So today was the day that I started. My goal has become (for now) to run for 20 minutes straight without stopping. That is what Week 5, Day 3 of C25K wants me to do so my plan is to hang out on this day until I can do just that. Then, once I have that down, I will gradually up the amount of time I spend running until I am at about 30 minutes. Now, C25K assumes that you run a 10 minute mile apparently because that is the time they give for running a full 5k. I do not run that fast, so once I can get to 30 minutes, I will work on upping my time to get me to the 5k distance. That is a long way off at this point though. Right now, my goal is to run 20 and eventually, 30 minutes.
Day 1 - I almost did it! I am so surprised by myself. When the app announced that I was "halfway" and I was still running without stopping, which occurs at 10 minutes into the run interval, I was amazed with myself. I ran for another few minutes before I just had to walk for a bit. I counted as I walked and assume I walked around 60-75 seconds. This time, it wasn't really my breathing that was messing me up but rather that my legs were getting sore. I have slowed my pace some to allow me to be able to run farther without as much of an issue with breathing. Once I have the time down and the distance, I can start working on running faster. What's that saying though? I'm still lapping everyone on the couch. =) I wasn't lapping the other person I saw running though that passed me going the other way... twice. Granted, I don't know what her route was so I don't know her distance, but she was definitely somewhat faster than me. Regardless, my average pace for the entire 30 minutes was 14:10 which isn't actually my fastest. (14:03 is my fastest 5k distance and 14:09 is my fastest 2 miles distance which is closer to this one). My splits were good though because my first mile included 5 minutes of running whereas my second only had about 3 minutes, My second mile was 13:30. So, I'm hoping that I'm running at least 20 minutes straight by race day to up my pace. Although... there is this bridge I keep hearing about. I'm sure that will slow me down but we shall see. I figure that I have 3 more opportunities to run before the race as I definitely will not be running the Saturday morning before. So, my goal is to do the full 5k distance this Sunday before church then run Tuesday and Thursday/Friday of the following week. My hope is to be running the full 20 minutes (plus maybe a bit) by the time race day comes around. Then, if I can maintain a steady pace on race day, maybe I can increase the distance I typically run (adrenaline and all) and still finish in under 45 minutes despite that bridge.
Day 2 - Today is officially 1 week until race day! Eek! I am so beyond excited about this. I had no idea I would get so excited about running. That is so weird. Yet, here I am. Excited about running for 3.1 miles. Anyway, today was my final day to attempt to run the 5k distance until race day. It's not that I can't try it again physically. It's more that I have to have enough time before Steven goes to work during the week and I am just so tired most days that I would rather not get up too much earlier than I already need to. So, this morning, since we have church and Steven is home to help with the kids (as usual on a Sunday), I decided to do one more 5k distance while I had the chance. Today was also day 2 of trying to run for 20 minutes straight. That is one thing I NEVER thought I would be able to do. I remember week 1, day 1. I nearly died. Each time I had to run for 60 seconds, it was too much. I didn't even run every interval. And here I am. Talking about running for 20 minutes straight. Now, granted, I have lowered my speed a bit since that first day, but the (slightly) slower and steady pace is actually helping me run farther distances faster because I am able to maintain and not having to start and stop as often. Plus, when I do walk, since I am better conditioned now, I walk faster than I did that first week. Anyway, I didn't make the 20 minutes again today, but I made it a bit farther than yesterday so I'm calling it a win. Plus, I didn't walk as much as yesterday overall during the 20 minutes. I ended up finishing the 3.1 miles in just over 40 minutes and averaged my fastest pace yet. Still hoping for under 45 minutes. I just looked up pics of that bridge though... and it's no joke. It is definitely going to slow me down going up. Hopefully I will speed up going down though. Plus, I have to account for a few extra seconds to stop for a pic somewhere on the bridge. I can't run this race without documenting it. Haha! I felt good after today's run. I'm excited for Sunday. I am shooting for under 45 minutes but I think I will end up happy either way just because I will have done it. 2 more runs this week and then it's almost d-day. I'm sure I won't be able to sleep on Saturday night (which won't help) because I am getting so excited. =) Yay!
Day 3 - Well, week 1 of trying to run 20 minutes is done. I didn't make it to a full 20 minutes, but I can see (and feel) my stamina slowly changing for the better. Each day I have run slightly longer without stopping than the day before. Today I ran for about 14-15 minutes without stopping. I am honestly never sure of the exact time because I wear my phone on my arm so I cannot see it without removing it. I then ran again for another few minutes before taking another 15 second or so break and then finishing the run (plus running for another 2 minutes or so of the cool down to make up for walking during the run itself.) Feeling pretty good. I know I likely will not magically run the full 20 minutes on Thursday/Friday before the race, but as long as I can run MOST of the race, I think I am still set to finish in under 45 minutes. I run about a 12 minute mile (slow but steady) but I do have to walk some too. I keep hearing about this adrenaline that speeds you up or makes you run farther than usual without stopping so we shall see. Countdown to race day! T minus 5 days. Yay!
Day 1 - I almost did it! I am so surprised by myself. When the app announced that I was "halfway" and I was still running without stopping, which occurs at 10 minutes into the run interval, I was amazed with myself. I ran for another few minutes before I just had to walk for a bit. I counted as I walked and assume I walked around 60-75 seconds. This time, it wasn't really my breathing that was messing me up but rather that my legs were getting sore. I have slowed my pace some to allow me to be able to run farther without as much of an issue with breathing. Once I have the time down and the distance, I can start working on running faster. What's that saying though? I'm still lapping everyone on the couch. =) I wasn't lapping the other person I saw running though that passed me going the other way... twice. Granted, I don't know what her route was so I don't know her distance, but she was definitely somewhat faster than me. Regardless, my average pace for the entire 30 minutes was 14:10 which isn't actually my fastest. (14:03 is my fastest 5k distance and 14:09 is my fastest 2 miles distance which is closer to this one). My splits were good though because my first mile included 5 minutes of running whereas my second only had about 3 minutes, My second mile was 13:30. So, I'm hoping that I'm running at least 20 minutes straight by race day to up my pace. Although... there is this bridge I keep hearing about. I'm sure that will slow me down but we shall see. I figure that I have 3 more opportunities to run before the race as I definitely will not be running the Saturday morning before. So, my goal is to do the full 5k distance this Sunday before church then run Tuesday and Thursday/Friday of the following week. My hope is to be running the full 20 minutes (plus maybe a bit) by the time race day comes around. Then, if I can maintain a steady pace on race day, maybe I can increase the distance I typically run (adrenaline and all) and still finish in under 45 minutes despite that bridge.
Day 2 - Today is officially 1 week until race day! Eek! I am so beyond excited about this. I had no idea I would get so excited about running. That is so weird. Yet, here I am. Excited about running for 3.1 miles. Anyway, today was my final day to attempt to run the 5k distance until race day. It's not that I can't try it again physically. It's more that I have to have enough time before Steven goes to work during the week and I am just so tired most days that I would rather not get up too much earlier than I already need to. So, this morning, since we have church and Steven is home to help with the kids (as usual on a Sunday), I decided to do one more 5k distance while I had the chance. Today was also day 2 of trying to run for 20 minutes straight. That is one thing I NEVER thought I would be able to do. I remember week 1, day 1. I nearly died. Each time I had to run for 60 seconds, it was too much. I didn't even run every interval. And here I am. Talking about running for 20 minutes straight. Now, granted, I have lowered my speed a bit since that first day, but the (slightly) slower and steady pace is actually helping me run farther distances faster because I am able to maintain and not having to start and stop as often. Plus, when I do walk, since I am better conditioned now, I walk faster than I did that first week. Anyway, I didn't make the 20 minutes again today, but I made it a bit farther than yesterday so I'm calling it a win. Plus, I didn't walk as much as yesterday overall during the 20 minutes. I ended up finishing the 3.1 miles in just over 40 minutes and averaged my fastest pace yet. Still hoping for under 45 minutes. I just looked up pics of that bridge though... and it's no joke. It is definitely going to slow me down going up. Hopefully I will speed up going down though. Plus, I have to account for a few extra seconds to stop for a pic somewhere on the bridge. I can't run this race without documenting it. Haha! I felt good after today's run. I'm excited for Sunday. I am shooting for under 45 minutes but I think I will end up happy either way just because I will have done it. 2 more runs this week and then it's almost d-day. I'm sure I won't be able to sleep on Saturday night (which won't help) because I am getting so excited. =) Yay!
Day 3 - Well, week 1 of trying to run 20 minutes is done. I didn't make it to a full 20 minutes, but I can see (and feel) my stamina slowly changing for the better. Each day I have run slightly longer without stopping than the day before. Today I ran for about 14-15 minutes without stopping. I am honestly never sure of the exact time because I wear my phone on my arm so I cannot see it without removing it. I then ran again for another few minutes before taking another 15 second or so break and then finishing the run (plus running for another 2 minutes or so of the cool down to make up for walking during the run itself.) Feeling pretty good. I know I likely will not magically run the full 20 minutes on Thursday/Friday before the race, but as long as I can run MOST of the race, I think I am still set to finish in under 45 minutes. I run about a 12 minute mile (slow but steady) but I do have to walk some too. I keep hearing about this adrenaline that speeds you up or makes you run farther than usual without stopping so we shall see. Countdown to race day! T minus 5 days. Yay!
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