Anyone else? I can run for 25 mins now (or 'slow jog' as they RECOMMEND!) but still only managing 2.5k.
Any advice on how to up my speed a bit? I am overweight and was very unfit before embarking on Couch to 5K but I am torn between thinking 'wow I can run a mile and half' to feeling like I'm the slowest runner in the world 
JANE
I ran 2.4k in my first ever 25 minute run today - I'm over the moon! Having been overtaken by some dog walkers in Week 5 and having had some niggling voices in my head going 'You're stupidly slow', I had a good trawl through loads of posts on here and felt very reassured.
I've decided to make 'I'm going faster than anyone on a couch' my mantra and just enjoy it. I loved today because it was the first time in my life (I'm 48) I've ever run for that time - I'm just so proud of myself woohoooo!!!
Judging by everything I've seen here it's time and stamina first. Maybe speed comes later - if we're lucky 😉
Fantastic, well done. I have just completed wk 1, so your word & actions are motivating.
Firstly there is no "only" !!
You can run for 25 min's and 2.5k that is something to celebrate , think back to week1 and running for 1 min?
You have done wonderfully well you should be dead proud of yourself 
Not too many actually manage 5k in the 9 weeks , to graduate you have to run 3 x 30mins that is all, distance and speed you can work on after you graduate
Hi,
Just done week 7, and mines around 2.6k in 25 mins. You are not alone !! Worries me a bit too. BUT, noticed my W7R3 was longer than the ones before it, so I think the distance will increase as we get better at it !
Just double checked, Friday was 2.89 km for me, with the one before it 2.6km. So definite improvement with practice.
I was nowhere near 5k when I graduated, lots of people aren't. Think of where you have come from, this is your race, no one elses . Celebrate your achievements, just try & get to the 30 mins consistently then you can think about gradually increasing a bit of time, distance or speed. I'm still quite slow & I graduated in September,but I'm still trying. Better than not running & being on the couch as someone else has said! X
Jane, please, please, please do not worry about it. There is a massive range of running abilities. Today at my Park Run a 11 year-old ran 17 minutes and some folk ran 51 minutes. I'm sure that everyone was pleased in their own way.
So the question for you is... will you graduate in a couple of weeks? Of course you will and that is an achievement in itself. Once you can happily run for 30 minutes, then start to think about your next goal. Do you want to run longer - 45minutes? One hour? Or do you want to run for 30 minutes and faster?
Wait until you've graduated before worrying about the next step.
Jane it's not about speed or distance it's about time. And with time comes stamina and with that comes distance and with a little training (fartlek) comes speed. Don't spoil it by wanting to much. Enjoy your running. I go out and run a couple of miles but they are enjoyable ( you should see my strava timings) I do running to de stress and get fitter. When if it ever does become a chore I will stop. Hope this helps 
J
well first thing well done. But if you want my advice, I would have started by walking or hiking and good use of myfitnesspal, but since you have started running, keep with it and keep jogging and don't think about the time, without wishing to sound rude, when the weight comes down the time will come a little easier, bit by bit.
I graduated a bit over a year ago, and my best time for 5k is 42 minutes - so don't worry about it. Keep at it, and as others have said, speed and/or distance can come later.
Don't speed up!! I've graduated and am just over 3k.....we are all different, try not to compare with the speedos on here, just focus on running the times. If you speed up you could injur, over-strain etc. enjoy!!!
Very few people will get close to 5k in 30 minutes during week 9.
You have nothing to worry about.
At this stage, don't worry about it, your body is still learning the ropes. When you can run for 30 mins on a regular basis then think about it. But hey, 25 mins ? Not that many people can do THAT !
Even if you were the slowest, and you aren't, you'd still be the slowest RUNNER in the world. Well done for getting out there and running.
Thank you, that has hit home!
Thanks so much everybody. I am overwhelmed by your kindness and thoughtful replies. I'll keep going! I'm down to do a 5K in June and as my mother in law kindly reassured me 'oh you can walk that'! But I would like to be able to run 5K in 40 mins by then if poss. You're all lovely to encourage me, thank you xx
Slowish runners (like me!! ) should really run and train to time - rather than distance. The effort/energy used by an elite athlete to run 5 klms is exactly the same as that of a slower runner - the only difference between the two is that the energy expended by the elite runner is done over a shorter time frame (plus of course the experienced runner will probably run more "efficiently) .
Good training plans will take this into account and give daily time based runs rather than distance based. The only problem with all this is the races are based around distance.
So - be proud that you can run for 25 minutes - slowly build your time up to maybe an hour or so over many months and forget about what distance you are covering.
Cheers Bazza, good advice
Saw something on Facebook the other week that said ".. A 12 minute mile is the same distance as a 6 minute mile.." Running is what matters, not speed!
Me too! I have just posted the same question. I am a slow one! Good luck with all your other runs xx
This question came exactly at the right time for me. I’ve been enjoying all my achievements so far but starting to wonder at the relatively short distance I was achieving as the runs get longer (I am on week 6). All the responses here have reassured me to keep going as I am and deal with the distance/speed later. Thanks to all.
Nowhere near 5k?
Nowhere near 5k
Struggling with 25 min runs week 7
4 X 25 min runs in a row
The dreaded 25 min run
