[RedGuy]

(Original post by wanderlust.xx)
Oh my god my shins! Ow ow ow ow... is it supposed to hurt this much? My ankles were sore from d2 but wow, d3 almost killed me. Looks like I'm doing w1 again, even though I can probably go ahead to 2. Bah, it's only a week. Two days rest first...

Do you stretch after you run?

[wanderlust.xx]

(Original post by RedGuy)
Do you stretch after you run?

No but they were hurting during the run, so I doubt it's due to stretching. They're okay now.

[Robbolo]

Bumpage. This thread can't die! It helps me knowing that not everyone is a massive fitness pro! How is everyone getting on?

I have a question for the people that finishing this regime; how often did you run, and for what distances did you run at, at the end of the program?

Work has meant I haven't ran for three weeks now ...must....find....willpower!

[wanderlust.xx]

I'm quite glad that I'm still going, even though I'm repeating the first week... shins and knees hurt about half way through but I think it's more about constant practice and getting used to running outside, rather than an injury.

It's still as difficult as ever... I'll be going out for a run as soon as I get back home. I've got about 7 weeks until I go on holiday to the US so I'd like to get to week 5, considering weeks four and five are apparently the most difficult.

[hbandtr4eva]

I need motivation I haven't run since June 24th and I know I need to get back to it but I'm finding it difficult. If only this weather were better!

[MoMatrix]

Can you do this on a treadmill? Can anyone point me to the workout programme for that?

[Kaph]

(Original post by wanderlust.xx)
It's still as difficult as ever... I'll be going out for a run as soon as I get back home. I've got about 7 weeks until I go on holiday to the US so I'd like to get to week 5, considering weeks four and five are apparently the most difficult.

I start week 4 after this run. I didnae know that. Week 4 looks harder than 5

[wanderlust.xx]

Aaaaaahhhh, just came back from a run. Feels gooooooooood!

(Original post by hbandtr4eva)
I need motivation I haven't run since June 24th and I know I need to get back to it but I'm finding it difficult. If only this weather were better!

Go, RUNNNNN. Doesn't matter about the weather. If it's sunny, wear a t shirt, if it's raining, wear a hoodie on top. Stop making excuses and RUN. Half of success is showing up, so just go out and show up. Doesn't matter if you don't do the running, or you skip one and walk it instead. At least you're doing something. Small, insignificant steps towards a large, significant goal. Gogogogo! Besides, if you've got nothing else to feel proud of, running will give you just that.

(Original post by MoMatrix)
Can you do this on a treadmill? Can anyone point me to the workout programme for that?

You do the exact same workout on a treadmill, and yes, you can. However, I'll tell you about my experience. Last year I joined the gym with two mates and spent the good part of 3 months going 3-4 times a week. I don't know where that level of dedication came from but it certainly helped. I was on the rowing machine for a month and then proceeded to using the treadmill and doing c25k. I found all the weeks pretty easy and got to week 6/7 with what seems like not much of an effort.

However, a mate suggested that we should go running in the park. We did and dear god, it was painful. Not physically, but mentally... after a good 2 months of hard graft at the gym, my stomach was practically gone, I'd built a good amount of muscle and reduced a lot of body fat... but christ, running outside made me feel like all that was for nothing!

I stopped gymming after that... found no motivation to go, and uni started so driving up and down from uni then going to the gym was a big chore. About a week and a half ago I've started running outside and realised it gives you a greater buzz (runner's high) than on a treadmill, inside, looking at guys and girls bodybuilding or toning. Plus you know that if anyone who's done c25k on a treadmill were to join you outside, they'd pretty much not be able to do anything.

The pressure on your shins and ankles running outside is tremendous once you've practically been running on a cloud.

(Original post by Kaph)
I start week 4 after this run. I didnae know that. Week 4 looks harder than 5

Nah apparently the jump from w4 to w5 is pretty hard, but week 5 as a whole is doable. w4 is hard to get used to, apparently it's one that many repeat a few times, as well as w5. Think about it though, each time you go outside, you get stronger. Your muscles remember the physical strain they've been put through, and each time they can manage a little more.

[Care-Free]

hey, what's this couch to 5k like? i tried to look at it yesterday but it turned out to be a video.... and i have no speakers .
I started running on sunday and have gone everyday (apart from tuesday, my legs were trying to fall off! ) but all i can manage now is 3 minutes running at the very most before i have to stop and walk (while on sunday i could only do a minute :P ) is this because im a beginner or am i just serrrriously unfit?
What's the general gist of the C25K or is there a written version somewhere?
Any advice is really appreciated, or even just reassurance that i'll be able to run for longer if i keep at it

[Kaph]

(Original post by wanderlust.xx)
Nah apparently the jump from w4 to w5 is pretty hard, but week 5 as a whole is doable. w4 is hard to get used to, apparently it's one that many repeat a few times, as well as w5. Think about it though, each time you go outside, you get stronger. Your muscles remember the physical strain they've been put through, and each time they can manage a little more.

Hmm, aye. I've been running through a couple of the rest periods in week 3, ie. do the first 90s run and 90s rest, then 3minute rest, then rest for half the rest period, run the second half, run the next run and the next rest period and then the next run, then rest aha. Still only adds up to about 7minutes, but it's satisfying.

(Original post by Care-Free)
hey, what's this couch to 5k like? i tried to look at it yesterday but it turned out to be a video.... and i have no speakers .
I started running on sunday and have gone everyday (apart from tuesday, my legs were trying to fall off! ) but all i can manage now is 3 minutes running at the very most before i have to stop and walk (while on sunday i could only do a minute :P ) is this because im a beginner or am i just serrrriously unfit?
What's the general gist of the C25K or is there a written version somewhere?
Any advice is really appreciated, or even just reassurance that i'll be able to run for longer if i keep at it

Give yourself a day rest. C25k walks you through it, if you have an iPhone or Android or whatever there are a load of apps that give you prompts. Walks you through running, so week 1 you do 3 runs of run a minute, rest 90s, repeat for 8 runs. Week 2 you up the run and the rest, week 3 up the run less rest, etc.

[wanderlust.xx]

(Original post by Care-Free)
hey, what's this couch to 5k like? i tried to look at it yesterday but it turned out to be a video.... and i have no speakers .
I started running on sunday and have gone everyday (apart from tuesday, my legs were trying to fall off! ) but all i can manage now is 3 minutes running at the very most before i have to stop and walk (while on sunday i could only do a minute :P ) is this because im a beginner or am i just serrrriously unfit?
What's the general gist of the C25K or is there a written version somewhere?
Any advice is really appreciated, or even just reassurance that i'll be able to run for longer if i keep at it

http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml

That's the timetable. You should do 3 workouts per week but keep a day inbetween as a rest day, and two days inbetween each week. So, for example,

Mon: run
Tues: rest
Wed: run
Thu: rest
Fri: run
Sat/Sun: rest

Don't run for the full three minute workout. Start from the beginning and aim to finish. The point of each week is to slowly increase your respiratory system, as well as to slowly get your muscles used to working out for thirty minutes.

As a beginner, we need to simply get used to running. It's an incredibly difficult sport, since most people can go from running to something else and not feel much of a burn, but anything else back to running is pretty difficult to do.

Seriously if you keep at it, you'll definitely run longer. There's plenty of stories on the c25k website, runner's world, etc. People go from not being able to walk 5 minutes up the stairs to running marathons. All it requires is perseverance. We all have bad days, but you've just got to get out there and do anything, even if you're walking for 30 minutes. Every time you exercise your muscles and bones on your legs, hips and everywhere else get stronger, as well as your lungs and your heart. Eventually they'll be strong enough to endure 5km, then 10km, then the half-marathon... you get the point.

It just takes time.

[Athena21]

Urgh, I had a break from C25, as I went to Sonisphere at the weekend.

Doing Week 5 Run 2 after a week was a bit of a killer, but I managed 8 minutes more easily than I thought I would!

Unfortunately I seemed to have injured my ankle as well (was very swollen after my run and I had to ice it ) but I'm just going to rest up until my next run on friday, which is the 20min run

My advice for those that have stopped for awhile, is that with every day you put it off, it's less likely that you'll get your running shoes on again.

Just make yourself go out there again, and you'll get back into the swing of it. There's no shame in doing a week again if you leave it longer than a week before you run again!

[Athena21]

(Original post by Care-Free)
hey, what's this couch to 5k like? i tried to look at it yesterday but it turned out to be a video.... and i have no speakers .
I started running on sunday and have gone everyday (apart from tuesday, my legs were trying to fall off! ) but all i can manage now is 3 minutes running at the very most before i have to stop and walk (while on sunday i could only do a minute :P ) is this because im a beginner or am i just serrrriously unfit?
What's the general gist of the C25K or is there a written version somewhere?
Any advice is really appreciated, or even just reassurance that i'll be able to run for longer if i keep at it

Written version extracted from the website:

A week-by-week description of the nine-week Couch to 5K podcasts.
Week one

Begin with a brisk 5-minute walk, then alternate 60 seconds of running and 90 seconds of walking, for a total of 20 minutes.
Week two

Begin with brisk 5-minute walk then alternate 90 seconds of running with 2 minutes of walking, for a total of 20 minutes.
Week three

Begin with brisk 5-minute walk then two repetitions of 90 seconds of running, 90 seconds of walking, 3 minutes of running, 3 minutes of walking.
Week four

Begin with a brisk 5-minute walk then 3 minutes of running, 90 seconds walking, 5 minutes running, 2½ minutes walking, 3 minutes running, 90 seconds walking, 5 minutes running.

Week five:

There are three different workouts for this week. They are as follows:

Workout 1: brisk 5-minute walk, then 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running.

Workout 2: brisk 5-minute walk, then 8 minutes running, 5 minutes walking, 8 minutes running.

Workout 3: brisk 5-minute walk, then 20 minutes running, with no walking.
Week six

There are three different workouts for this week. They are as follows:

Workout 1 brisk 5-minute walk, then 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 8 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running.

Workout 2: brisk 5-minute walk, then 10 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 10 minutes running.

Workout 3: brisk 5-minute walk, then 25 minutes with no walking.
Week seven

Begin with a brisk 5-minute walk then 25 minutes of running.
Week eight

Begin with a brisk 5-minute walk then 28 minutes running.
Week nine

Begin with a brisk 5-minute walk then 30 minutes running.

[Athena21]

(Original post by Kaph)
I start week 4 after this run. I didnae know that. Week 4 looks harder than 5

It's not as hard as it sounds. I'm doing week 5 right now, after a weeks break from the programme, and I'm finding that it's more mental than physical.

Not so much calf burn from running, recovering quicker etc
I didn't think I was ready for it, but I am

[Athena21]

(Original post by Robbolo)
Bumpage. This thread can't die! It helps me knowing that not everyone is a massive fitness pro! How is everyone getting on?

I have a question for the people that finishing this regime; how often did you run, and for what distances did you run at, at the end of the program?

Work has meant I haven't ran for three weeks now ...must....find....willpower!

I haven't finished yet, but I know that some people go on to the B210k - Bridge to 10k. I guess you can either just repeat week 9 ad infinitum, or start increasing either your time, speed or distance...

[Kaph]

(Original post by Athena21)
It's not as hard as it sounds. I'm doing week 5 right now, after a weeks break from the programme, and I'm finding that it's more mental than physical.

Not so much calf burn from running, recovering quicker etc
I didn't think I was ready for it, but I am

Aye I think you're right. I did week 3 run 3 today, and ran all of the runs and rest periods except for half of one of the rest periods, just to see if I would be able to do week 4 aha. It's amazing how you get past a point and it's like meh, may as well carry on.

[Renacata]

Done two runs of Week 2 now. The next one will probably be Saturday, and then I'm going to have a week off to visit a friend :P might do one last Week 2 run (the fourth) to get back into it afterwards, then start on Week 3.

Reading the stuff people have posted about finding it harder to run outdoors than on a treadmill is depressing. I think I'll carry on using the gym till the end of summer, then jump back a week or so and start outdoors when I go back to university... I think I'm going to need the jump back, with a combination of going outdoors and the fact that pretty much everywhere is up a hill... I'll be starting proper sports again at the same time, and hopefully I'll notice the difference from last year having done this

[Care-Free]

(Original post by Athena21)
Written version extracted from the website:

X

gosh that sounds complicated, how easy is it for you to stick to?
All i've been doing is running (by running i mean a jog! lol!) until i need to rest and trying to go 30 seconds longer each day or try to run for the length of a song.

[wanderlust.xx]

(Original post by Athena21)
Unfortunately I seemed to have injured my ankle as well (was very swollen after my run and I had to ice it ) but I'm just going to rest up until my next run on friday, which is the 20min run

Reading this has made me think that my sore shins when walking home are a little more than just that. I restarted w1 this week since I found that I struggled with some of the later running bits (ran 50 secs instead of 60, or skipped the last run) and my ankles/shins hurt like HELL.

It's gotten better, but they still hurt when I walk home during the cooldown, and sometimes start feeling quite tight around the end of the workout.

I put ice on it on d1, and I when I ran d2 I managed everything without a hitch... don't know if it was the ice that did it. I really want to push past this though, I want to get to the point where I can go out for a 5k 3 times a week and have a great workout.

[Aemiliana]

(Original post by Renacata)
Done two runs of Week 2 now. The next one will probably be Saturday, and then I'm going to have a week off to visit a friend :P might do one last Week 2 run (the fourth) to get back into it afterwards, then start on Week 3.

Reading the stuff people have posted about finding it harder to run outdoors than on a treadmill is depressing. I think I'll carry on using the gym till the end of summer, then jump back a week or so and start outdoors when I go back to university... I think I'm going to need the jump back, with a combination of going outdoors and the fact that pretty much everywhere is up a hill... I'll be starting proper sports again at the same time, and hopefully I'll notice the difference from last year having done this

I think it's more than a week behind, unfortunately. I could run 3k non-stop on the treadmill but running outside for even half a km knackered me! To be honest, it's best just trying to do all of it outside - it's free and will push you further and faster than a treadmill.