Couch To 5K discussion thread (discussion of other programs welcome too!)

Basq

Supposed to start Week 6 this evening.. but it's absolutely miserable out!

And seeing that I'm just over a cold, I think I'll take a "rain-check" (no pun intended) for today.

The_Morrigan

Still sick no attempt tonight

garbanzo

Hi folks. Haven't posted in a while now. It's about 13 weeks since I started C25K and I've been sticking with running 30mins three times a week since I got to week 9 about a month ago. I've only missed 1 day (last Sunday) in 13 weeks and that was on account of a fierce night on the tear on Saturday night. I'm entered for the Rathfarnham 5K this Sunday which has been my aim all along. Looking forward to it. Anyone else doing it??

To be honest, I don't see myself continuing onward to longer distances such as 7.5k or 10k for a few reasons. I'm going to try and stick with 30 mins of running 2 to 3 times a week to keep the fitness levels I've attained. Feeling great to be this far along the road....it has been quite a life changing experience and I recommend it as an easy to access low cost routine to get one fit and active.

ONE DIP

Done W1 D3 tonight in the lashing rain and i feel brilliant like really brilliant , i know it sounds silly but i have never felt so proud of myself,could not believe how much easier i found it i felt like jogging home , but honestly its much much easier when you can log on here for a bit of motivation and support CHEERS

Basq

Congrats One Dip.. and fair fecks to you for going out in the lashing ran.

As I said before, it'll get easier from now on.. and you'll start to actually look forward to going out in the evenings.

Stick with it!

Birdsong

garbanzo wrote: »

I'm entered for the Rathfarnham 5K this Sunday which has been my aim all along. Looking forward to it. Anyone else doing it??

To be honest, I don't see myself continuing onward to longer distances such as 7.5k or 10k for a few reasons.

You say that now after a while you will think about the challenge of the longer distance & then you'll join a club and then......................:D

the Rathfarnham is a great race, always good for a good time

rainbow kirby

Birdsong wrote: »

the Rathfarnham is a great race, always good for a good time

This is because the course is pretty much right on the maximum allowable net downhill for a 5k road race

Tip: Watch your pace in the first mile, it is all downhill and it is really easy to go out too fast.

vic20

ONE DIP wrote: »

Done W1 D3 tonight in the lashing rain and i feel brilliant like really brilliant , i know it sounds silly but i have never felt so proud of myself,could not believe how much easier i found it i felt like jogging home , but honestly its much much easier when you can log on here for a bit of motivation and support CHEERS

Well done! & no, it's not silly at all. We've all felt that way. The first time I managed to jog for 20 minutes I was in a fantastic mood for the day. Don't know why but the 20 min. mark was the biggest milestone for me. YMMV

jimbobwalton

Couch potatoe and very overweight ..however seeing you all say here its managable decided to give the c25k a go yesterday...have the podcasts with the music and the timings...so What happened??? I managed it..just but i did it....really needed the 90 seconds to get my breath back properly towards the end...brisk walk home and smiling like the proverbial cat..and today i am thinking yes i think i can do it again tomorrow...hope it lasts..dont have the best of will power..Thank all of you for all your tips on all the pages

T-Square

just finished week six, it was really tough. went out late, it was dark, and the grass was soaking wet, very squealchy...socks soaked! covered the distance on time but had to walk for 100 m as my calves felt dizzy.

two days of rest, then week seven!

Stench Blossoms

W5D1 completed.

For some reason I thought it was 4 5minute runs so was pleasantly surprised when I got to 3 and she said 'final run'.

kagni

Was supposed to do W2D3 three weeks ago but got a cold then a chest infection and didn't run for two weeks.
I felt well enough to try W2D3 last Friday, did it, but felt like crap for a couple of days after so I didn't run again until last night.
I was going to go back and do Week 2 again but figured I'd give Week 3 a go and see how I got on.
It was a struggle but I managed to get through W3D1 and feel fine today.
Hopefully I can get back on track now.

G-Money

Meant to head out on this today but I'm postponing it until tomorrow morning.

G-Money

grandmaster wrote: »

Meant to head out on this today but I'm postponing it until tomorrow morning.

As promised.

Week 7, Day 2 complete

I've been a bit distracted this past couple of days so I didn't get the chance to head out. However I got up this morning about 7.30am and by 8am I was out on my workout. Today's workout consisted of:

5 min brisk warm-up walk
25 min jog
5 min cool-down walk

Again it went fairly well today. The first few minutes were probably the hardest, although overall they weren't very difficult at all. It just seems to take me a few minutes to get my breathing right and get into the swing of it. I felt I was going a bit too fast the last day so I slowed myself down today initially. I switched the setting on my watch from miles to kilometres as I wanted to be able to track how far I was off 5k when I'm completing the workout.

When I got to about minute 16 I decided to up the pace a bit as I wanted to get over 3k done by the time the 25 minutes were up. The last 5 minutes then and especially the last 2 or 3 minutes I increased the pace even more and found it reasonably easy to do so. By the time the 25 minutes were up I had completed about 3.1k. Not bad but I'm still quite a bit away from completing 5k in 30 minutes. I think initially if I can do 4k in 30 minutes that will be good.

I felt better today during the jog than I have the last couple of times. I think I was a bit out of practice previously and just wasn't feeling it. By that I mean I just wasn't getting the huge elation that I had been getting. Today as I was getting near the end of the workout I felt like I could easily have kept going and would like to have kept going too. But again I made myself stop as I don't want to overdo it.

I ran mostly on the tarmac path that surrounds the park today. The grass was quite muddy and a bit slippy in places so I just stuck to the tarmac. The grass also needs cut in areas as it's kind of up past my ankles in places which I find a bit annoying when jogging.

I'm tempted to finish off Week 7 tomorrow but I guess I'd be as well to just take a day's rest and do it on Monday.

Basq

Week 6, Day 1 Complete!

Consisted of:

- Jog 5 minutes
- Walk 3 minutes
- Jog 8 minutes
- Walk 3 minutes
- Jog 5 minutes

Ever since doing the 20 minute run on Week 5, Day 3 last Sunday.. my shins have been slightly sore at points - not terribly sore but irritating at times. And when I completed my first run (5 minute) yesterday, I could feel them becoming slightly sore. I stuck with it and kept running and was fine as I progressed. But they were quite sore when I woke up this morning. Not too bad now. Could it be a minor case of shin splints?

Might wait til Monday for Week 6, Day 2 so I don't irritate them further.

metamorphosis

basquille wrote: »

.. my shins have been slightly sore at points - not terribly sore but irritating at times. And when I completed my first run (5 minute) yesterday, I could feel them becoming slightly sore. I stuck with it and kept running and was fine as I progressed. But they were quite sore when I woke up this morning. Not too bad now. Could it be a minor case of shin splints?

Might wait til Monday for Week 6, Day 2 so I don't irritate them further.

It indeed sounds like shin splints which can affect either the front or side of your shins.

What are your shoes like? Have you had your gait looked at? Anyway if your footwear is spot on, this is the stage where you should Ice it for about 30min in the evening. Take anti inflammatory tabs before bed to prevent swelling and compress them if you need to. PRICE - prevention, rest, ice, compression and elevation. Don't ignore the early warning signs please! Easily taken care off once you take the time to do the above.

G-Money

I posted these over in the A/R/T forum. I found them earlier today on YouTube. This is possibly the greatest distance runner of all time completing the 5k. The commentary and the crowd at the end is just fantastic.

Very inspirational.

Part 1

Part 2

The_Morrigan

Week 4 Day 3 Completed

Ok I completed it, but I wouldn't say I'm happy with it
Think I might repeat week 4, I don't feel comfortable moving onto week 5 yet.

G-Money

The_Morrigan wrote: »

Week 4 Day 3 Completed

Ok I completed it, but I wouldn't say I'm happy with it
Think I might repeat week 4, I don't feel comfortable moving onto week 5 yet.

Don't worry about that. I think I repeated Week 4 as I sort of struggled with it and I was in no way ready for the following week. The extra few days seemed to make a massive difference to me. It really did.

I did another 25 minute jog yesterday and loved it. It's kind of amazing that I can now do that when not so long ago I was almost breaking down just trying to do 3 minutes and 5 minutes. Granted I'm not running very fast and I'm only doing about 3K in total so far but I'm going to get to 5k eventually.

The_Morrigan

grandmaster wrote: »

Don't worry about that. I think I repeated Week 4 as I sort of struggled with it and I was in no way ready for the following week. The extra few days seemed to make a massive difference to me. It really did.

I did another 25 minute jog yesterday and loved it. It's kind of amazing that I can now do that when not so long ago I was almost breaking down just trying to do 3 minutes and 5 minutes. Granted I'm not running very fast and I'm only doing about 3K in total so far but I'm going to get to 5k eventually.

yeah I'm struggling with the five minute runs and its getting to me a bit now.
I'm not running very fast either I did 1.9 miles on the treadmill over 31 minutes, which I think is about 3km - so we're on the same pacing lol

eager tortoise

Hello all! Am back with my tail between my legs...

Just did a thread search and found my last post here was at the beginning of August when I was on week 5. I was absolutely loving the programme but for some reason I fell entirely and spectacularly off the wagon I think I just didn't get out for a few days, then felt less like going cos I was out of the habit, then was basically AFRAID to go back out because I figured I'd be back to square one

Can't believe it's taken almost 2 months to get my motivation back. It came about because of a conversation I had with a runner friend over the weekend. I'm raging now because I was going so well to begin with, and if I had kept going I would've been well finished by now!!!

Anyway, important thing is I decided to go back for round 2. Went out tonight to try week 3, day 1. Was afraid the progress I had made in the summer would've been entirely wiped out but I was surprised to discover that the week 3 day 1 runs felt fine This makes me happy because I remember how hard week 1 was when I did it the first time so at least I'm still a small bit advanced along the path to fitness

Also I think I might sign up for a run this time. If I have a goal it might keep me on the straight and narrow

Anyway, delighted to be back, fair play to everyone who is sticking with it!!!!

rainbow kirby

eager tortoise wrote: »

Also I think I might sign up for a run this time. If I have a goal it might keep me on the straight and narrow

If you're in Dublin, the Jingle Bells 5k is well worth doing. It's on the 4th of December. It's well worth entering a race that's on around or shortly after the time you finish Couch to 5k, it's an extra little motivator to get it done when you've got that date marked on your calendar.

G-Money

rainbow kirby wrote: »

If you're in Dublin, the Jingle Bells 5k is well worth doing. It's on the 4th of December. It's well worth entering a race that's on around or shortly after the time you finish Couch to 5k, it's an extra little motivator to get it done when you've got that date marked on your calendar.

I have a wild idea that I haven't thought through at all. How about all us Food Diary/C25K thread posting feckers sign up for this and meet up around the start or something??

/end ridiculous not thought through idea

The_Morrigan

grandmaster wrote: »

I have a wild idea that I haven't thought through at all. How about all us Food Diary/C25K thread posting feckers sign up for this and meet up around the start or something??

/end ridiculous not thought through idea

Will you be the one wearing a superman t-shirt and santa hat?

G-Money

The_Morrigan wrote: »

Will you be the one wearing a superman
t-shirt and santa hat?

Of course!

The_Morrigan

grandmaster wrote: »

Of course!

you should get yourself a cape too

eager tortoise

Thanks for the suggestion Rainbow kirby, I am indeed in Dublin and i think dec 4th would fit the bill perfectly!

grandmaster wrote: »

I have a wild idea that I haven't thought through at all. How about all us Food Diary/C25K thread posting feckers sign up for this and meet up around the start or something??

/end ridiculous not thought through idea

Also I think the above is a brilliant idea!!! It would certainly be fantastic motivation I'm 100% in!

G-Money

eager tortoise wrote: »

Thanks for the suggestion Rainbow kirby, I am indeed in Dublin and i think dec 4th would fit the bill perfectly!



Also I think the above is a brilliant idea!!! It would certainly be fantastic motivation I'm 100% in!

Oh balls. I knew I should have kept my mouth shut

G-Money

Week 7, Day 3 Complete

So that is Week 7 done and dusted. Today's workout again consisted of:

5 min brisk warm-up walk
25 minute jog
5 min cool-down walk

When I was going to work this morning, I was kind of not looking forward to it and to be honest, I just really wanted to go for a run. As the day went on and it reached the afternoon, I started to feel a little tired and sleepy. I had a late night at the weekend (no drinking though) so I guess perhaps I'm still a little behind on my sleep.

The jog today was a bit tougher than the last day. It was definitely warmer today than it was on Saturday morning. When I went out on Saturday morning it was about 7 degree's but it was up around the 16 or 17 degree mark when I was out there now. I definitely ran faster today, but still not exactly setting the world alight. My pace on Saturday was 13:14min/mile pace and today it was 12:31min/mile average pace.

Distance wise on Saturday I did 3.042k and today I did 3.2k so a bit further even though I was jogging for the same time which confirms my pace was a bit faster.

I'm still a way off doing 5k yet, but I'd like to think I could complete 4k within 30 minutes by week 9.

I was a bit tired today, the legs felt a bit heavy and it took a bit longer than usual to get into the swing of things. I definitely didn't have the extra speed that I had on Saturday. It's a shame. I felt quite fast on Saturday towards the end.

Rest tomorrow then onto Week 8 on Wednesday or Thursday at the latest.

littlehedgehog

Mofo stomach.

Repeated W6D2 a couple of times to make myself feel better after a disastrous attempt at W7D1 where I'd to stop about 4 times with hideous heartburn. I didn't post about it because I was really disheartened and in tears every time I'd to stop - urg, ya know those proper sobbing, really desperate tears - ya'd swear I'd mangled a leg and would never run again like! Christ!
Was just gonna repeat again today, but felt good and headed out for a 25 minute.
Got to 23 minutes before stomach issues (yes, this is gonna be my new euphemism from now on) - 15 second break, and finished the 25 minutes - 2.18 miles again.
I keep swaying between - "sure isn't it great you're running at all, exercise is exercise, no one says you have to run the whole time without a break" and "I WANNA FINISH C25K."
Nothing I do seems to help the stomach issues - I think because I've always had a dodge stomach with many and varied problems!
Ah, I guess I'll just keep chipping away, seeing what I can do..

In relation to JB5K after C25K (hee hee!) - I think it's a great idea, but I'm gonna hold off judgement until I can see if I can sort my stomach issues - Unless, can anyone tell me, is it alright to take walking breaks in the middle of these 5k runs?