My Bridge to 10K training log 💙 [WEEK 4]

[Julia-P]

Hi everyone, my name is Julia and I'm running the Bridge to 10K programme following Ju-Ju's Magic Plan (distance edition). I've decided to log my progress during the course of the programme and I'm hoping to provide a motivating read for the other members of this community. I do all my runs on a treadmill and I use a neat little game called Zwift to supplement my training.

This week was somewhat of a mixed bag. D1 and D3 went really well, but D2 was kind of a slog. I do find that taking running easier has helped me as evidenced by the absence of side stitches!

Bridge to 10K Week 4 Day 1

For this week's 'short' (4K's pretty long already!) run I decided to try a workout on Zwift. Luckily, this week saw the start of Zwift and Adidas' TAKE IT FORWARD collaboration, which features special group workout events. I decided to dip my toes in one of these workouts, honestly not expecting much. Hoo boy, was I wrong!

The workout was a really exciting interval session and I smashed the intervals all the way to 4K. I actually went a little bit over, and ran a 4.7K instead, oops. 😅 However, the workout did include a cooldown walk which I usually exclude from my Zwift entries. I also grabbed some virtual Adidas gear for my Zwift avatar, which I probably won't wear. Feels nice as a collect-o-holic though!

Week 4 Day 1 on Strava: strava.com/activities/57751...

Week 4 Day 1 on Zwift: zwift.com/eu/activity/87894...

Bridge to 10K Week 4 Day 2

This one wasn't that good of a run. I was in kind of a hurry as we had to leave on the train a couple of hours later. I dipped into a MHG Run Club event and had a good time with the MHG folks. All in all, a pretty uneventful 5K. (Feels crazy to call a 5K uneventful when it was the goal of the entire C25K programme!) I did hit Level 7 on Zwift Run though, which is nice!

Week 4 Day 2 on Strava: strava.com/activities/57854...

Week 4 Day 2 on Zwift: zwift.com/eu/activity/88033...

Bridge to 10K Week 4 Day 3

I did this week's long run on a Sunday, after I was quite exhausted from a very busy weekend with a lot of people (extremely draining as an introvert!) I had a nasty headache earlier on the same day and I felt like I wasn't quite up to the task of running an 8K. I decided to give it a try anyway, as I didn't want to spill over to next week. I joined another Adidas workout, this time aimed to build endurance instead of doing intervals.

The workout was dull, dull, dull! The virtual coach very unengaging and didn't really add any meaningful value to the workout. Anyway, I ignored the coach, which wasn't hard between the long periods of silence. At roughly the 3.5km mark I noticed that I had entered a sort of meditative state and I really didn't have to pay attention to running, instead focusing on my thoughts. This state made running very easy and I coasted my way up to 7.2km when I noticed I had plenty of gas left in the tank and sprinted my way up to the 8K (and then some!)

After the run the realization hit me: I had just ran for an hour. AN ENTIRE HOUR! Back when I started C25K in March running a single minute was absolute torture. And here I went and ran for a blooming hour! I was absolutely chuffed! And also in disbelief.

Week 4 Day 3 on Strava: strava.com/activities/57984...

Week 4 Day 3 on Zwift: zwift.com/eu/activity/88196...

Halfway through the Magic Plan now, feeling absolutely GREAT for the next week! See you then!

Previous post: [Week 3] healthunlocked.com/bridgeto...

Next post: [Week 4] healthunlocked.com/bridgeto...

[VG11 Graduate10]

What a great post! I’m going through a similar process - I’m up to 9k but have been there for about 3 weeks, I can’t quite get the push over the top to 10k. I totally agree about the meditative state of mind - it’s great isn’t it?!

I use the NRC app when I need a bit of support and coach Bennett is amazing.

Best of luck with it all - keep us posted

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to VG11]

Thanks for your reply! 😊 The meditative state of mind felt really good; I usually use music to pump me up which does do the job but it definitely didn't make running feel as easy and... light as this state did! I felt like I could go on forever! (Obviously, not really! 😅)

I'm eager to explore Zwift's library of workouts now that I've dipped my feet in them. I did feel the virtual coach on D1 really did make a difference!

Good luck with your 10K! 😊

[VG11 Graduate10 in reply to Julia-P]

I’ll keep you posted and you do the same to keep us both accountable! - best of luck 🏃‍♀️👍😊

[a_in_gsr Graduate10]

Congrats on the hour! Such a cool achievement I'm also so jealous you have running for with Zwift - that sounds amazing actually. I think one day I want to get it but for indoor bike training

Right now I'm at 8.5k (just done today!) and honestly can't wait to run one time and the time just flies by

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to a_in_gsr]

Ooh, cycling on Zwift is super fun! It's more fully fleshed out compared to running (as it should, since they charge a subscription fee for cycling while running is free) and I personally do find it even more fun than running on Zwift. Alas, I'm a runner crosstraining with cycling, not vice versa 😝

Good luck with your running progress! 😊

[CBDB Graduate10]

Sounds great! And big congrats on the hour! (You know you can get a badge for that but I don’t have the link handy)

[CBDB Graduate10 in reply to CBDB]

Ignore me, I see you got the 60min graduate badge already! 🙈 Great stuff!

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to CBDB]

Thanks 😊 I accidentally stumbled upon the badge thread!

[nowster Graduate10]

If you're now feeling that 5km is "uneventful" perhaps you might want to try a parkrun sometime.

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to nowster]

Perhaps. But that would involve going outside! 😝

I wasn't saying that like it was a bad thing, it's just funny that 5Ks are so mundane for me these days when once it was a great struggle to reach that length. If that isn't an indicator of progress then I don't know what is! 😊

[nowster Graduate10 in reply to Julia-P]

Outside has a lot of things going for it, you know. 🤣

That said, your first run off the treadmill will feel really odd. You're setting the pace, not a motor driving a flat band. The surfaces are uneven. There are smells and sounds. I'm even told there are things called hills.

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to nowster]

Oh yes! I ran a 5K outside once and it felt odd! I got pebbles in my shoes, my laces came undone and I got a side stitch! 😅 Anyway, it felt nice to mix it up sometimes.

[Omiah Graduate10]

Great post Julia - wonderful to get to that mediative place during your run. And thanks for the tips on apps - I have used Strava (But don't want to pay for the version that compares you to other local "athletes"!) but haven't tried Swift or Adidas workouts. Some time ago I did find a podcast ...through health unlocked - which featured Laura our old friend from the C25K. This was a different Laura though, and she took me up that hill fast! Maybe see if you can find her. But keep meditating...

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to Omiah]

Thanks!

I find that logging my progress on Strava motivates me immensely - it feels really good to take a look back at my earlier runs once in a while and see how I've progressed! I'm currently using the free trial of the premium version of Strava and I've not used the local athlete comparison feature (especially when the athletes on Zwift segments are anything but local!). I do find the HR and power (when cycling) analysis tools immensely useful anyway.

I did C25K in an oldschool way - I just read the written instructions on the NHS website, no podcasts involved! 😅

[CBDB Graduate10]

👀👀👀… I’m still so intrigued by that image …. (Can’t wait until they release the rowing functionality).

Did you know that the Lonely Goat Running Club has regular runs on Zwift. I came across that the other day and looked like such fun!

[Julia-P Graduate10 in reply to CBDB]

Oh yes, I think I've seen their events every once in a while. Haven't joined any of them yet, though.

They really did Zwift Rowing dirty. The CEO said on a podcast that "it'll come out in a few weeks" ages ago and here we are, no rowing. I'm sort of glad though, there's no way I'd fit a rowing machine along with a treadmill and a smart bike in my home! 😅

[CBDB Graduate10 in reply to Julia-P]

🤣🤣(it’s squished into our guest room, replacing the permanent guest bed, to be replaced by a double folding bed 🤣🤣, but then we don’t have a treadmill or indoor bike)

Yeah! A rowing dirty! I think they officially u-turned, confirming it was because wanting to focus on enhancing the experience for their existing running and cycling community. I can understand that, but rowing would be such a great addition!