couch to 5k plus?

[newtlover]

I'm near the end of couch to 5k (just started wk 9) - using the NHS app- and it says you can unlock further runs when you finish- has anyone done this?

I don’t know but following as am nearing the end too! Mind you I’m still only at 4.1k in week 8. Not sure how to get to 5k in only 3 extra minutes. Run faster I assume?!

There are 3 extra runs to increase your speed and stamina so you can run longer and faster, all with the narration by Steve Cram. One is 10mins at 80% normal pace, 20 at normal pace the 5 mins faster than normal, another is 5mins normal pace then bursts of 1 min faster then back to normal 6 times (interval training). The last one I haven't done yet but I think it is 40mins running. I am only at 4.35km in 30 mins so far and been doing the c25k for over a year so hope these will get me picking up the pace a bit

hmm well according to strava I'm only running 3.8 km in 30 mins so I do need to speed up
are the instructions easy to follow?
is it just 3 more runs?
should I know who Steve Cram is ?

I’ve just done week 28 run 3 and I had a bit more in the tank so I decided to keep running til I hit the 5k mark and it took me 33:36. Quite chuffed! I think I might do it this way around for my week9 ie running for 5k and trying to get my time down, as stamina has definitely been my challenge. Keep going everyone!

I don't have an answer to the original question but just to say it's totally normal to not be able to run 5k in 30 minutes. I started C25k just over a year ago, haven't had any issues with injuries and have been running consistently since then. I am doing a 10k soon and could probably do a 5k in 35 minutes now. It was much closer to 40 minutes when I finished C25k.

You can of course train to get faster, but should do it slowly. I really recommend the healthunlocked C25k forum (and other related forums - Bridge to 10k is a good one).

Getting to run for 30 minutes non-stop is a huge achievement regardless of the distance you cover in that time. So focus on that!

https://worldathletics.org/athletes/great-britain-ni/steve-cram-14352912

The best way to speed up is to do interval running, rather than just trying to run faster for the whole run. I've gone from about 33 minutes for a 5k to just over 27 minutes.

The Garmin Coach programmes are good for this as you can download the sessions to your watch and it guides you through the intervals, but I should think you can find lots of programmes online.

I used to struggle to do the very short run/walk intervals on C25K but am now training for a half marathon and ran for an hour and 45 minutes the other day. If I can do it, anyone can!

so, quite famous then...
thanks all for the comments

I think I will face the problem that my natural pace for anything is slow
and when I'm running I'm either thinking about other stuff or I'm noticing the plants/birds etc and never really thinking about the actual running
but part of the reason for wanting to run was to get reasonable amount of exercise in a short space of time, so I really need to try and speed up a bit

I agree with all the other comments. I always thought the c25k was because the extra 5 mins brisk walks to warm up and cool down (so in total 40mins exercise) always got me past the 5k mark regardless of how fast I ran 😂

Ahhh @Bananabrain99 i always skip the 5 min walks so that makes sense now!

@newtlover do you listen to music? I find I def speed up a bit when a good tune comes onto my playlist!

Do you really want to get to 5K in 30 minutes or are you happy with the fact you are running? I pressured myself for ages, did interval training etc and started to hate it after being so proud of myself for completing the programme. I have made peace with my speed and have focussed on achieving a steady 10K which means a 5K speed of 35 mins

@Darkside1471 noooooo I would hate that! I'm in ongoing battle with the swimming pool to stop playing music! I'm very lucky in that I have nice semi rural routes, part of the reason to be running is to be in nature. If I was running in town it might be different. But thanks for the suggestion :)
@HGC2 you may be right. But I was overtaken by a (much younger!) woman running uphill the other day and it miffed me slightly.

@newtlover i get it. Maybe you should time your runs to coincide with the dawn chorus or some really funky birdsong to get things moving :-)