Anyone else doing C25K?

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SageMolokai
SageMolokai Posts: 93 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I am and I'm a little stuck on week 5.
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  • niblue
    niblue Posts: 339 Member
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    Week 5 (and particularly day 3) is a big step in C25K. If you're struggling it might be best to re-do week 4.
  • guinevere96
    guinevere96 Posts: 1,445 Member
    edited July 2016
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    Ive recently started couch to 5k, currently on week two, and ive definitely heard week 5 is the hardest to get through. But once you can do it, the rest is a breeze apparently. Keep it up and don't give up!
  • jusbowers
    jusbowers Posts: 75 Member
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    I've just started on my 4th time through C25K, I use it after injuries have kept me out for a while to build back up to my normal distances and pace, and yes week 5 is hard.

    If you really don't feel ready for it go back to week 4 and do that over, as many times as you need to so that you do feel ready for it.

    I can say though that the W5D3 run gets you over the psychological barrier of needing a walk break, once you have proved to yourself that you can run the 20 mins then you know that you can go 22, 25, 28 and 30 minutes without having to stop.

    You don't have to run this at a fast pace and anything over walking pace is good.

    And if you don't manage it this time then carry on with do-overs of the week until you can because the only way you will fail to do this is if you quit!

    Good luck, before you know it you will be running your 5K!
  • mellyrunsfar
    mellyrunsfar Posts: 30 Member
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    This is how I started running. It works like a charm. Good luck everyone!
  • MissTattoo
    MissTattoo Posts: 1,203 Member
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    I've repeated W1D1 like 3 days in a row. lol but I don't want to push too hard because that's when I give up. I'd like to be able to complete day 1 without stopping.
  • sparklyglitterbomb
    sparklyglitterbomb Posts: 458 Member
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    I recently completed C25K and here is the big secret (at least in my world): you CAN do it and most of the battle - especially W5D3 - is in your head.

    Slow down, have faith in yourself, and you will get there.

    I fretted over W5D3 for DAYS before I tackled it. When I finally told myself "It's only 2 minutes more running than you did a couple days ago without a short break" it made it a little easier to start.

    You've got this! :)
  • guinevere96
    guinevere96 Posts: 1,445 Member
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    MissTattoo wrote: »
    I've repeated W1D1 like 3 days in a row. lol but I don't want to push too hard because that's when I give up. I'd like to be able to complete day 1 without stopping.

    I repeated w1d1 4 times and I got it :) It was hard but it really set the precedent for the rest of it so far, once I realized I could do that, I breezed through the next few workouts
  • SageMolokai
    SageMolokai Posts: 93 Member
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    Thank you everyone! This is the third week I've attempted week 5. I can get through W5D1 easily, day 2 is really hard, day 3 seems impossible! Thank you all for the support and advise. I might try redoing week 4 like several of you suggested if I can't complete it this week.
  • CincyNeid
    CincyNeid Posts: 1,249 Member
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    I used C25K about 2 years ago and I've been running ever since. Good luck to you guys.
  • sparklyglitterbomb
    sparklyglitterbomb Posts: 458 Member
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    SageMolokai wrote: »
    Thank you everyone! This is the third week I've attempted week 5. I can get through W5D1 easily, day 2 is really hard, day 3 seems impossible! Thank you all for the support and advise. I might try redoing week 4 like several of you suggested if I can't complete it this week.

    try slowing down.. even if you think you could walk faster then you run. It will help a lot. You will speed up as you keep building your base.
  • briscogun
    briscogun Posts: 1,135 Member
    edited July 2016
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    I completed this earlier in the year and a few things that helped me:
    • Don't look ahead at what's coming. When I did W5D3 I had no idea what I was in store for that morning. "Run 20 minutes? Are you kidding me? Okay, why not...?" Boom. Did it. I didn't have time to thing about it.
    • Give yourself permission to fail. I got through Week 5 fine, but Week 6 started to get hard. I just couldn't quite finish the runs, coming up like 45 seconds short here, a minute there. So I repeated the whole week after trying to plow through. Best decision I made. Got through the rest like a champ.
    • GO SLOW! This is NOT about distance, its about moving your feet for the prescribed time. JUST. KEEP. MOVING.

    Most of the time the issues were in my head, not in my feet. My brain would try to tell me I can't run 20 minutes or 28 minutes or whatever, but guess what? I could. The feeling you get from doing something you never thought you could do is AWESOME!

    Just keep after it! You'll get there!
  • TMLfan1982
    TMLfan1982 Posts: 10 Member
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    I started C25K in February and now I run 5k 2-3 times/week. My time is typically around 34 minutes. But my first 5k was round 40 minutes.

    The biggest hurdle to W5D3 is all mental. Slow your pace down and take a route without hills. And maybe give yourself an extra day of rest before attempting W5D3.
  • Koldnomore
    Koldnomore Posts: 1,613 Member
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    Run slower. You do not need to run fast. Don't worry about the time it takes, this will improve with distance. The more you run, the faster you will run naturally ;)
  • ericatoday
    ericatoday Posts: 454 Member
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    I didnt discover the app until it was too late when i started it i could already do week 7 so i got rid of it. But i think its awesome. If you have trouble just your next run redo your last run. I can now run 5 5ks a week with no problem. Good luck just keep at it.
  • caitlinrn83
    caitlinrn83 Posts: 178 Member
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    w5d3 is absolutely the toughest, because it's as much mental as it is physical. Go slow, turn on some music, and just keep going. You'll amaze yourself.
    I finished c25k earlier this year--that run was the breakthrough run for me. Don't look at the clock, don't compare yourself to anyone else, just keep moving!
  • SageMolokai
    SageMolokai Posts: 93 Member
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    You guys are all great! I need the encouragement and I really appreciate the responses and advise.
  • AshleyMFitness16
    AshleyMFitness16 Posts: 545 Member
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    You all encouraged me to take another stab at C25K. I've tried it before, and always give up. I do run other than that, but I have yet to run a 5K without breaks. I'm going to try it again! I've always gotten frustrated that I don't go the recommended distance in the time - are you all saying the distance isn't as big of a deal, just to run the minutes??
  • srecupid
    srecupid Posts: 660 Member
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    I paid for the premium app weeks ago but haven't started it yet. Eventually I will
  • caitlinrn83
    caitlinrn83 Posts: 178 Member
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    SmashleyM914 wrote: »
    You all encouraged me to take another stab at C25K. I've tried it before, and always give up. I do run other than that, but I have yet to run a 5K without breaks. I'm going to try it again! I've always gotten frustrated that I don't go the recommended distance in the time - are you all saying the distance isn't as big of a deal, just to run the minutes??

    YES!! at the end of the program, I could run the full 30 minutes, but I was consistently hitting somewhere between 2 and 2.5 miles, not a 5k. I jumped right into the 5-10k program, and i hit 4 miles this morning. The whole point of the program is to build up your endurance and get you used to the time on your feet. The speed and distance come with time.

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