Just One Week To Go!

[oldfogeyrunner]

We've just completed W8R3! I had to have a three week layoff having had to have a "procedure". That was after having completed W8R1. I have to say I only just made the 28 minutes for Run 2; my legs were really complaining for the last ten minutes but running with my wife kept me going. When we have completed Week 9 I want to work on my speed and gradually work up to being a "proper" runner. I would be grateful for your advice. What time should I be aiming at for my first 5k?

I have to say I don't know if I would have got to this point without the support and encouragement of this community, so thanks to you all.

[greenlegs Graduate]

Well done. Just keep going!

It's pretty much impossible to suggest what time you should aim for, because everyone starts out from such different points - a time that is challenging for one person would be easy for someone else. So the best way round is to see how long it takes you, and then try to do it a bit faster (or run for a longer time). Just try to improve on what you can do.

A while back we did a mini-survey of how far people could run in 30 minutes in week 9 - average was about 4k, but a few ran 5k, and quite a lot ran around 3k (me included, and I haven't really got a lot faster). Age, gender, fitness and genes all make such a big difference. Not to mention the weather, time of day, what you've eaten, what you've drunk, whether you've had enough sleep or had a good/bad day...

Anyway, anyone who has started week 1 is a proper runner in my book.

Keep on running.

[oldfogeyrunner Graduate in reply to greenlegs]

That's great advice greenlegs, thank you. It puts it all into perspective.