Beginning to enjoy it!

[Cantersmum]

On Saturday, equipped with brand new purple running shoes, I decided to try a new route as flat as possible along the river to see if I could finally hit 5k. And I am delighted to say I made it in 35 minutes.

This morning I went back to one of my normal routes which has a few ups and downs (we are not talking big hills but small slopes!). It’s funny how occasionally there is a run where you feel really good from the beginning, doesn’t seem to be any rhyme nor reason, but today was one of those runs. I decided to push the speed from halfway as felt really good. I managed to up my pace and complete 4.5k in 30 mins (had been averaging about 4K) but here is the thing - in my mind I was running really fast but was still well under 6k for each km. So hats off to those who are running 5k in 30 mins or less - that seems to me to be very fast.

[Stephen_UK Graduate10]

Very well done. Great that you enjoyed it. So true that some runs just click into place and others don’t. But don’t worry about your speed. It will naturally improve over time.

[Cantersmum in reply to Stephen_UK]

Thank you. It is strange isn’t it. When forcing myself to go out for a run this morning I certainly didn’t feel particularly ready but when started running it just clicked. Whereas other times I have felt more ready and then the whole run has felt like wading through treacle. Will make the most of those moments though. Thank you for encouragement.

[GoGo_JoJo Graduate10]

Well done! It takes time for speed to change much. The main thing is it's much faster than being on the sofa! 👍🏻😉😁

[Cantersmum in reply to GoGo_JoJo]

You are so right. Still can’t believe how much progress I am making and that the programme actually works! So much better than the couch 😊

[grumpyoldgirl]

Love it when a run feels good like that! I'm amazed that some people can graduate with a 5k run in thirty minutes, because I'm still not there, although I'm faster than I was, and feel a lot stronger (and less out of breath 😌) My speed didn't really change much until I had been running for a while and started to increase my distance. I've now decided not to try to increase speed, but to work on strength and distance instead. Although I won't be upset if I finally also manage a sub 30 parkrun 😁 Your times will get better as you get stronger.

[Cantersmum in reply to grumpyoldgirl]

I agree - after realising how fast 30 min 5k is, I am now going to put that to one side. Are you following a particular programme to work on strength and distance? Thanks

[grumpyoldgirl]

I'm signing up for a 5 to 10k running course starting in September, so I won't have to work it out for myself! Most people on here do some consolidation weeks of 30 minutes or 5k runs, then start on JuJu's magic plan, which is among the pinned posts on this forum. It's basically 3 runs a week, two of them shorter, and one longer. The long run gets gradually longer every week. One of the shorter runs is 5k, so it could be a park run. The other one can be used for intervals if you like.

[grumpyoldgirl]

Oh, and each week on the plan features an exercise of the week, eg could be planks or lunges. There'll be a link to instructions to do them correctly too

[Cantersmum in reply to grumpyoldgirl]

Great thanks. Good luck with your running course in September. Sounds like a great idea. I think I will carry on with consolidation runs for another couple of weeks and then maybe have a go at the magic plan. Started running in Spring though so bit nervous about what happens when it gets cold.....

[grumpyoldgirl in reply to Cantersmum]

Cold weather means buying more stuff 😂 Most people prefer it when it gets cooler, I'm ok as long as my hands are warm enough.