C25K newbies support thread

[UnconsciousCoupling]

Hi

Has anyone recently started or just about to start? Would be great to have somewhere to check in and cheer each other on.

I've started very slowly and am about to embark on week 3. I'm spending 2 weeks on each week if that makes sense!

Look forward to anyone else joining in.

Hope it's ok to join in. I have been doing the C25k and really enjoying it. However I am doing week 4 for the second week in a row and I am still battling- I just can't run right through the second 3 minute run, I walk part of it and then do the last 5 minute run ok.
I am in the southern hemisphere and it has summer has suddenly arrived so it is a bit warmer than it has been but I am running in the mornings so it should be manageable
I am getting discouraged now- kids break up for their long holidays next week so it's going to be harder to squeeze in running time and I can just feel the temptation to jack it in.
Should I repeat week 4 again or try to move up to week 5 and give it a bash?

Hope it's ok to join in. I have been doing the C25k and really enjoying it. However I am doing week 4 for the second week in a row and I am still battling- I just can't run right through the second 3 minute run, I walk part of it and then do the last 5 minute run ok.
I am in the southern hemisphere and it has summer has suddenly arrived so it is a bit warmer than it has been but I am running in the mornings so it should be manageable
I am getting discouraged now- kids break up for their long holidays next week so it's going to be harder to squeeze in running time and I can just feel the temptation to jack it in.
Should I repeat week 4 again or try to move up to week 5 and give it a bash?

Hello Ginger!

I might do it the other way round I think, drop back to week 3 and carry on from there?

Hi Ginger

I have no advice as am just a newbie but your multiple posts made me .

Don't give up! Can you run before the kids are up? I'm in the Southern Hemisphere too but my kids are old enough to stay at home on their own for a bit. I'm starting W4 next week if you want to repeat it again with a running buddy?

I found it easier to run later in the day ginger my body copes with it better despite me normally preferring to exercise in the morning. Gd luck getting past this hurdle, will listening to different music or podcast help motivate you to keep running?

I'm still feeling very sorry for myself no running or walking this week been off work all week with this horrid virus , had this flipping virus 2weeks now, SO hoping to at least get back to walking next week!!

Thanks for the messages and apologies for the multiple posts- I am not quite that desperate yet- just a poor internet connection. My children are still small and mu husband works offshore so I am on my own at the minute so not terribly flexible about timing. I will keep at it though, thanks for the encouragement. I think I will try a week 3 run again to boost my confidence and go from there.

Parkrun completed yesterday - 36 mins and a few seconds! 70th overall so am creeping up the table. My dd did it in 28 mins again 40th overall.

My knees are hurting today though, I think I need a rest day.

Biking your virus sounds miserable. Hope it clears up soon.

Finally went out again today. Seems like about once a fortnight is what my shins can handle. Still managed to do the amount I did last time, but it's going to be pretty hard to increase at this rate! Still, I'll keep going like this til after Christmas, just sporadically, as that's all the time I have anyway.

Well done Crotchet for getting out there.

I've just done W4 R1. Was awful, I couldn't manage to run all of the second 5 min block, as was going up hill so I walked a bit. My knees are hurting too, even though I rested yesterday. I now don't know whether to rest or keep going and run through it and just build my muscles up. I went swimming on Sat and hope to do so more regularly to get different exercise. I really really don't want to stuff up my knees . . .

My knees have been hurting too, Archduke.

I went to a branch of www.runnersneed.com yesterday to get my gait analysed. They film you running on a treadmill and recommend shoes, so I've got new trainers on the way.

Plus I've just signed up at the local gym, explained what I wanted and came out with a workout plan. He recommended using weights for several bits of it & there's also a machine for doing back stretches which made me feel like a vampire bat.

The non-gym-specific bits are:

20 lunges on each leg

15 step-ups on each leg

12 squats

Planks with diagonal leg stretches (15 for each leg)

And use stairs as often as possible!

So I'm seeing if it helps.

W4 does feel like a big jump up- I have repeated W3R1 today and it was tough but manageable, hopefully I can build some stamina this week and reattempt W4 next week- even if I have to do laps round the garden while the kids are off school. No advice on knees I'm afraid- I definitely feel if I don't run every other day I lose the stamina built up quickly but you don't want to hurt yourself.

I second the suggestion of shoes to help knees. Make sure you have the right shoes for your gait and terrain. I can always tell when my shoes need replacing as my knees start to hurt.

I can always tell when my shoes need replacing as my knees start to hurt.

That's what my runner friend said, Bit, and I'm hoping she's right.

Thanks heaps for the knee and exercise advice. My shoes are new and I got them fitted by a shop that does that gait stuff - so I think it's more likely to be running whilst fat and unfit .

I'll do the exercises and try to build up slowly. Maybe repeat W3 like you ginger.

Oh yes there's no harm at all in repeating weeks. And the knees do get easier with less weight on them so that's a virtuous circle.

W5R1 this morning, another great run through the fields on a freezing cold sunny day. I've done C25k before, but I don't remember enjoying it this much.

I've done w4r1. Weirdly despite my apprehension it didn't feel hard, tho my trainers have rubbed a bit.

Well done everyone.
I finally got out tonight after nearly 3wks out of action with horrid virus. Felt SO good to stretch my legs, was really worried I'd lost all my fitness but after 1k walk warm up I ran for 2k non-stop pleased with myself and hopefully will not get any more injuries or illness to slow me down for a few more weeks so I can get back upto 5k!

Good on you Squirrels!

Biking, so glad you're feeling better.

Just done my W4R3 at PARKRUN. Although I'm back down to 38 mins after my 36 min run of glory last week, it was great. After a slow achey start I found the last km really easy - for the first time ever I got into the zone and just ran. It felt fantastic.

I was still beaten by my daughters - this week dd aged 11 did it in 28 mins and dd aged 9 (recovering from a serious accident) did it in 34. So I've a bit of a way to go before I thrash them.

Biking so glad you got out - it must have felt great to be able to run at last. Well done too Squirrels and Justfor

Whoop whoop keep it up!

Well done Arch your brave running with your DDs my eldest is 9.75yrs and would also whoop me if I ran with her, we don't have a park run near me, but we do have a seafront 5k run on Boxing Day I was really hoping to do but I'm not sure I can get there in 2wks now and not look like a red tomato jogging along my DH wants to do it in 20mins!
Thanks for the encouragement empress I like your new trainers on the 5 to 10K thread, my fav colour!

Well done Archduke and Biking.

Well, I've done week 9, the 30 min runs. V proud of myself but disappointed that im only managing 4.5 km in the 30 mins instead of 5k. I still find it soooo hard too. The first 5 mins I find particularly awful, and am always convinced I'll never make it.

I tried listening to a different podcast today instead of the awful music of the nhs couch to 5k podcast. I listened to 'one bad mother' which is funny and made the whole thing a bit less painful!!

I find exactly the same thing with the first 5 minutes, Scarlett!

As for making the 5K in 30 mins, I didn't. Still can't. For the last week, I went by distance instead of time.

Glad I'm not the only one Empress! Don't think I could carry on running for any longer than 30 mins though to do the extra half kilometre! Still, when I think how hard I found running for one minute just a few months ago, I've def made progress.

Exactly - I still remember how tough W1R1 was!

My longest so far is 8K, but I'm going to slow things down a bit to hopefully stop my knees kicking off again.