2 rest days in between?

Hi all i am now doing week 8 but am still finding one rest day in between runs not enough for my knees to recover and that i need at least 2 non running days between each. This means technically i am not doing my 3 runs in a week,,,,does anyone else have this?

[misswobble Graduate]

That's fine. No worries at all.

Your knees, along with the rest of you, will get stronger as you keep running. You'll be amazed. Go slowly though and you'll finish the programme in one piece.

Good luck!

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Misswobble knows.......

You will still graduate, even if it takes a bit longer. Certainly better than injuring yourself.

[Ullyrunner Graduate]

Not a problem. You know what your body needs - if you've got to week 8 it's obviously working!

[dagshar Graduate]

I just about managed to get my knees ready again whenever there was only one rest day, but didn't always have the 2 rest days in the same part of the week, depending on how things felt. I definitely suggest you listen to your knees rather than the calendar! You'll get there with extra rest better than trying to run through pain! Knees are certainly the biggest pain area I have had to deal with (I ran today and know they'll be stiff and achy tomorrow!)

[Madge50 Graduate]

Go for the two rest days, I learnt the hard way, got overuse injuries, then the penny dropped, I run twice a week, and haven't look back since, (apart from a 'little' Achilles injury) do my local park run and one longer run a week. Bagged my first 10k race a couple of weeks ago, and my long runs are regularly 7/8k. Slow and steady hon, slow and steady. I'm just not built to do that much high impact every week!

Mx

[Northernspirit Graduate]

I often have 2 rest days don't worry you should do whatever works best for you...good luck with it you are close now!!

[old_git Graduate]

Very sensible to listen to your body and give it time to recover, as MW says, it will get stronger. Pushing too hard leads straight to the Injury Couch!

[mfamilias Graduate]

You're so close to graduation! Yessss! So listen to your instinct and give your knees the time they need to adapt. It's no big deal to do a Week 9 with nine days - see it as extra added free, a bonus for getting to the last week

[GoogleMe Graduate]

No problem with a few days extra rest. What I would say is that you might need to look at why your knees are needing it and change something else if you can - shoes, running surface, style... doing some exercises on those 'rest' days to support and strengthen your knees.

[RunLikeaTeadyBear]

nin12, hi.

I agree with most of the other replies: listen to your body! If you need 2 rest days take them. This 'Couch to 5K' programme is a general 'fit-all' course and on occassions needs to to be adjusted to suit an individual. If you need a 8-day week take it, all you are doing is adjusting the programme to fit an particular person (you), which, is exactly what a personal trainer would do for you.

One should always remember: the aim is to get fit for a particular event (i.e. to be able to run/jog/walk a 5 Km distance), and not to put yourself in a position where you may sustain an injury. Further, if it is your knees which you damage they WILL take a long time to heal. I would strongly suggest, it is NOT worth the risk of "pushing through" the pain barrier.

Depending on how you feel at the end of this week, it may be that you not only need to move to a 8-day week but also consider staying at and repeating Week 8 at least once before moving on to Week 9.

All the best with your efforts.

[Rockcello Graduate]

Yup, I often have 2 days rest - mostly for my knees and ankles but sometimes the monkey on my shoulder shouts a little loud. Amazingly can always get back 'on it ' after the break.

The most important thing is to ensure that two days don't become three or four.....