Feeling a real sense of achievement now finished week 6 today...legs feel ok, but my back's feeling a bit stiff tonight, but it could be muscular...Might this be due to bad posture, or just because I've been moving for longer?
(I've got decent trainers, so shouldn't be to do with them, but I do run along a bridlepath which is full of ruts and uneven)
Any ideas?
I have found that the walking/running has upset my back! I have now graduated so am doing the full sessions "running!!" but my back is a lot better from not going between the 2. So be gentle with yourself and do some stretching exercises for your back before you set off. I have found that my back has settled.
PS I run on the flat and avoid uneveniness at all costs to protect my ankles!
Good luck with next week btw
Thanks, I'm going to try some stretching. I know when I'm at work I tend to hunch over when sat at a desk, so was trying to keep my shoulders back etc. There's so much to think about it can be hard to relax into it. But I'll take it easy and monitor it, thanks again 
It's something you need to monitor. At the moment I'm not allowed to run because of a herniated disk (that doesn't feel as painful as they're meant to be, but I've seen the thing on an MRI scan, and it's ugly). This is a pretty bad situation to get into, but not the worst, by a long stretch.
I mention this, because on the way to this situation, I went through quite a lot of back pain when I first attempted this programme. Back then I was quite a lot fatter than I am now, and I had a much weaker core than I have now. I'm also a bit more careful with posture, but that's something that's quite difficult to remember to stay on top of...
... aside ... I've just remembered what my cousin's biokineticist taught her, as far as posture goes. It's quite a neat trick, as the Americans would say. What you do is pick a colour, and that colour becomes your "posture checking colour". Let's say you pick red, as an example. Now the next time you're at a red traffic light, you do a quick posture check. (She's the one I've tried to talk into trying c25k, but so far it's her horse who is messing up her back, not running). ... end of aside ...
In my case back pain might well have been a precursor to bigger back problems. However, it was continuous, and it was getting worse as the runs got longer. Sometimes it's not a good idea to just tolerate pain and hope that it goes away when it sees you're pretending not to be frightened of it. So you need to monitor yours. If it goes away, it's probably just a passing problem; if it sticks around, fixing it by fixing your core strength may not be enough to prevent harm.
And if you get numb toes, stop right away, and go and get a doctor to find out why they're like that.
Thanks Gary, I'm carrying extra weight, so expect some of it will be to do with that. I also undoubtably have a weak core...I'll have to start doing some planks to try and help strengthen it. I'm pretty sure it's muscle stiffness which I guess will improve, but I'll be careful. Nice tip about the colour posture check...not got many traffic lights where I live, so will need to think of another trigger/colour. Do hope you can get back to running Gary, thanks for the reply
No idea about the pain but well done - you and I are at the same stage !
Weeks 7 starts for me tomorrow morning !!
Backs better, think it's just muscle stiffness Did first run of week 7 this morning, and like you I loved it when Laura told me I was a runner last week listened to that bit twice!
Good luck with week 7, not long now 'till we graduate then - hope weather nice for you tomorrow
W6R3
W6R3
W6R3
W6R3
W6R3
