Got started with one of the things I want to do this year and did my first #CouchTo5K run/walk. I’m definitely very unfit as that was quite difficult. 😅

Glad I did it though!

Very chilly this morning and tricky with some icy paths, but got my second #CouchTo5K run done!

Didn’t have any gloves so my hands were frozen by the end. Got some on order now! 😄

#Running

3rd run and “Week 1” done! 💪

All of the 3 runs I’ve done so far have been 60 seconds of running with 90 seconds of fast paced walking inbetween. Today felt the easiest for me. Guess I’m ready for the next stage. 🏃‍♂️

#Running #CouchTo5K

It took a little longer to complete “Week 2” of #CouchTo5K because of life things getting in the way, so those runs were more spread out. I’ve just completed the first run of “Week 3” now though!

Run - 90 seconds
Walk - 90 seconds
Run - 180 seconds
Walk - 180 seconds
Run - 90 seconds
Walk - 90 seconds
Run - 180 seconds

The last run felt the most difficult but honestly didn’t feel that bad. So much so that I was finished a little earlier in regards to distance on my usual route for this run, so I added another 180 second walk followed by another 90 second run at the end.

Feeling good! 💪

#Running

Well that felt much harder. Started “Week 4” of #CouchTo5K today!

Run - 3 minutes
Walk - 1.5 minutes
Run - 5 minutes
Walk - 2.5 minutes
Run - 3 minutes
Walk - 1.5 minutes
Run - 5 minutes

Didn’t help that the majority of my last two runs were uphill. 😩

I did it though! 💪

#Running

Week 5 Run 2. Hardest run yet but I pushed through and did it! 💪

Run - 8 minutes
Walk - 5 minutes
Run - 8 minutes

#Running #CouchTo5K

Well if that’s not a sign that my running since the start of the year is doing some good, I don’t know what is. 💪

#Running #Health

Well, I had my first setback on my #CouchTo5K.

Today was supposed to be Week 5 Run 3, which is a 20 minute run. In the first couple of minutes I felt a lot of tightness and pain in my right calf (cramp maybe), so I slowed down to a walk. I was going to pack it in, but it loosened up again so I pushed on and started over. I had to take a couple of walk breaks in the middle, so I think I’m going to keep trying this session again every 2/3 days until I can nail it.

Still decent today though. Probably did about 18 minutes of running in total, with about 4 minutes of walking, so not all bad. It’s really stepped up a gear this week so just got to keep pushing myself!

#Running

20 minutes of constant running complete! I’m very happy with that! 🤩

#Running #CouchTo5K

What to you tend to listen to whilst running?

At the moment, I just have a playlist of music around the 150 BPM mark, however I’ve seen some listen to podcasts? I wonder if that makes it harder to keep to a particular pace, but makes it easier by being distracted when running might feel hard.

#Running #CouchTo5K

@jamie
Almost always music.
I have a running playlist and a subscription to #Deezer
But only one earpiece - gives me a chance to hear traffic, cyclists, dogs etc
@jamie always podcasts for me.
@niels I’ll have to give it a go!
@jamie I listen to podcasts. It doesn’t affect my pacing ability as far as I’m aware. Then again, I don’t run to music so I can’t compare!

@jamie

"What to you tend to listen to whilst running?"

I have two general types of running playlists: fast, mainly techno-type songs for tempo and speed work and then chill, relaxing music for racking up the Zone 2 mileage.

@cricket_bacon What do you mean by Zone 2 mileage?
Everything you need to know about heart rate training

Ready to follow the beat? Discover how training by heart rate can benefit your running performance with our comprehensive guide.

Runner's World
@cricket_bacon Thanks! I’ll have a read.
@jamie At the moment I am listening to liquid drum and bass mixes (between 168 and 174 bpm) for this weeks 10k's
I normally listen to podcasts, or nothing except the world around me when I am running my long runs (15+ Km). I don't find it impacts my pace especially, running to the spoken word - I do learn things better if I am listening to a science podcast, for example. I guess I must be a Kinesthetic learner, wish I'd known that when I was younger
@robchapman Yeah I think I’ll give podcasts a go whilst on a run. I don’t think it would affect the pace I run at either.

@jamie

That's excellent. Well done. 👏🙌🕺😊

@jamie Nicely done! 🖖🏻

@jamie

Sounds like you're nailing it!

How did it feel? Any pain or nuisance?

I know from personal experience that is a good idea to remember to listen to the body and overdo the training😊

(Sorry, you weren't asking for advice)

@folfdk No pain or nuisances today, unlike the previous run when I tried the 20 minute run. After the last time when I did have pain, I left it an extra day for recovery I think that really helped.

I also took some advice (Thanks @harrybo!) and made sure I did a few warm-up stretches beforehand so that likely helped as well.

Also, thanks for offering advice and popping it in a CW. I'm always open to advice of others with more experience. 😊

@harrybo @jamie

That's awesome!

Progress is also doing the same week twice 😊
That's something I sometimes forget. Simply doing the same training is actually progress. (This is also a comment to myself 😅)

I'm not sure I have that much experience, rebooted my training 9 months ago starting out with 3 runs of 3x400 meters and now I'm running 3 runs of 7-14 km a week.
I do strength training with focus on single leg exercises too. I think that has been good for me personally.

Happy running!

@jamie
Congrats mate!! 💪🏻

Now get ready to walk 90 km 😁

@jamie
Thats a great accomplishment - congrats!
@jamie that’s still great progress.
@Bfordham @jamie Progress is progress. Good call to slow to a walk when you cramped up and picked it back up once you were clear of it.
@WTL @Bfordham Thanks both. I’m still happy with what I’ve done today, but still disappointed it was the first time I wasn’t able to complete one of the sessions. But oh well, shit happens. 😄
@jamie @WTL totally understand that. But you can also say you made it to week 5 before having to adjust at all.
@jamie Gotta listen to that body first and foremost. A day or two setback is better than an injury that resets you back to day 1
@therealahall Yeah 100%! Had that in the back of my mind when I eased off, although I’ve been feeling it today! So will give it at least a few days before attempting again I think.
@jamie Just double checking, are you stretching after your runs? As a rule of thumb I set aside at best 30 mins (at worst, 15 mins) of time for stretching afterwards- really cuts down on soreness, less chances of injury and speeds up recovery
@harrybo Actually haven't been doing any at all tbh. I know not the best idea I've ever had. I'll look into starting it.
@harrybo @jamie Great shout, I also stretch after every workout and do some additional light stretching before I go jogging
@therealahall @jamie Slow, gentle and methodical stretching is very underrated tbh. Easiest way to imagine it is think of your muscles as being like blue tack. That same elasticity idea of pulling it too quick will snap/tear it, but warming it up, moulding/stretching gently and it’ll stretch out nicely.
@harrybo @therealahall Never thought of it like that. Fair point. I’ll give it a go tomorrow. 👍
@jamie @harrybo You’ll get to a point where stretching becomes your favorite part about exercise. You’ll start to notice you feel it when you skip it.
@jamie Heck yeah get it 💪🏼
@therealahall @jamie and wait until you reach under 60! That will be fun 😁
@alex @therealahall What happens under 60? 👀

@jamie @therealahall time slows down.

Not really but you will be feeling cold all the time 😅

@alex @therealahall Oh I welcome that then. I prefer feeling cold to hot. 😅
@alex @jamie This! My resting is in the low to mid 50s and it’s stupid how cold my extremities can get.
@therealahall @jamie
and it's... different! It seems like it is coming from the inside
@jamie Nice to see the change! 🖖🏻