C25K suggestions?

KStew1209
KStew1209 Posts: 5 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hey all,

My wife and I have signed up for a run the weekend before thanksgiving this year. I have been running for a while and will be running a half-marathon. However, this will be my wife's first 5k and she is looking for a good C25K plan... well what better place to look than MyFitnessPal! We have just over 12 weeks until the run, and she prefers a much more gradual way of working her way up to running the 5K.

Would you please provide any plans that you have come across and/or have found successful? Thank you!

Replies

  • pkbryant28
    pkbryant28 Posts: 146 Member
    I use the Zenlabs C25K app for iPhone and so far I have had success. I am currently on week 6 and I have signed up for a 5K on September 15th and I feel that I will be able to complete it.
  • ASPhantom
    ASPhantom Posts: 637 Member
    I have used this one twice.
    http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml

    There is an app too!
  • dougii
    dougii Posts: 678 Member
    I used the clearskyapp C25K on my iphone about a year ago and had good luck with it. I believe any of the C25K apps would work well....my wife used a different one than I did, it had her run walks a bit different, but it lead to the same place in the same amount of time - completion of a 5K.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I used c25kFREE by Zen Labs - worked great!
  • KStew1209
    KStew1209 Posts: 5 Member
    Thanks all for your responses so far!

    To add to my earlier question, are there any good 5K plans out there for people with no prior running experience other than C25K?
  • Otrogen
    Otrogen Posts: 65
    I have used this one twice.
    http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml

    There is an app too!

    At 225 lbs, 5'2", absolutely no running experience beforehand and just some elliptical at the gym, I used this to get me up to 30 minutes of running at a time by the time I finished their program. It's a very good gradual ease into 5k running. If you look at it, you'll see it has you doing pretty easy bits of runs up until 5 weeks in, where they increase because by that point your body is fit enough to handle it.

    Good luck to your wife, and to you! I'm sure she can do it if she sticks with it =D.
  • romyhorse
    romyhorse Posts: 694 Member
    I used the NHS C25K podcasts, which I loved. Hadn't run since school, started C25K at the end of January and now I'm training for a 10K. Most of the C25K programs follow the same plan, it's just down to personal preference.
  • Mamakatspokane
    Mamakatspokane Posts: 3,098 Member
    c25k by Zen Labs. I'm on week 8 and will run my first 5k Sept 28th and I feel confident. I love it. I have it on my iphone I bought the version I can play my music through the app. I never look at time I just do what the nice lady on the app tells me to do!:happy:
  • ktpod1
    ktpod1 Posts: 83 Member
    Any of the c25k programs will work for a beginner. I was commenting today that 5 weeks ago I had difficulty running for 45 seconds straight. I am in my 5th week of the program and ran for 8 minutes straight.( total running minutes 18). These build endurance so that you can run for 30 minutes straight.
  • kar328
    kar328 Posts: 4,148 Member
    I used the Zenlabs version. I finished it a few weeks ago and while I'm slow, I'm doing 30 mins straight without a problem, and longer to reach 5K. Signed up for a race next month. I hadn't run in years and was in the 220 range to start with (maybe higher) so it really works
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member
    I used 5KRunner for iPhone. I had zero running experience and was not doing exercise of any kind when I started last Jan/Feb. I also weighed 224 pounds. I have run 2 official 5K races and I am working toward 10K. (Also, since then I have lost 50 pounds!) Any C25K app would probably be just as good. These programs all can take you from zero to capable of running 3.1 miles. Pretty awesome!

    However... !!!!Warning for your wife!!!! C25K is a gateway drug, before you know it she will identify herself as a runner and start getting wild notions about 1/2 marathons. She will likely spend crazy amounts of money on proper running shoes and various running gear. It also greatly increases the chance that she will develop interest in other cardio activities, such as biking and swimming. But if you already run, you probably already know this and have warned her sufficiently. Good luck!!!! :-)
  • jessiekanga
    jessiekanga Posts: 564 Member

    However... !!!!Warning for your wife!!!! C25K is a gateway drug, before you know it she will identify herself as a runner and start getting wild notions about 1/2 marathons. She will likely spend crazy amounts of money on proper running shoes and various running gear. It also greatly increases the chance that she will develop interest in other cardio activities, such as biking and swimming. But if you already run, you probably already know this and have warned her sufficiently. Good luck!!!! :-)

    LOL! I laugh because it's true. I love you :)
  • morganstrf
    morganstrf Posts: 93 Member
    I agree with the previous poster's warning!!
    Used zen labs c25k free as well!
    Went from never ever running to wk 6 this week- I'm now running 24 mins straight!!!
  • bttrthanevr
    bttrthanevr Posts: 615 Member

    However... !!!!Warning for your wife!!!! C25K is a gateway drug, before you know it she will identify herself as a runner and start getting wild notions about 1/2 marathons. She will likely spend crazy amounts of money on proper running shoes and various running gear. It also greatly increases the chance that she will develop interest in other cardio activities, such as biking and swimming. But if you already run, you probably already know this and have warned her sufficiently. Good luck!!!! :-)

    LOL! I laugh because it's true. I love you :)

    Thanks, Jessie! If I have to be crazy, I am at least glad to have good company! LOL!
  • Cyliesmom
    Cyliesmom Posts: 35 Member
    I just started 5k runner. I am only on day 2 so clearly not an expert. I picked it because it was recommended, and I liked the name. The term couch to 5 k turns me off. I am not sitting my fat *kitten* on the couch eating Pringles, actually my *kitten* is no longer fat, I go to the gym daily, play tennis, attend a spinning studio, and have recently decided to run. The name 5k runner sounded like what I wanted to achieve. Probably not the greatest reason to chose an app, but there you have it, and I got to have a little wee rant as well.
  • yamsteroo
    yamsteroo Posts: 480 Member
    I don't think the app/podcast you choose will make much of a difference as they follow pretty much the same format with the exception of the distance version - most common seems to be the timed version.

    Maybe the 'couch' word is a misnomer but safe to say, not every fit person can run so the programmes achieve the same goal regardless of your fitness - it will take a non runner and turn you into a runner if you just follow the programme :)
  • PaintedAlice
    PaintedAlice Posts: 37 Member
    Another vote for ZenLabs on the iPhone. I'm currently using it to get to 10K in November (I'm at the end of Week 3) and I play it alongside Spotify on the treadmill. It's all totally manageable and I like how it counts down rather than up. There's a free version of the app, so you can try it and see how it goes, nothing lost.

    I also agree though that there isn't much difference between all the apps. I used Cool Runnings free podcasts to get to 5K about two years ago. At that point I didn't have an iPhone, so I was stuck either listening to their tracks on my iPod (I hated the music) or just jotting down their run/walk timings on the back of my hand and listening to my own music (that works too!).

    When I started Couch to 5K I had not run for about six years (since school) and I was unfit even then. It felt like it nearly killed me, but I think if you can walk 5K you can definitely do the Couch to 5K programme. Having said that, I have no medical knowledge at all, so just use your own instinct, listen to your body, and enjoy the beginning of your running career! Best of luck!
  • princesspea234
    princesspea234 Posts: 182 Member
    Zombie5k... has a storyline that goes with the training.

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