Newbie here - age 52 and at the stage where I think its time to focus on my own health more, having not done any serious exercise for the last 20 years.
Never heard of C25K until yesterday - but it looks to be exactly what I need, and from the posts and reviews I have seen, there is so much to gain from this.
I am 95% there to do this but just need a final push (and a decent pair of trainers!) .
Any advice before I start / to make me start?
Also - how important are the podcast downloads. I don't have a smartphone as such but assume its perfectly ok to do this without the downloads.
Many thanks in advance and well done and good luck to all those who are currently on the programme.
Cheers
Peter
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smithp24
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Someone recently - I forget who - did the programme with their stopwatch
Browse the FAQs for all the info you need - if you're buying trainers first anyway, make sure they're proper running shoes (maybe get gait analysis, read the FAQ posts on it).
It's a fab programme. Go for it - and keep us posted, if you like. If you only heard of it yesterday, you're quicker than a few of us, I heard about it about 4 years ago and only got to it last July..!
C25K is a great way to focus on your health! Not just for the running bit - but how it seeps into other areas, like eating healthy, drinking more water, and mental health - it sort of all follows on nicely and naturally.
My main advice would be to always run super slow - means you can finish the run successfully and build up stamina. This is not about speed. Stretch well after each run and always take a rest day between runs or two, if you need it. Most of all, have faith in yourself that you can do it, because you can. Every run completed is a triumph and that will spur you on.
Slow and steady and you will reap the rewards! This programme works a treat. 😀
Best day to start the plan is today. Don’t put it off. The main advice is to stay on the forum and post regularly, it will help keep you motivated and help keep you on plan. The health benefits are amazing. I started last April and completed the plan. A few months later whilst still running 3 times per week I went for a medical procedure. Before the procedure I had some observational checks. My blood pressure was spot on, SpO2 was perfect and my resting heart rate had gone from 85bpm to 55bpm.
I too am 52 started c25k before Christmas and I am now on week 7😮. This forum is great too to give you that extra incentive reading others running stories. Many on here never believed we could achieve what we have just follow the program and believe you can do it. 😉
Hi! I’m 53 and started programme in September and graduated in December! It’s been the best thing I have done for myself . I’m off all medication for high blood pressure and anxiety. I feel so well and happy. I also have lost 2 stone over the year (slimming world) and eat a very healthy diet. I’d thoroughly recommend it and would offer all advice others have given. Hope you give it a go! 😂
I'm 56, started in September and now regularly running 5k having not done anything since school.
Apart from decent shoes you just need a bit of time and confidence in the programme, it works, believe me!
I started with sketchers shoes but after week 1 realised they wouldn't do. I went to buy new shoes but had no idea and fortunately I have a neutral gait so was lucky with my new shoes.
Hi Peter... I started on 8th Jan last year - the day before my 52nd birthday. I was the most unsporty person imaginable. I have never used the podcasts at all - I liked the idea of running to music. So, I wrote down each day what I had to do, and took Van Morrison out with me, and I completed it a week early, feeling in awe of myself!
I had some very cheap trainers but used those for the first few weeks. Maybe the experts will say I'm wrong, but I decided you don't run that far/a great distance at the start so it couldn't do any harm. I ran in normal leggings, jumpers, even a coat one freezing day! I decided to buy real running clothes and trainers part way through as a treat for keeping to it.
My advice is - start now and run slowly. All the experts in here who say to take it slowly are right. I cannot believe running has changed me so much in twelve months. Good luck and enjoy it!
The podcasts make it easier because you don’t have to keep checking your times But perfectly possible to do it without. As others have said, trust the program and run slowly.
I graduated yesterday at the ripe old age of 55. I had no confidence in myself as a sporty person and struggled with week one. I would say believe in the programme. Follow it religiously and you will succeed. I found the C25k app really motivating. I didn't want to let that mentor in my ear down by not finishing a run! How my attitude to exercise has changed over the past few weeks. Treat yourself. Get started and enjoy that endorphin rush after a run and believe that you will do it....and remember slow and steady wins the race.
You've got this. Give it a go. The podcasts are great because there is motivational tips along with some terrible music. If anyone has an old ipod hanging around that can work. But it's not essential, a friend of mine used a watch.
I didn't use the podcasts or anything, just followed the programme timings from the website. Any way, good luck to you! Not that you will need it. Most of us get out there and get hooked within a few sessions. Keep us posted!
Go for it, even if you missed the start date you set for yourself. I'm also a newbie and completed W1R2 today. The forum stories help hugely in terms motivation, support and knowledge.
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