My gremlins are a damned nuisance

[davidhwynn]

Third time round the C25K programme for me after part-programme restarts, plodding along, taking longer to do each "week" than I feel happy with and jogging slower than I feel happy with ... yea, check my other posts, I know all about the "take it slow - then go slower still" mantra. Crazily my mind still keeps telling me to stop way before I ought to need to stop. My personal trainer at the gym has slotted in 30 mins on a bike at the start of my core workout, saying that even if I find it dead boring (which I do!) it should help both my endurance and my "mind training". Managed treadmill warm up / 25 minutes bike / treadmill cooldown yesterday. Could he be right? I am getting frustrated that I can't get my mind in gear.

[Davoda Graduate]

Have you heard of the book "The inner game of tennis"?

It's not a big book & it is of course primarily about tennis!! But is actually extremely useful to understand the mind games. It might be worth reading it, or something like it.

[Jalapenolover101 Graduate]

Don't give up now!!!! You've already made progress 👍💪

It is hard, but that's the point 😳 If it was easy those numbnuts you see everywhere would be doing it to, instead of walking their scary looking dogs😉

The dogs are usually quite nice by the way 😳😂👍

The owners.............

[davidhwynn Graduate in reply to Jalapenolover101]

Used to have one of those scary dogs, but regrettably he died - he was 9 stone of hair and muscle and sooooo friendly .... not like the owner! .......

[Jalapenolover101 Graduate]

If you're only running on a treadmill have you tried the great outdoors?

[davidhwynn Graduate in reply to Jalapenolover101]

Yes, outdoors is harder than a treadmill. In fact I'm off outside again today, it's such a beautiful day here. Going to do my C25K session and then walk the rest around my local Parkrun 5K course - done that before and quite enjoyed it.

[Lauracorin]

Distraction works for me. I find running quite boring, so I listen to an interesting podcast. The time goes quickly and I'm not very tempted to stop early.

[misswobble Graduate]

No wonder you're bored. Hamster syndrome! Go outside into the wide blue yonder, or your local park even 😀

Break free man 😀

[davidhwynn Graduate in reply to misswobble]

I do - in fact I'm heading out again today - outside's harder than the treadmill!!

[Joolez Graduate in reply to davidhwynn]

I used to find outside harder too but now I love it and find inside harder because it's so boring. The more runs you can do outside the better - I think it's because you can see your journey better and I find it motivating knowing that I only have Togo a little further to complete my run

[Anniemurph Graduate]

Yep, I agree (as always!) with misswobble ! Get out there! Dreadmills are so boring. At least outside you can play the 'just to that next lamp post' game, or the 'other runner alert' game when you spot another runner and you were going to drop to a walk but of course you can't now and suddenly your running form improves magically, your pace increases slightly and you manage a nod and happy smile as you pass them

Have fun!

[davelinks Graduate]

Don't really need a pt doing c25k. So your doing the bike immediately before a c25k run? No wonder! just follow the programme and ONLY the programme! on the run days, you can Cross-Train on the rest days from c25k. And if your mind says stop when doing c25k just say to yourself NO! use your determination! Your not in any pain are you?! Just go out and get on with it!..😊

[davidhwynn Graduate in reply to davelinks]

No, doing the bike before a core workout. Don't have the PT for C25K, use him for the core workout programme that I try to use on most of the non-C25K days. The core workouts have been great by the way, improved my body shape and posture.

[davelinks Graduate in reply to davidhwynn]

Ok.. well done! Just keep pushing on through the gremlins, it's bloody tough,I had the same problem in the early days, kept on pushing and a lot easier now..😊

[misswobble Graduate]

Morning Annie 🙂

Beat you to that next tree! 🌴 Yeah we,re in Hawaii ! We can be anywhere we like in our game can't we 😀

Are you coming out to play David🙂 It's fun out here. One of us even managed a swim while out on a run yesterday 😀

[RainbowC Graduate]

Even running outside and trying all the mind games, sometimes it is still difficult and the brain says 'stop' long before the legs and lungs actually need to. There's no magic solution that I've found to prevent this - just keeping on keeping on, and gradually the part of your brain that knows you CAN do this gets brave enough to speak up to the louder part saying you can't.

[HelsbelswhatamIdoing Graduate]

I did C25k last year and the week after I graduated I badly tore a muscle and now am back to square 1 again. But I remember those gremlins, darned pesky things. Somewhere, maybe on here, I read or heard the thing that managed to get me through the gremlins. "Am I in pain, and can I breathe?" If the answers are "no and yes", keep going! And I used to imagine with each step I was squashing a little gremlin and that gave me a perverse sense of pleasure!

And the other thing - get outside! Seriously, I did the whole programme bar 1 run outside, and it was the one run inside that nearly killed me, and seriously knocked my confidence (at week 8). You have much more control over your own pace outside, and so many distractions. I would've thought you were bored out of your brain on the treadmill. It's a fab time of year to be out, everything springing into life, and not too hot to run.

Good luck with it, you can do it!

Actually, now I think about it, the gremlins were for me, probably the biggest problem to be overcome, even bigger than the fact that before c25k I'd never run 30 mins in my life (nor even 10 when I was at school). So squish the gremlins step by step, and take each run as a major achievement, and don't look ahead to the scary notion of running for longer. TRUST THE PROGRAMME!!