I "messed up" this morning on my run. I did the NRC 35 minute Running for More Joy...
With apologies to any Coach B ultra fans (or any Americans) in the audience, I thought this was a bit too happy-clappy and actually altogether too American for me. It was exactly what I thought NRC would be before I even properly looked at what it was all about. The key factor though was that it got me up (early again 🫣), out and running.
Right at the beginning Coach B said run slow; he made a big point of it; then he said it again ... and he never said speed up. So I kind of ran slow(ish - I did speed up a tad and ran faster for the last minute). He counted me down and I finished the 35 minutes, thinking I have another 5k under my belt. I turned the app off on my phone, then realised I had to stop my watch too. I looked down ... and I had done 4.75k. 4 point flaming 75!! I was 250 metres shy of 5k. For some reason I didn't just start running again; instead I got all huffy with Coach B, my watch, that car passing by, that smug fluffy cloud in the sky - and it took there shine off my run.
This is - what? The start of week 4, post C25K? And I started on a Monday afternoon. That first minute run was tough, tough, tough. And a week or so before then I could not maintain a slow jog down the 60m of our garden. I didn't start C25K until I could jog 3 times around the garden.
So I was upset - with everyone in the world, don't let us forget - because I didn't run an extra 250m today ... after I had already run 4750metres. I had it in the tank. I was running well and easily. I stopped only because of some notional measurement of time.
So ... I - and YOU - have come a long way. Whether you are still on the path to C25K, or about to re-graduate, working towards 10k, half-marathon or are just out there running 2-3 or more times a week. Well done! You are doing brilliantly.
Happy running.
Written by
Gthants
60minGraduate
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Oh, that made me laugh! My run pales into insignificance compared to that!! 🤣 Thanks for sharing! We should make this a thing - a gathering place for "nearly, but not quite runs!" 😱
Oh dear! 4 point flaming 75, I feel your frustration but hey, you ran, you didn't have exhaust yourself, and you are way faster than I 😃 what's not to be happy about? And it's done for the day.
Nope. Just four shoulder exercises with the band that he'd showed me before and I said I was coping with quite easily. He asked me to show him. I did. I was not doing them correctly. Nor am I doing them "quite easily" . . . I now have a video of me doing them correctly with commentary of him nagging me (I beg your pardon, explaining exactly how to do them).
I think we have all been there! Sometimes runs just feel a bit grumpy for no particular reason and then they and and we feel in a grump all over again about the pace being too slow, or the distance not being quite right, or having pushed too hard, or not hard enough…. A bit of space helps as I think you’ve found! It’s a MASSIVE leap to go from running one minute at a time to comfortably running for thirty five. It’s easy to lose sight of that when the gremlins and the grumbles strike, but tomorrow you can look back and remember that your legs did that. Regardless of how you felt about it, and you’re now fitter and stronger because of it!
I absolutely love Coach B but he is a cheesefest and sometimes it’s a bit much, especially if I’m not in the mood for being cheered on. No judgement for that here! If you haven’t done the Suckcess run yet, you might enjoy that for tips on finding ways to look for success in a run you didn’t enjoy or found tough.
It’s sometimes hard to keep straight what sort of run we’re doing in our heads. I’m so guilty of this and have spent months doing easy effort runs while subtly checking my pace to make sure I’m going fast enough. That almost always meant I sped up beyond my easy run pace! If you’re out running for time at a chilled pace, distance doesn’t (or shouldn’t!) matter. That’s so much easier to say that to actually keep straight in your mind-I’m mainly talking to myself here! I would actually count that just-less-than-5k run as a big accomplishment because you stayed at a steady, comfortable pace without pushing too much and finished with lots left in the tank. You’ll need that to build your distance and it can be really hard to do.
Where are you on your run journey at the moment? Do you feel you’re still at the post-graduating consolidating phase or are you thinking about what’s next? I just ask because when I have runs like this, it’s sometimes a sign that I’m itching for a new challenge and a plan can help keep my mind on track!
I honestly have no idea what I am doing but I had my last physio appointment for a while today. He consolidated my back exercises, clarified my horrible shoulder exercises, and then we talked about running quite a lot. He's now emailed me a programme to get me to 10k!
That seems totally bonkers; akin to just strolling up Everest!
But he was perfectly sincere and said I sounded as though I was doing the running, but lacking purpose in doing so. C25K had given me that and moving onwards would help me. With the summer holidays starting this week, it does give me more freedom.
I was thinking running in new places might be the challenge, but now there may be a new one ... 🤫
That sounds such a positive appointment. I saw mine for the last time on Tuesday-he says I’ve recovered enough not to need him. Pleased and sad! It sounds like you’ve made great progress with yours and you might be ready for a new direction. You may well find (as I did) that getting from 5k to 10k is relatively straightforward. Nowhere near as difficult as getting from 0-5k. I think I read in another that you’ve already done 6k? Finishing 5(-0.25)k with loads left in the tank shows you definitely have the capacity to go longer…but that’s only if you want to.
The tricky thing post graduation is it can be hard to know what to do next. Running in new places sounds like a brilliant challenge. There’s no pressure to decide anything and nothing you do decide is set in stone either. You can always adjust to fit with what you’re enjoying.
Don’t forget, everyone who actually climbs Everest thought it was bonkers at some point! Having big dreams is great fun! Who knows where you might end up!
I don't. And we don't have to record all our times and our splits either, do we ... ? 🤣
I woke early (surprise!) and thought I'd do my run. I was already walking to warm up when I looked at my phone to see which run I would do from the app. Part way through the run it clicked that 35 minutes (just about) = 5k for me. And it almost did! 🤣
Guilty of recording everything! But - I do like going out for a 30 minute run. Of course on a 30 minute run I’m nowhere near 5K 🤣
I have to make the decision to run a 5K and it’s not easy as I’m not keen on the distance - probably because it highlights that I’m so slow. I felt bad that all my group were smashing out these 5Ks and I couldn’t even do 4K in 30 minutes. I almost gave up running. Then I thought I’d aim for 10K instead 😊
I'm 61 so age will catch tip on me rapidly! And I do have plans to start working towards 10k later in the summer.
And it's so strange, isn't it: I smiled when I first saw your posts about distances and times, then I noticed others doing the same and maps and whatnot. Then I got close to the end of C25K and thought I'd not get to 5k, but saw that it would be a possibility. Now I'm turning into a measurer! 🤣
But I think you are right - aiming at the longer distance will force me to mix up my pacing (and run on last week's hill) to build up stamina and focus on running longer and so naturally further. Some of that will be faster and some of it very comfortable.
My physio was supposed to fix my back and shoulder; he got me running and has now handed me a route to 10k! 😱
You should feel pleased with a run well done, but it's so easy to beat ourselves up isn't it. I'm doing Juju's magic plan to get to 60 minutes running mixing the runs up some with NRC and some going my own way. It's liberating and enjoyable, hope you find your plan good too. Happy running 🏃♀️🏃♀️
Oh, that reminds me of the run when I forgot to strap on my watch 🤣 Since I am still relatively new to wearing a watch (again) and am often just doing it for runs, I had not put it around my wrist. By the time I finished my warm-up walk, I noticed. For a moment I thought about going back home to get the watch, then I thought "That's silly! A run is a run whether I capture it with my watch or not!"
You also still have the option to average this out 😉 You know, just make your next couple runs a bit longer than 5 km...
Hi, when you have been I’ll, there’s no such thing as messing up a run! You are doing so well. I know what it’s like to struggle to just climb the 3 steps into my bungalow, so any run is a good run! Pat yourself on the back and give yourself a round of applause (clapping?) 🤣🤣
Exactly this! I think so often as I look across the patio of the time when I could not even make it all the way across to the chairs out there. It's extraordinary to be running 4750metres!
…after consolidation I worked through JuJu’s Magic Plan. As I’m not the speediest of runners, I started with the timed version with the aim of eventually running nonstop for 60 minutes 😊
After a false start on Xmas morning 2020…that’s another story, but basically tripped over a kerb 🙄…
…I managed my 60 minute run on the last day of 2020, almost 5 months after starting C25k…
I’ve posted the link to the full post below, but this is the take home quote…
“...then I looked at the distance...🤬🤬🤬...5.97km...I could have ran for 6km...doh! 😫 Plus the poxy *actual* moving time stated 58:45...not a happy bunny...why not say that!?! Time *elapsed* was 1:00:11...so I’m having that!😎”
…yes…actual moving time 1:00:11…elapsed time 58:45, I feel some of that was down to the uphill parts ⛰️ …and then to find it was 5.97km…
That's funny! I thought it was just me this happened too, but loads have similar stories! I am building up to be able to run for an hour too - though it seems a long way away at the moment.
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The NRC 'How Fartlek Can You Go' Run (26 minutes)
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