Post graduation advice please

[Katielh]

So as some of you may have seen I graduated yesterday. Now what? I don't want to push too much and cause injury but equally I don't want to stagnate but feel a little lost without the guidance of the app... what is a reasonable increase in time to do now on a weekly basis? And what's the best way to time myself? The thought of the half time bell and jo whiley not letting me know when to head back home slightly worries me 😊

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate]

Hi Katielh,

Congratulations on Graduating yesterday.😊

Your running journey has only just started, you can run for 30 minutes, whenever you want to... Still with rest days inbetween.

Do this..its consolidating your running and really important to strenghen your running legs. Its not stagnating at all. You have come from 1 min runs to 30 in a relatively short time and could injure yourself by pushing for futher distance or time just yet.

You will be able to add on to your runs and someone will be able to tell you the safe amounts to work up to 5k if you want to and are not there yet. I did the c25k +podcasts which are coached runs. You can join one of the Quests on the pinned posts below to help with motivation by setting a goal for yourself.

Enjoy a few runs just because you can, most importantly..keep running.😊

You can track your runs on Strava for free, and carry on with Wk 9 to time yourself.

There are other trackers but I'm not familier with them. Someone will know though.

[Decker]

Congrats on your graduation! I was in the same spot after C25k and found the C25K plus speed and stamina (especially stamina) podcasts really helpful. You can find them here: nhs.uk/Tools/Pages/Couch-to...

As for tracking runs, I use an old fitbit which gives me distance, time and pace. If I run over or under the 5k then I use the calculator here to see what the 5k time would be based on the pace I ran: polar.com/blog/running-pace....

[ju-ju- Graduate]

Well done on graduating, and as others have said this is just the beginning.... keep running, find new and interesting routes to explore, try the C25k plus podcasts and get your body used to running.... and enjoy it, this is just the beginning 😎

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Try to keep up three runs per week, just to ingrain that habit in the pattern of your life. Try the C25K+ podcasts.........they don't work for everyone. Consolidation around 30 minutes is good, but you might want to gently push one run per week as your long run in a few weeks time. The increase in distance for the long run should not exceed 10% of your weekly total distance.

This 10% rule is just a safety guideline to prevent you from overdoing it. Mix up your running. I always recommend running somewhere totally new.......cliff path, moorland, forest track or maybe a beach....... somewhere to indulge your newly won ability to run. Don't worry about pace or distance, stop to admire the view. Have some fun.

There is a Bridge to 10k forum, where you will find many familiar faces.

Keep running, keep smiling.

[Katielh Graduate]

Thank you everyone, some really good tips 😊

[damienair Graduate]

I found Parkrun was an amazing help in keeping me motivated after graduating. I do 2 runs during the week, and do a Parkrun every Saturday. It has become part of my weekend now. I use the 2 midweek runs as training runs for Parkrun.

[Katielh Graduate in reply to damienair]

Yeah I've got a loca park run so I'm definitely going to start doing that feel I want to get a little closer to 5k first before I do though.

[damienair Graduate in reply to Katielh]

Don't worry. You don't have to be at 5k. You can run and walk your way around the course. Just turn up, take part and enjoy it. Some will run it in less than 18 mins. Others will take an hour. I walked and ran my way around the first 5 times I did it. Each week I would try and run a little more and improve my time. You will love it. Register, Print out your barcode and do one as soon as you can.