Is it compulsory to stick to the plan??

[Slong090277]

I've got to week 7 and yesterday managed a thirty min run when I should've only did 25! I feel like I can carry on at thirty minutes or am I supposed to completely stick to the plan??

[Dunder2004 Graduate]

If you feel comfortable then it is fine to run for a bit longer. Just be careful though, overuse injuries/niggles can come from out of the blue after your run even when you feel completely fine during it.

[runswithdogs Graduate in reply to Dunder2004]

Yes, I'd personally err on the side of finishing the program. A little extra is okay, but the last thing you want is to land on the injury couch.

[the_tea_fairy Graduate]

You should really do the 25 minutes to avoid injury, but if you're baseline fitness is good and you enjoyed the 30 minutes, I'd jump to week 9. But I am a bit keen, and I have had a couple of overuse injuries for my trouble. On the other hand, I've also improved quite quickly and, mostly, stayed in love with running.

[Slong090277 Graduate]

I have a pretty good level of fitness I'm presuming that's how I've managed to keep going so quickly, am conscious of how my body reacts now so will ease off if I need to. I might try another thirty mins tomorrow morning not the end of the world if I can't but if I can I think I'll just skip to week 9! I've signed up for two 5ks now in July and feel really positive about them 😀

[Hidden]

I am with dunder , there is nothing wrong with running for slightly longer but being careful not to over do is important also

from what you are saying it seems you are pretty fit so go with it see how you feel

[BoPeep9009 Graduate]

Hello! Compulsory is a bit tricky to police as we're all our own monitors! Even if i had been able to run 30 mins in W7 i'm sure i'd still have broken it down to a walk as soon as Laura said i could! I'd say be careful not to hurt yourself and do your last weeks for at least the time allotted ... Any extra time you run doesn't mean you get to skip runs!

[Slong090277 Graduate]

Well this morning I managed 15 mins 😂😂😂😂

[Tomas Graduate]

I also felt able to do a bit more during the programme. People here warned me, but I was certain that I knew better. And I did. Ran a bit longer than the programme each week and graduated with a full 5 km run. I felt so proud. Then reality caught up with me, I had an injury, had to stop running for weeks, went to the physio, and got told that I had pushed too hard too fast. It was painful and expensive and suddenly I didn't feel quite as proud anymore.

So as Dunder said, of course you can do more, but be careful.