Up until now I've been running around a football pitch at the local park, my thought behind this was if I stick to a regular route I can mentally monitor my progress and count the number of laps remaining, not sure if this is still working. I found run 1 of week 6 tough last night (this seems to be a common problem for others also) so I'm thinking I may now associate negative thoughts to my route (am I over analysing?) so I was thinking I'd change my route and introduce a bit of variety and rather than running laps I was thinking of running an extended route around the park and local golf course.
Has anyone else had similar experiences? I'm really enjoying c25k but that last run knocked me sideways 😫
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Simonc25k
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Laps are no fun in my opinion, so I would say go for the longer route. Running trails is also a great delight and leaves the urban streets way behind in the enjoyment stakes.
I have a tried and tested route, like you, so that I can gauge how I'm doing by where I am, but twice I've used extended routes and it has been refreshing.
I suppose it's helped me feel like a real 'runner' because when ( no longer 'if'! ) I qualify I'm going to be running other routes and this felt like the start of that.
I'd say, yes, extend your route, shake it up a bit. You won't want to always be running around the football field so ease yourself into something different little by little.
Definitely shake it up! I find my mind associates negative thoughts with certain points on my route (mostly towards the end) and if I swap my route around I can sometimes avoid it. Anyway just running round a field is quite boring and probably unsustainable. You could maybe do it once a week just to track your progress?
Why not give it a try? If it doesn't suit you, you can always return to laps in the field. I think, as you move into the longer runs that distraction is helpful, so some variety is a good thing.
Don't let run 1 put you off - it's an unsettling week but after run 2 it's really all about consolidation.
Definitely! I literally decide my route on the fly as it means that I'm thinking so much about which direction I'm going to turn next that the time flies by! I understand not everyone has that luxury depending on where they run but I love changing my route and never make up my mind until I'm en route!
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Week 7 Run 2 Done
Yaaay! 1st park run and 1st 5k done!
The hills are alive with the sound of my puffing and panting 🎵🎶🎵
"Thank You" to the Park Keeper.....!
Week 8 Run 2 - done! Only 4 runs left to the end of the programme.
