C25K encouragement continued

[Jibberoo]

Hi everyone

I've started this thread as I couldn't add any more posts to the other one. Hopefully you all find this thread!!

Hope everyone had enjoyed their day - so bored at home right now I'm glad I have the run to look forward to. Waited till it got dark and I headed out with my new running buddy - my 11yo ds. Yes he ran ahead of me and stopped a few times so I could catch up, but we ran 4.46km in 33mins and I'm so proud of both of us! (And little dog of course who's my faithful running buddy). It was a bit drizzly tonight which was actually quite nice as it wasn't that cold so the rain cooled me off a bit.

I've been thinking of how I can improve my stride length and I wonder if I can use my rest days to do W1r1 and try to do it with much longer strides? Seeing my son running I realise how inefficient my stride is. If I can only learn to open my stride I could run much further in the same time. If I can walk tomorrow I might try that to see if I can.

Hope everyone is enjoying their runs today!

I like running in the rain. that removes the masses from the parks.
my dream is to run along the beach, but for that I need to add more stamina and km.
maybe towards the summer.

I made it out for my run. Warmer today so the path wasn’t icy.

I agree with redcandlelight I ran a dog slalom today in parts. Tiny dogs in packs who see me and need to run under my feet. I like dogs, but not when they want to trip me up.

Took my family out with me today, they did their own thing.

Found the runs section hard as I’d missed a run. Got much better mid way through. But the start was tough and I wanted to cry a bit. But Jo helped me carry on.

I ran on tues and completed w4 so was planning on starting w5 on Thursday or Friday but the icy roads stopped that, so today I repeated w4r3 and I’m glad I did.

DH is a serious runner and I’m the opposite. I asked if I looked really silly running, because I worry people pass me and think, why does she bother she’s so slow.

But he said I looked like someone who was fit and out running. Even the DC who came last time said I was going fast. It feels like a crawl along to me.

Anyway, I feel loads better for getting out there, my head isn’t a jumbled mess of anxiety now.

The next few weeks will be hard if the weather is below freezing. So I’ll keep at it as much as I can. Early morning isn’t going to work if it’s still below freezing.

Congratulations to schoolcook wow you are doing so well.

I’ve had a bit of a fail today - I went out for w8 r3 and I did complete it but had to stop for two mini rests in the middle. Just so out of breath. I think I went too fast at the start, but also it’s the first day of my period which I suspect doesn’t help.

Guess I need to repeat that one next time?

@minipie
you definitely didn't fail!
you went out and did the sensible thing and got your breath back when you needed it.

I did 5k earlier with the teens. glorious sunshine.
we went to a sportpark a few miles away. no dogs allowed but doing the rounds there bored me witless, almost as bad as a treadmill. next time with headphones...
and a warm jacket for the cycle back.

Well done @Jibberoo and @schoolcook !! It feels great to achieve a goal doesn’t it?!
I agree that dogs are a totally unpredictable hazard when you’re running - the bigger problem for me at the moment is the sheer number of people in the park if I run later in the morning (when it’s slightly warmer) because of Tier 4. Hard to keep a distance! Back to work this week so will have to go out early - at least the problem will disappear.

Thanks redcandlelight yes I guess it all helps!

Thanks @Talksunderwater and @DobbyTheHouseElk it sure does feel good. And gives me a baseline to make sure I don't get lazy

Wk7 run3 - Conditions underfoot so bad that I am astonished I stayed upright.
Had already planned to dial back the time & distance for this run as pushed it a bit much for the last. My pace was still way off due to the slipperiness. Did 4.5km in 31.5 min which is a slower pace than usual. I know why it was slow but can't help but feel a bit disappointed nevertheless, which is silly really.

Hope everyone else enjoys their runs today; and here's hoping for some safer conditions soon.

Well done SerialRelocator that sounds pretty fast to me!
Like Dobby I decided to repeat W4R3 having had a few too many days off rather than move straight to the dreaded W5! It was fine, mysterious one-shin muscle pain still there although my shiny new trainers helped a bit I think
I've been googling and The Internet seems to think it's actually due to super tight calves - your shin muscles have to work that bit harder to lift your foot as the calf resists, which makes a lot of sense as I am incredibly inflexible in my legs. More stretching then
Enjoy your running today those of you out there!

cavagirl I now stretch before a run. I copy what DH does pre marathon training. I lie on the floor in a door frame, and push my bottom into the edge of the wall floor join. Leg up the door frame, other leg flat down. Don’t know if this is understandable! But I then pull my toes towards me. It really stretches my calf and hamstrings. I’ve found I don’t get so tight running when I’ve done this. Less”T-Rex” running as well.

Was in SUCH a bad mood today, back to work blues in full swing, and I was prevaricating and prevaricating all afternoon because I just DID NOT feel like running. But I forced myself out and did my beloved w5r1 which I know I can do as it’s my baseline and now I feel a bit proud of myself. It’s not made any progress in the C25K programme but I don’t care; it’s better than nothing which is the only other thing I would have done today!

@minipie i graduated back in the summer and for a while used the Zombies Run app which was quite good fun, but eventually I felt as if I was just doing the same kind of run all the time and I wasn't enjoying the whole experience so much. The last couple of months I've been using the Nike Run Club app which has all sorts of guided runs on it - short, long, speed, headspace, etc.. The coach talks a lot, and asks a lot of questions, and is very enthusiastic, and I know it annoys some people, but I actually find it helps to have an encouraging voice in my ear. I really like having so many options to choose from. I have spotify for between the talking, and I always run strava with the half km notifications running. Happy running everybody.

The Nike Run app sounds good thank you! I like lots of talking... anything to help me lose track of the time and it’s great it works with Spotify.

Hi I'm really enjoying c25k and have done run 3 of week 6 this evening. 25 mins. I'm not having too many problems, I just keep it really slow and am very determined. Trouble is, my knees are sore afterwards. Any ideas? Am 52. So do not want to stop running.

Am wearing old, cheap trainers and having read previous comments I'm wondering if this could be why or if that's too optimistic and it's because my knees are knackered !

yes, get new trainers.
muscle ached after a run are fine, but 'mechanical' pain shouldn't be.

how are you running? do you land on the heel? try to land on the middle part of your foot.
also, my physio told me that women tend to run/walk with feet too close together. try to align ankle-knee-hip in one straight line.

@theyarereallytakingthepissnow can you get to a store which will analyze your feet? some places can do a full gait analysis but I had success with a place that just had me doing squats on a weird plate thing. I was skeptical at first but after looking at me doing the squats the lady immediately asked if I got pain in my shins and knees particularly in my right leg which was exactly the problem I was having. She produced me a few different pairs of trainers to try on and choose from and I haven't had any issues since. The pain was caused by me rolling my feet inwards as I landed. Its possible yours is caused by something more complicated but better shoes is a good place to start

Hi @theyarereallytakingthepissnow. I am the same age as you, now (sort of) on wk8.

The good news is that it is unlikely that your knees are just knackered. But there is quite a long list of things that could cause the pain such as: shoes with poor cushioning, tight muscles, weak glutes, too much pavement stomping particularly if you were carrying extra weight or when getting too tired.

In any event, you should be wearing better trainers, suited to the terrain you run on and ideally also your gait. I love my Hoka One Challenger ATR as they allow me to do both trail and some road, have good cushioning for a trail shoes, and because of their odd shape allows your foot to propels you forward properly.

When I was early 40s I did some running on pavement and had persistent knee problems. Like you, I was largely relying on my determination, rather than my body. I stopped in the end after trying various knee braces etc.

This time I lost a lot of weight first (25 kg gained since my 40s) which may not apply to you. I know my legs are quite strong from daily walking on rough, hilly, ground for years. I still do squats etc to further strengthen my glutes. So far, so good. I'm running up to 40min now.
I strongly recommend doing some strength work if you're not already doing that. Weak glutes cause many people non-obvious problems when running.

I've also had to look up some stretching videos as a 5 minute cool down walk would not be sufficient to stop tight muscles. I now need to do correct stretching before and after every run. I do what I think is needed and then do some more. Quite tedious really but sadly I think a sign of my advancing years.

I also minimize the time running on pavement, which I appreciate may not be possible for everyone. Particularly when I get tired, I really notice the greater impact in my joints on a hard, unforgiving, surface. Again, this is where good shoes will help a lot.

If you do run on pavement it would be worth getting a gait analysis so they can recommend the right shoe for you.

Lastly, well done!

Very chilly and windy today. But completed w5r1!

Didn’t walk or slow up on the run sections. I am slow or it feels like it. Almost wanted to carry on running at the end when she said to do the cool down walk.

Feeling pleased with myself and my anxiety is slightly better.

Well done Dobby!!!!
I've marked in my calendar W5R1 for lunchtime tomorrow....

Well done dobby such a great feeling when you're not exhausted at the end isn't it! I decided to continue my battle with hills today, only did 3km but 2 of those where uphill non stop my lungs do not like hills . Walked 3km afterwards as it was a lovely evening. I'm looking forward to the day I can do 5km without having to run half of it round in circles avoiding the bigger hills but I think that's a long way off.
DP has decided he is also going to do the program, I plan to join him on some of the runs and perhaps soon I'll have a buddy for the longer ones, mainly a perk because I can give him responsibility for the dogs

Thank you Cavagirl and Deep

I felt like shouting out YES!! When I finished. I am not sprinting round, but I am recovering quickly between runs sections. It’s not easy, but it’s not difficult. Went a different way today and saw lots of frogspawn in the stream which made me smile.

Still a bit of the CBA about, but it’s mental now. My legs aren’t hurting my lungs are fine. Weds should be r2 depending on weather conditions.

It was icy cold today, I thought I’m mad doing this. I need a thermal layer under my running leggings.

It is a good stress reliever. I can’t tell you what a mess my head was in this morning over the school’s dilemma.

Dobby do you remember when you were doing week 1 and I said to you that you should keep going?! You’ve reached me now! Because I’m plateauing. But you’re really zooming along!! Great stuff!

I do misery , thank you so much for your encouragement it worked!!!!

The only week I repeated was w4r3 because I’d missed a run due to the ice. So needed a practice one.

I’m enjoying it. DH is very supportive. I don’t think I’d still be going if it wasn’t for everyone’s encouragement.

Thanks so much everyone for the advice. Will definitely go and get sorted with decent running shoes - not sure when that will be now?!
Looking forward to my run tomorrow. Knees fine again after a rest day. Michael actually said I could call myself a runner after Sunday's run

Keep on going everyone