W9 done!

[Siawa]

Officially finished Couch to 5k today! It feels exhilarating! I never thought I'd make it this far, with plenty of obstacles in my way, but here we are.

Wanted to do something special for this weeks last run, so I pushed myself further than the usual 30 minutes. I wanted to run 5k today, so I soldiered on after Laura said slow down. Pulled it off in just over 35 minutes and it felt unbelievable.

C25k is an incredibly well-structured program, and while things may seem tough, especially in the middle (I still remember that 8 minute to 20 minute jump somewhere near week 4-5) keep going, and my advice to beginners is, you definitely CAN do it. Laura's little tidbits (you can do it, I know you can!) help a lot too. I discovered this forum well into my journey, but you guys were a massive help too.

Next up, I've got a 5k race at the end of February, so I'm going to consolidate my 30 minutes, build it up to 5k, and hopefully improve my speed.

[McFitty Graduate]

What a great post to wake up to!

Graduation and 5k too... you must be over the moon. And not only 5k but 5k in a brilliant time too! What a fabulous last run and now you have your whole running life ahead of you☺

Good luck with your race at the end of Feb. If you continue consolidating those 30 minute runs, you're sure to ace it.

All that's left for me to do is break open the bubbly, set off the balloons and say a MASSIVE 🌟🌟CONGRATULATIONS🌟🌟

Now we paartaaay😁😁😁

🎈🌟🎊🎉🍻🍷🍺🍸🎂🎓🎂🍸🍺🍷🍻🎉🎊🌟🎈

[Sadamski Graduate]

Congratulations! That's a good 5k time too.

[garyc]

That's great, congratulations! That's a great amount of time to be preparing for a 5k too, considering your achievement today!

[Siawa Graduate in reply to garyc]

Thank you! And yes I agree haha, seriously considering starting bridge to 10k once I consolidate 30 minutes, even if that's before my race!

[Davoda Graduate]

Yeah! Congratulations 👍😀🎓 what a great run to finish the programme on.

Don't forget to claim your graduation badge😀

[Siawa Graduate in reply to Davoda]

Thank you!

How do I claim the badge?

[Davoda Graduate in reply to Siawa]

Look at the pinned posts on the right hand side & you'll see January graduation badges. Pop over there & add your name. 😀

[RainbowC Graduate]

Fantastic - well done, graduate

[kickibro Graduate]

Well done. Congratulations! It is such an achievement and can be lifechanging. It's changed my life!

Try to increase your overall weekly distance by 10 per cent so you don't increase your risk of injury.

Have you tried the C25k+ podcasts? They're great!

nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/...

There is one for speed which is great when you are short of time as it is only about 20 minutes. There is another called Stepping Stones and another for building Stamina.

They are really good and you can alternate between them and keep your runs fresh.

Good luck xx