Couch to 5K : week 6 ... Finally!

So it's been a long time coming.... But I finally completed week six of the Couch to 5K programme! I don't have any real excuse why it's taken me so long but life just happened and interfered with my plans (hence the lack of general blogging too)! I have been travelling the length and breadth of Britain, camping in Cornwall, and starting a new job since week 5, but I did try to do some variation of moderate exercise during my C25K hiatus. We hiked for 6 miles in Cornwall, body balanced, and ran on a treadmill at the spa which all, I think, helped with the return to running.

Starting again this week, I was a little apprehensive that my body would have forgotten how to run. The first session I had already completed straight after week 5, but I wanted to re do the whole week in preparation for the longer run in the third session. The first and second sessions this week were the normal interval run/walks, and to be honest, were completed reasonably easily. Such a relief!  It gave me a little bit more confidence for the 25 minute run which seemed like a massive mountain to overcome. 

But we did it! I still need to massively work on my pace; I want to use all of my energy in the first five minutes, and obviously that's not great when you're running for distance (albeit fairly short for this novice) or for an extended length of time. The inclines are also fairly hard work but I hope that patience and pereservance will pay off and only add to my stamina. The podcast says we can officially call ourselves runners now... I might wait until I've got a few more twenty five minutes under my belt before I proclaim myself a runner! 

I know I've said it before, but I never imagined I'd be able to run for twenty five minutes completely and enjoy it! I would recommend this programme to anyone who wants to become a little more active! I enjoy my runs and it's encouraged me to try other activities - I'm currently looking to add Zumba and swimming to my weekly agenda, along with running and body balance! It really has had such a positive impact on me! I'm hoping that all of this will become a habit for a long time to come! 

Couch to 5K : Week 5

This week, I realised how seriously impressed I am with this programme.  At the end of this week, I ran for a whole, uninterrupted twenty minutes.  To be honest, even now, I can't believe I managed to do it and the run was fairly comfortable.  It seems almost crazy to think that five weeks ago, I struggled for the minute runs!

We knew that this week, we'd be in for some serious runs as there were three different podcasts, one for each session, instead of repeating the same sequence three times in a week.  The walking to running ratio jumped up quite quickly too this week and when Laura announces you'll be running for how ever many minutes, it can be a bit daunting.  However, this week seemed to be more of a mental challenge than a fitness one, and this was reiterated during the podcast.

I think for beginners who run this is a huge part of the battle, it is for me anyhow.  I am so used to be extremely unfit and not used to doing any exercise that I assume I won't be able to do it, before I've even given it a try. However, when I actually start with the runs, I find it easier to continually run instead of stop/starting.  I'm not sure if it helps me focus or I slow down too much during the walking parts that I find it difficult to start again, but I found the twenty minutes more comfortable than the earlier session of two eight minute runs with 5 minutes walking sandwiched in the middle.

I still haven't decided if I want to sign up for the mile run.  I'm at a precarious stage at the moment and I'm concerned that if I don't do it, it will knock my confidence and I will consider myself a failure.  This week, I have committed myself to making the decision; I'm going to measure the distance I cover during this week's session and if it's more than a mile and I complete it with reasonable ease, I will sign up.  I'm still working on the whole mental battle thing and telling myself I can do it, but after the 20 minute run, I'm feeling more confident that I'll be able to push myself to complete the whole 30 minutes or 5K in the final week.  Woohoo!

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Couch to 5K : Week 4

Woohoo! Week four done! I felt such a feeling of satisfaction after finishing the last session early Sunday morning. Week four was quite a substantial jump from week three, we went from running 9 minutes a session to 16 minutes. I still maintain that although six minutes doesn't sound like very long, when you are a novice runner, sometimes dragging my lead legs along, those 6 minutes or 360 seconds, really feels like a very long time.

Something that I have also been struggling with a little bit is technique. Our podcast trainer Laura has mentioned one or two tips to help our technique but I really struggle with it all. I can't seem to get my breathing inline with my left foot hitting the ground every four steps, to be honest, I'm more focused on getting through each run within the session.  I was hoping that my technique would just fall into

place as running became more often but nope, I'm still running like Phoebe from Friends. I'm also trying to work on my pace; I'm definitely not hitting any sprinting times but I'd like to develope a steady, even pace throughout the whole session, instead of jogging at a quicker pace for the first couple of minutes and then struggling for the last minute. Any tips? 

Week five is looking like it will get very serious, we have three different podcasts for each day we run. I also spoke to someone else doing the programme who is on week seven... And she told me how long she is running for... I'm panicking! However, I'm actually quite enjoying this plan and how it is benefiting my lifestyle. Here's to week five!

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Couch to 5K : Week three

Another three sessions brings us to the end of week three. This weeks sessions were noticeably a lot harder for me and the last run of each session really required me to focus and push through my desire to give up and walk! I did it though and am quite proud of myself. Two of the three runs this session were double the length of last weeks and it did feel like a pretty big jump, but you really do feel a massive sense of achievement when you get through each one and the shorter runs feel like a breeze! 

The second session this week was probably the hardest one I have done so far; we decided to do a body balance exercise class to compliment our running the night before our second run. As it turned out, the class was pretty intense and difficult for beginners and left us with lots of sore muscles which made it harder to keep on going through the tougher bits. Luckily, we had a couple of days before the final session and had just about recovered before it was time to put on the trainers again. We are planning to carry on the body balance class (exercising four times a week... Unheard of for me!) in the hope it will tone up and strengthen our muscles. 

This week, I've noticed a change in my body too. As well as doing the Couch to 5K plan, I've joined a Slimming World to shift some extra weight after my Mum and Auntie joined and did so well there. They have both inspired me so much that I really want to become healthier. I've lost weight steadily so far and with my exercising, I've also lost inches around my waist and hips. I've got a long way to go, but I feel like I've come so far in just three weeks that I'm feeling quite positive (and very nervous) about next weeks sessions!

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Couch to 5K : Week two

We did it! We made it through to week two! After every run, I do feel immensely proud of myself; I'm almost picturing it as a tiny step completed on a massive journey. I'm still super apprehensive and doubtful that I will actually be able to run for a whole thirty minutes, but even two weeks ago I doubted that I'd even make it this far! (I'll probably say that every week). 

I think one thing that has made it easier is the fact I have a running partner; we motivate each other and it really has helped me to have a kind of support and someone saying "not much further" when I'm struggling at the end of the last run of the session. I also feel more sense of responsibility now that Dena and I are running together; sometimes it is ridiculously hard to drag my bum out of bed at 6.30 in the morning and run, before heading to work to teach French/Chinese/Nigerian/Spanish kids English for 9 hours. But having someone else doing it too, I have a commitment to fulfill and I don't want to let either of us down, and so far it's working! 

I'm also contemplating signing up for a mile run in September. It's for a local charity and even though it's a race, they are encouraging runners of all abilities to join in. I thought it would be a good goal; it should be one week before I complete the programme and a mile should be an achievable target. Right now, I'm a bit nervous that I won't be able to do it and it will affect my confidence and make me feel like a failure, but I'm also thinking that if I sign up and pay the joining fee and end up not running, it don't matter because the money will have gone to a good cause and I won't have lost out. Even though I have just completed the second week of the programme, running a mile continuously seems like the equivalent of my own mini Everest at the moment. 

I'm feeling positive towards week three; we have found a route that is comfortable but also quite challenging with a few inclines and different surfaces, so it'll be good to see how it pans out with the new timings for running and walking. I'm hoping it won't be too much of a jump up from the second week! 

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Couch to 5K : Week one

I'm not going to lie, I'm really not the most active of people when it comes to exercise. Even through school, I much preferred the academic subjects to PE; probably due to a severe lack of hand-eye coordination and a dislike to running around in the freezing cold. 

However, recently I've decided to make a few changes to my lifestyle (this was all kick started by my gallstone diagnosis) and I wanted to attempt and do something that I never, ever thought I'd be able to do. That's where Couch to 5K came in. To be honest, running is (was? Nah, probably still is) my idea of hell.... I'm pretty sure my body isn't cut out for it! But the health benefits of running are well known and I want to prove to myself that I can do it, so here I find myself, having just completed the first week of the 9 week programme. 

I'm following the NHS plan, which requires you to complete a session three times a week. The sessions in week one involved an interval training kind of plan; 30 seconds of running followed by 90 seconds of brisk walking for half an hour. It sounds a lot easier than it is, for a running novice anyway!  You download your podcast, pop on your trainers and just go for it. The fact that each session is only thirty minutes means that it's pretty easy to fit into your day, I've been getting up an hour earlier and gone before work. It's tiring but already I have noticed a difference in how difficult I have found each run - I'm sure week two will be another shock to the system though! 

I thought I'd blog each week about how it's going because it's great motivation for me to keep on track! I still can't imagine myself running five kilometres but even the fact that I'm exercising three times a week is a massive positive change for me! Here goes for a good second week! 

Have you ever tried an exercise plan like Couch to 5K? 

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