W9 so exciting - and then I suddenly lost my confidence!

[Elektrika]

I'm in W9 and this is my first ever post!

I started C25K in April as a birthday present to myself – and I absolutely enjoyed it from W1 D1! It was hard, as everyone here knows, but it was a real buzz and incredibly satisfying as the program intensified and the runs got longer. I loved listening to Jo Wiley and I kept reading lots of supportive posts and got lots of excellent advice and I loved the enthusiasm of the C25K community, but I never wrote a post because I didn’t feel I had anything to write about or contribute…I was obviously too smug.

But then I got to W9 and I completely lost confidence. Despite the fact that I had run for 30 minutes once or twice ‘just for a laugh’ in both weeks 7 and 8, when I got to W9 and it was serious, I just couldn’t do it. There is this hill in my park that I had been up many times but in W9 I just couldn’t manage it. For the first time, I had to stop and walk – and after that it was just like the spell had been broken – I couldn’t run for 30 minutes anymore.

I was devastated, I needed advice and I couldn’t contact the forum because I hadn’t written a post before and I felt that no one knew me! So, I have had to struggle on my own with that overwhelming hill for more than two weeks now – and I have managed to conquer it at last!

But I have learned something interesting that echoes what Jo talks about in W8 I think, that the longer runs are about endurance and stamina (and confidence, I might add) because you’ve done the training and you know your pace and you know how to do it. But it’s about not being intimidated - and in that sense, it’s actually much like W1.

In fact, it is important to remind myself that running for 1 minute in W1 was as hard as running for 5 minutes up that hill is today!

I have progressed!

And I have now managed three 30 minute runs, though I still feel I am faking it because the runs haven’t actually been consecutive, i.e. three runs in one week.

However, when I manage that where do I get my graduation badge?

[T1gger Graduate]

I would say you have graduated if you have 3 x 30 minute runs, congratulations! look at the June 17 graduation pinned post, thats where I got mine today!!

well done!

[Elektrika Graduate in reply to T1gger]

Thanks so much T1gger! And congratulations to you! 29th June is obviously my lucky day.. and yours!

[Hidden]

Welcome to finding your voice! You could've asked for help when you got stuck but I admire your determination to plod on, on your own and now you have done it

I'm not sure what the 'rules' are but I think you may have completed week 9, even if the runs were not consecutive. Mind you, you strike me as the sort of person who will want to do it all to the letter. You might enjoy a proper Graduation run too

Keep loving your running (and click on the pinned posts at the right of the page and then go in to June 2017 Graduation Badges and tell them what you did) Also, join the chat; you might welcome some focus in the weeks after graduation.

[Elektrika Graduate in reply to Hidden]

Great! Thanks very much helenwheels! You make me laugh - I think you've got me there, I do like to do things properly ha ha !

I had a great run today, and have discovered a brilliant route now with the perfect combinations of hills (well, slightly smaller hills) and flat and I felt on top of the world when I was done. I'll have to do one more run before I collect my badge, yes, a 'proper Graduation run'!

Presumably there will be a July 2017 Graduation Badges pinned post on Saturday?

[MarkyD Graduate]

Hi Elektrika, you're great, aren't you? Well done, and welcome to the graduates' club. Your persistence has paid off, and let's not forget that you were approaching W9 during all of that hot weather. We all (metaphorically) hang out behind the bike-sheds after school, and now you're invited: come and join us and tell us all about your running

[Elektrika Graduate in reply to MarkyD]

Thanks, I'll turn up behind the bike-sheds before you know it. My plan is to collect my graduation badge on Saturday.

[misswobble Graduate]

Congratulations! Well done 😃🏃‍♀️✔️👍🏅

[Elektrika Graduate in reply to misswobble]

Thanks misswobble! I love reading your posts by the way - a real inspiration!

[JaySeeSkinny Graduate]

Well done. Glad you got over your crisis! But to anyone else out there struggling, please don't suffer in silence, come on here and get a dose of motivation. We may not know you, but that doesn't mean we will ignore you!

[Elektrika Graduate in reply to JaySeeSkinny]

Thank you! Yes I do feel I'm over my crisis now, probably because of this forum actually, even if I've just been sitting on the fence reading inspiring posts and not writing anything myself... I will start writing now!

By the way, may I start running every day after graduation?

The off days feel a bit empty somehow..!

[JaySeeSkinny Graduate in reply to Elektrika]

It's not really recommended for a while. We're just not strong enough and run a real risk of injury. There are seasoned runners who "streak" (as it's called), but they've been running for 3-4 years. As a recent graduate I would consolidate at 3x a week, making one of those a longer run. Believe me you don't want to run the next day after a long run! After a few months if you're feeling strong you can increase to 4x a week, but I wouldn't do much more for a while. Your body needs to gain strength and have time to heal between runs.

Cross training on rest days is recommended, "strength and flex" (also a podcast on here somewhere) cycling, swimming, walking - all good!