C25K Help!

I just finished Week 4 and it was definitely the hardest for me so far. I actually ran week 4 for 2 weeks. Maybe slow down a bit on the 5 minute intervals. If I get side stitches it's usually my breathing - slow down and breathe deeply in and out for a bit.... don't quit trying. I had to stop one day - went back the next and was able to finish. Good Luck - Don't give up!

When I started, I did the first week THREE times! It's okay to repeat a day or even a week if necessary.

Don't get discouraged. On your next scheduled run day, try W4D1 again. You can do it!

I've just done week 4, day 1 after 4 days of no training at all - wow it was a killer. I totally agree that the last 5 mins were the worst! I can't give any advice as I've not done it before but just wanted to let you know you're not alone!

Best advice I was given was to slow down when running. It really made a difference in being able to finish each section. Keep going, it does become easier!

I love the C25K program. Repeat weeks as needed. This isn't a quest to get it done as quickly as you can. Go at your own pace, and you'll be rocking it in no time. :-)

Okay, so I'm very new to running. Before, I couldn't run for thirty seconds without becoming winded. Recently I started Couch to 5K, which from the get go was very difficult for me. Still, I was able to finish every session, even if I was completely exhausted at the end.

Well, today I hit my first wall. I started Week 4 (day 1), and I couldn't do it. The five minute jog was too much. I got over halfway through it, and during the second 5 minute interval, I had to stop. My side was splitting and I couldn't breathe. I couldn't even walk. I'm incredibly disappointed in and angry with myself. I should be able to do this, but I couldn't.

Did anyone else ever have to repeat days? Ever have days you couldn't do? I'm pretty disheartened by this and feel like I'll never be able to build up to an actual 5K.

Hello!

Please don't think this is me being sharp, I just gotta address you and make sure I do it properly!

I presume you're doing this:

Week 4
For the runs in Week 4, you will begin with a brisk 5-minute warm-up walk then 3 minutes of running, 90 seconds walking, 5 minutes running, 2 ½ minutes walking, 3 minutes running, 90 seconds walking, 5 minutes running.

I'm over 320lbs in weight (I want to lose approximately 1/2 of my current weight!). My goal is to complete Couch-to-5k without repeating any of the runs / weeks. So far my determination has paid off. Thus I'm going to complete Run 2, Week 6 tomorrow (Both weeks 5 & 6 consist of doing 3 different runs).

My best advice to you is to PACE yourself. If you're using http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/get-running-with-couch-to-5k.aspx listen to what Laura says. Most of it is psychological. The reason you felt the way you did was probably because you were going to fast - I still often feel I should be going quicker, but I know I have to pace myself and my stamina for the longer term. BREATHE remember to breathe, what you described sounds like 'stitch' again possibly from trying too hard.

Slow your pace down, breathe and don't worry about going slow / plodding. I remember when I was required to do 5 minutes and my back ached, I was tired, but I was determined not to stop because I wanted no repeats.

Like me, remind yourself (during your plod!) that you'll have plenty of time to speed up after week 9, just master the psychology of running for a long time. Remember, most of this is in your head .. the last run of week 5 in a 20 minute run non-stop, that is only 4 runs away from where you are at the moment .... so you can actually do it, it's just pace and mindset.

IF you do decide you need extra time, repeat your weeks there is NO shame in that!!!

Also as an aside, I tend to deliberately do my runs in hilly places to help develop stamina and fitness a little quicker, so that from next week I'll be running slightly flatter routes with little problem. I also cover around 3 miles even though the podcasts finish long before my route has, I try to do a little run as a boost.

PLEASE remind yourself ... (again like I do!) that this feeling of unfitness, pain, breathlessness, fatigue won't last forever, but in order to cover the miles comfortably later on.

Steady, slow and breathe! Best of luck!!! :-)

I also started my running with the C25K app, could hardly do the 30 seconds when I started. The 9 week program took me 12 weeks, I repeated the days I couldn't do until I was able to. Best advice I can give is to get fitted for proper running shoes to avoid shin splints and to get a heart rate monitor to ensure you are not overdoing it which can result in you side pains. I didn't realize that I was running too fast and running out of steam until I started wearing one. Being able to keep an eye on my heart rate and thus regulating my breathing almost completely eliminated my side pains. I also had to practice the proper breathing technique when side pains did occur, as a previous poster said, deep breaths in and holding them enlarges your diaphram and helps aleviate the side pains. I finished the program a year ago and have since learned to love running. Just this week I finished my second half marathon - YOU CAN DO THIS! Just stick with it!

Meh, not everyone is a fast runner. Some people are penguin plodders for life (aka me). Others can run a sub 2:30 marathon their first time out. Still others start slow and get faster over time.

Aim to get to the end of the C25k without feeling like you're going to die during and after your runs. Then you can get into a wider variety of running workouts that are used to improve endurance and speed (hills, long and slow, fartleks, etc).

You can do this!

I can't remember exactly, but I think it was around week 4 that I had to stop mid interval too. I (like everyone else) slowed my pace down, and I just finished c25k yesterday with no problems from there on out. You're just about halfway! Great job!

Somewhere on a c25k forum, someone said you can run a slow 10k before you can run a fast 5k. That stuck with me, and I stopped worrying about being a "respectable" runner so much. I'd rather know I can plod and surprise myself from time to time than burn out on the entire process because I'm not as fast as I'd like to be, which, since I have no history with running, is probably wildly unrealistic anyway.

Good luck to you!

I agree with everyone else - you need to slow down. I did the C25K before Christmas, and did my first 5k Race last weekend. I slowed down as and when I needed to which meant I didn't have to walk any of it.

There is no difference between running and jogging.... they are just terms. I always say I'm going for a run, even though I have yet to go faster than a 10min mile - its fast for me, so its running. Most runners will tell you this. So, with all due respect to your hubbie, he's wrong. Yes a lot of people out running are going faster than me, but I'm going faster than other people. Where exactly is the official line drawn when you say you are going from a jog to a run!

The key to the C25K is to trust the programme, and follow it through. You can't rush things, or you will frustrate yourself and give up, or injure yourself. Repeat weeks if needed, but realise, that if you are struggling, then you need to slow down. There is no shame in it. I'd rather slow down than give up.

I seen a post on FB the other day that made me laugh

I RUN,

I may be slower than a herd of tortoises stampeding through peanut butter

but I still RUN

Running is a physical act that can be differentiated from Walking (walking being 1 weight bearing foot on the ground whilst the other is in the air, running is where both feet are in the air (for a very short period of time).
I do remember someone answering that the difference is 8min miles (because that's what a Garmin product tech put in the software as the difference between running and jogging, now given that the majority of us (discounting the elite runners) will complete a marathon is over 3.5hrs then we're all joggers by this standard)!!

It's up to you what you call it, if you feel that by calling it jogging devalues what you are doing then you are running, if like me you don't really care then call it jogging (although I would have to admit I refer to it as my long run and not my long jog).

Keep going, if the mind is strong the body will follow.

I find breathing on an odd number of steps helps me, i.e. when I breath out I cover 5 strides not 4 or 6, it takes a bit of focus that you might not have just now (I do remember the not being able to breath stage, now I only get that when I'm practicing tabatta intervals)!

run as slow as you need to to finish it.