C25K: Finishing before 9 weeks??

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dave_in_delaware
dave_in_delaware Posts: 49 Member
in Motivation and Support
OK, so ever since I had to re-do Week 5 after dying on Day3, I've been gently pushing myself to run a little more beyond the prescribed running times. I've changed my attitude into a positive "can-do" approach. And I've focused on my breathing and I think I have a good rhythm down to what suits me and it gets me through all the prescribed running. All these changes and improvements to my running have allowed me to go beyond the prescribed running times:

W6D1 = ran 20 minutes (was supposed to be 18 minutes)
W6D2 = ran 23 minutes (was supposed to be 20 minutes)
W6D3 = ran 27 minutes (was supposed to be 25 minutes)
W7D1 = ran 30 minutes (was supposed to be 25 minutes)
W7D2 = tomorrow, but can probably do 30 minutes again.

Since I've already gotten up to 30 minutes in Week 7 (Week 9 is 30 minutes actually), should I continue to push myself a little and finish this week at 30 minutes each Day, and move on to Week 8 doing 32 minutes, then Week 9 maybe doing 35? Or should I keep the same time (minutes running) and try to increase my pace a little? Or is running 30 minutes the "goal" and I should stop when I accomplish 3 days of that and move on to other things? Or go for longer distances?

Or did I do something wrong and miss the point? I know this is for training to run a 5K, which is 3.11 miles. Yesterday I ran and walked (including warmup and cooldown) 2.91 miles so I'm almost there. Or is the 5K distance NOT including warmup or cooldown walks so I need to RUN the entire 5K?

Did anyone finish the C25K early? What did you do? What would you recommend for me to do?

Thanks for any input you may have.

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  • dave_in_delaware
    dave_in_delaware Posts: 49 Member
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    Well, I didn't get any suggestions, so I pushed myself (again) and did 30 minutes, PLUS upped my pace a little by 0.2 mph. It doesn't sound like much, but my body feels it.

    For W7D3 I might push even harder to go beyond 30 minutes, just to see what happens....
  • M_lifts
    M_lifts Posts: 2,224 Member
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    hey, i got to week 7 just like yourself and ignored the podcast and just ran! gradually upped my run by 5mins every week so i finished it by week 7. theres another programme called one hour runner which you could try. which is basically adding on a few mins at a time until you are up to running for 60 mins! .

    i felt the whole 3 day split with walking and running held me back and i could handle running! remember you can adapt it to suit you.

    my timing now for a 5 is under 30mins! woohoo! good luck
  • dave_in_delaware
    dave_in_delaware Posts: 49 Member
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    I never listened to any podcast, so I'm not sure what you (or I) ignored. But yeah, After I hit my first wall at W5D3 I readjusted myself and my attitude and began pushing myself a little more and a little more. Which is why I'm running 30 minutes in Week 7 already I guess.

    The intervals of walking and running in the beginning of the C25K Program certainly helped me get to where i am now. It gradually got my body used to running, slowly at first, so I didn't get any pain or even discomfort. I tried running 20 years ago and after some time I developed such horrible pain in my shins I had to stop. But now, thanks to C25K, it got me into running gradually and now I have no pain or discomfort!!

    You're right about adapting the C25K schedule to suit you. If your body can handle it, I would think that you could adjust running and walking times to suit your abilities. Although I believe the warmup and cooldown walks are important and shouldn't be changed.

    Thanks for the suggestion and encouragement. I'll have to check out the One Hour Runner thing.

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