Having not used the app before I didn't realise how freq she should be speaking to me etc... Somehow when flicking back to a song I liked I must've flicked back to the start of the 20 mins- I deliberately wasn't looking at my watch... Anyway I got home and mapmyrun says I've been out for 41 mins, have done 4.8km... Couldn't have done that knowingly if I tried!! Quite pleased now, although legs will prob not work for rest of day.... I will stick w Laura from now on but need to be more careful with buttons!!

wow apple well done, surely thats you graduated then, you ran 5k.

No, definitely not, still going to do the next 3 weeks as I don't want to get ahead of myself!! It was an accident after all!

Bloody hell apple. Did it not feel like an eternity? Well done anyway on your achievement, how did you get on with Laura? I'm tackling wk6r3 tonight. Hope she's going to be there every step of the way and I don't vomit at the end on a passing dog walker

Well I liked Laura a lot til I realised she hadn't said anything for ages and that was why!! Agree though it's nice to have the motivating voice when you are tired!

Tbh I just find the start difficult, no matter how far I'm going. I think if I can get through the first 10 mins then I'm ok! It really is mind over matter for me at least, j feel in my head that I can't do it so I want to stop even though i'm not too out of breath!

Just found you! I've been looking for a moving C25k thread to keep me motivated I'm running W2 R2 tonight. I completed C25k 2 years ago but life happened and I gave up running shortly after finishing week 9. No exercise in the interim and 3 stones heavier I'm keen to get back to it and doing fine so far but rewarding myself for my achievement means I'm not loosing any weight yet!

I didn’t w8r3 last night and ran for 30 minutes. I didn’t run 5 km but I can work on that.

Thanks for the reassurance locket, it’s good to know the distance will build up.

Blimey apple - that’s some run!!! No wonder you were wondering where Laura had gone. Well done for keeping going. Put your feet up and or for the rest of the day, you've earned it.

I looked out the window this morning and thought “what a lovely day, wish it was a running day”. Now that is not like me at all!!!!

Nice to hear everyone's updates and welcome Tinwe. Keep posting, you will find lots of support here.

Just done Wk6r3 which was surprisingly easier than wk6r2.

I mean where's the logic in that?

For the first time since I was, err, 10 yrs old, I've ran solid for 25 mins. Am chuffed, to say the least!

Nice one ido!

IDo I'm a day behind you so you've made me more optimistic about tomorrow's run. I can't work out why the start of w6 was so hard, after all the progress in w5. Got to work out a new bit of route tomorrow, as the 20m run exhausted my running route so I need to work out another 5m to tack on.

Fingers crossed for good weather (but I'll still go out in the driving wind and rain...)

It's weird malefridge- physically it was ok, lots easier than the last couple of runs. Found it more of a mental challenge so if you're determined to just keep plodding on you will be absolutely fine. And Laura was ace as usual.

stunts there is a scientific reason for the continuous runs being easier than the stop start ones.

Something like the first few minutes use one type of energy source, to allow you to outrun the animal who wants you as dinner. Around the 5-10 min point, that source runs out, and your body uses a different energy source. If you can make the switch, you can carry on, but if you stop, the instant energy source builds back up, and then when that runs out, you struggle to make the switch again. Does that make sense??

addicted, that makes sense, but I found even the runs themselves on w6r1 worse than previous longer or equally long runs. The first run was 5m and I kept on thinking "are we nearly there yet", and then an 8m run, where I was thinking the whole time "I wonder if the app is broken, I must surely have done 8m by now", so it wasn't just it was harder starting again from walking, but each bit seemed like a grind.

Nipping on just to say a well done to all who are so far through!

I've just completed W2R2, was a bad run from the start (pain in knee and weary today) but I'm glad I saw it through.

Addicted - thanks for the info, v interesting. Fits with my experiences last time I did the C25k and did longer runs

That does make sense addicted. Lots of folk I've heard say if they can get past the first 10 mins then they can do it all without stopping. The body's amazing really. Well it must be to get me from only being Able to run for 60 seconds to non stop for 25 in 6 weeks .

For me the first ten minutes is the second hardest bit. The real challenge is putting my running kit on and making it out of the front door