Finished C25K! (My Journey and Tips from a New Graduate!)

AShannon54

I just finished C25K last night! It has been a great exercise program and I feel an overwhelming sense of pride and accomplishment. :happy:

A friend at work who had recently lost 100+ pounds himself suggested it to me. I had already worked up a great walking base… you really need to walk before you run. I was walking 4-5 times a week for about 30-60 minutes. He said that already having a great walking base would make an easy transition to the C2K5 program.

I was like ‘what is C2K5?’… and he explain it was ‘Couch to 5K’ and that in 8 weeks I would be running a 5K. I didn’t even know how far a 5K was and when he told me I laughed. I hadn’t even jogged 100 yards in 10 years let alone run 3.1 miles non-stop. However… I decided to give it a try. I did the first workout and although it was tough (alternating 90 seconds walking to 30 jogging for 20 minutes) - when I finished I felt great. I was sweaty, tired and felt wonderful! I went out and bought a new pair of real running shoes (a must) and kept at the program.

I stuck to my guns – never missed a workout and completed every workout as scheduled. My co-worker inspired me because he said when he did it he was over 300 lbs and completed every workout (and I thought if he could do it, I could too).

My Own Personal Tips (just from my own experience) –
• Don’t listen to the voice inside your head that says you can’t do it.
• Before each workout think about why you are running – when you start to feel weak focus on that. (mine was my family)
• Take long, deep breaths as much as you can. When you start take short, shallow breaths you get side cramps.
• Have a good pair of ‘real’ running shoes (and good socks to prevent blisters).
• If you are a girl (especially large chested) invest in a good sports bra. A brand called ‘Moving Comfort’ was suggested to me and they are nice.
• Music helps out, get a good playlist or a give ‘Rock my Run’ a try (I did the free version which was cool so I upgraded)
• Get ‘Map my Run’ on your phone. It was great to look back at my routes and times. (again there is a free version to try first)
• Don’t eat much an hour or two before you run (that might just be me though).
• Sign up for a ‘real’ 5K race for a couple of weeks or so after you should finish the program. It will motivate you to keep training.
• Stick to the program – don’t try to do more to get through it faster. I alternated every other day and only ran the amounts instructed.
• Take time to stretch after your workout. Dull aches/pains are ok and usually go away with stretching and a day of rest. Sharp pains might be a real injury.
• Lastly – Don’t listen to the voice inside of your head that says you can’t keep running. (this is so important I listed it first and last!!)

I liked to read articles and tips on the website ‘Cool Running. com’. I think they are the originators of the Couch-to-5K work out. If you are downloading the app to your phone – Zen Labs is the publisher. I did the free version of C25K but you can get the add-free version for like a $1.

Anyway – Don’t be scared to give this a try. Over the course of about 8 weeks I lost about 30 pounds but more importantly my self-esteem has sky rocketed. I had such a high after finishing each workout from the feeling of accomplishment. Also, I didn’t come up with this saying but I always liked to think of it before a run – “No matter how slow you go, you are still lapping everybody on the couch!” and also “Pain is temporary, quitting is forever”.

Good luck and happy running!

Niccole5878

That is awesome! Way to Go!!:happy: :happy: :happy:

biba_luly

i am in week 3 and it is great , am shocked how am i completing everyday's goal , i used to HATE running but i can feel my endurance is increasing , they are 3 days a week i do it 5 days when i am able to

congratulation on finishing it

Andrea0078

WAY TO GO! I just finished C25K last week myself! Isn't it weird to be on the 'finisher' side of the conversation? Way to go lady, keep it up!

jennnnn2u

Congrats! Excellent accomplishment!!

MindyG150

I swear one day I'll do it too

Congratulations!

ShortMrsN

Congratulations!!!
I started c25k a year ago this month (took about 12 wks to finish due to injury/illness) it feels so great to be able to say I a) finished it!! and b) can run 5km!

cincysweetheart

Thanks for sharing. A 5k is definitely on my weight loss bucket list. I have a pretty good walking base right now… So I've been thinking about transitioning into that. However… with winter upcoming we are definitely going to be out of running season (no races to participate in) by the time I finish a C25K program… Would you suggest finding other forms of cardio in the meantime and waiting until later to begin the program… or what?

cookiegy

Wonderful! It's a great achievement and a good programme. The best tip I ever had was to slow down, I was going too fast and couldn't finish some of the running sections. Just by easing off meant I was finally able to complete it.
I'm going for 10k now

lgriffithschall

Congrats! I used C25K to start running also & it was such an accomplishment to complete that final 30 minute run. I totally second the opinion in the preceeding post -- going slow is the ticket to finishing those runs. My last day of C25K I wasn't actually running a 5K, but I was running 30 minutes. I'm working on a 10K now also...sounds so odd for someone who hated running the mile in gym class.

golden6911

Great job! I started running with C25K 4 years ago and I am still running!

One more piece of advice: Start SLOW...I mean reallllllllly slow. Don't think about your time or pace at all, just run at a pace where you can breathe comfortably. If you are breathing hard, slow down. Eventually, you can work on improving speed, but initially, just concentrate on keeping relaxed and breathing smoothly while running.

samthepanda

Fantastic! Well done you!

StampingJen

Thanks for sharing. A 5k is definitely on my weight loss bucket list. I have a pretty good walking base right now… So I've been thinking about transitioning into that. However… with winter upcoming we are definitely going to be out of running season (no races to participate in) by the time I finish a C25K program… Would you suggest finding other forms of cardio in the meantime and waiting until later to begin the program… or what?

Congrats to the OP!

They do have a c25k program for treadmills. It's a bit different from the "regular" one.

socajam

I love this:

“No matter how slow you go, you are still lapping everybody on the couch!” and also “Pain is temporary, quitting is forever”.

That is so true.

Started the C25K in the summer, but it was too hot, might start after my NY trip Sept 18th.

I found that 30 Day Shred helped me during the short time I did C25K.

kadeanjou

Congratulations!!!!! That is awesome!

SKME2013

Congrats!

I have graduated a coupelof weeks ago and am now on the C10K program. I ran this morning 11,68km with three one minutes stops! When I started the C25K I could not "run" more than 100 meters...
Best of luck with your next journey.
Stef.

Heirgreat

wow, so inspiring, it's on my to do list too, I did some "sprinting" yesterday (first time in years!) was shocked I could do it, just a little bit every street pole to street pole, then walk, then again at next street pole, felt funny like I don't know how to run and ya, my mind kept yelling"you can't do this", well I found out, yes I can. Congrats to you on your major accomplishment!

Gr8ChangesAhead

Great job

cwrig

Congrats! My first 5K is this weekend. Hoping to make it through without walking.

BraveNewdGirl

Congratulations! Your first pointer is so relevant. My head always wants to give up before my legs or lungs ever give out! Thank you for sharing your success!

gypzywingz

That is so awesome! I love the C25K program. I too did it but that was like almost 3 years ago and it really works. I highly recommend it to anyone that is trying to get into running.

Congrats again.

~Debbie

optionalsourcewins

CONGRATULATIONS!!! This is one of my goals and I am so happy and inspired by this post. Thank you for sharing your experience!!!

upsaluki

Congrats! I'm also having some weight loss success with 8 pounds lost in the first 4 weeks. I can't wait to start running for longer periods, but will just have to build up to it. Thanks for the inspiration.

Kitship

Thanks so much for posting! I started this program two days ago (finished Week 1 Day 1)! I am doing Day 2 tomorrow.

Way to go! :flowerforyou:

AShannon54

Thank you everyone! I like that people pointed out to take it slow. That is so true. I didn't focus on speed at all. It took all my effort just to get through the workouts (let alone be concerned about my times). One last quote I thought was great that goes with this point - "persistence, not perfection"

SingRunTing

My Own Personal Tips (just from my own experience) –
• Don’t listen to the voice inside your head that says you can’t do it.
• Before each workout think about why you are running – when you start to feel weak focus on that. (mine was my family)
• Take long, deep breaths as much as you can. When you start take short, shallow breaths you get side cramps.
• Have a good pair of ‘real’ running shoes (and good socks to prevent blisters).
• If you are a girl (especially large chested) invest in a good sports bra. A brand called ‘Moving Comfort’ was suggested to me and they are nice.
• Music helps out, get a good playlist or a give ‘Rock my Run’ a try (I did the free version which was cool so I upgraded)
• Get ‘Map my Run’ on your phone. It was great to look back at my routes and times. (again there is a free version to try first)
• Don’t eat much an hour or two before you run (that might just be me though).
• Sign up for a ‘real’ 5K race for a couple of weeks or so after you should finish the program. It will motivate you to keep training.
• Stick to the program – don’t try to do more to get through it faster. I alternated every other day and only ran the amounts instructed.
• Take time to stretch after your workout. Dull aches/pains are ok and usually go away with stretching and a day of rest. Sharp pains might be a real injury.
• Lastly – Don’t listen to the voice inside of your head that says you can’t keep running. (this is so important I listed it first and last!!)

So true! Running is just as much of a mental workout as it is a physical workout. I've been running for a little over a year now and I still have to work at silencing that voice.

There are some runs that I actually have to say out loud "I can do this!" in order to get through it, even though I've easily managed that same run in the past. It reminds me of this:

brightsideofpink

Congratulations! And thank you for taking the time to share some tips and provide insight.

summer92008

This is awesome! I started jogging today for the first time, so some on here mentioned C25K, so I downloaded the app and plan on starting Sunday. I'm excited! Your tips are really good, too! It's nice to see someone else on here who just finished it. Hopefully I can finish it, too, and drop some extra weight in the process!

bmaine22

This is the first I've heard of this app! Downloading now Running use to come very easy to me but running just 1 mile on the elliptical the other night had me feeling like my lungs were about to collapse. This sounds great to get back my stamina!

DebraYvonne

wooohoo! I am on wk 3 now!

Antigone

Thanks for the tips! I was trying to just run on my own for awhile and felt like I wan't getting any better but I think it was mostly because I had no real way to track progress. Yesterday I finished Week 2, Day 2 and I feel like I can run a lot longer than 90 seconds but I keep promising myself to NOT skip ahead and hearing you say it too encouraged me to stick to the program as it's written.

GREAT JOB!