My legs hurt

[taggieG]

Hi tried my first run week 1 today, really struggled after 3 sixty seconds missed a couple and did last one. My legs hurt more than being out of breath, will this get better. Very over weight but trying to lose it. Walk lots 3/4 miles every day

[Tbae]

Read the FAQ Posts essential reading and all other posts, top tips , discover , communities with shared interests, weight loss, active 10 walking,etc, etc,

Take it slow and steady that is your handbrake.

It will get easier as the weight comes off and you will get more energy reward from both your exercise and weight loss.

Do not do any running on your repair days ie 4days in a week with 3 run days.

But you can walk every day , 7 days per week. Build it up with active 10, 10 means number of minutes in any one hour.Make that your base activity.

Do loads of non impact ,not running.

You will need to build up from 7 hours per week to double that. Your 3 runs is only 1000 Cals per week and you need to build up to 14 hours and 3000 calories to generate the calorie deficit to lose 2 lb per week.Not quicker.

Get a resting body calorie count done at your local gym.

Amazing support from this forum , so keep posting and reading the FAQ POST.

Enjoy.

[Lillybeth30mins Graduate]

Congratulations on starting. That is the hardest step. And it’s good to hear you’ve already been doing some exercise prior to starting to run. I think aches and pains are to be expected in the first few weeks (but obviously any real pain should get checked)

I think the obvious suggestion is to slow down. You might think you’re running slowly already, but I bet you could slow down more if you tried. And as the weeks progress and the runs get longer, you’ll be glad you learnt a slow pace.

Any run that isn’t completed we re-run next time and call the first one a practice run😉 (And there are people on here that do W1R1 (at least!) a few times before they move on.

Keep posting and the lovely people here will give you lots of advice, and congratulations again on starting this journey... you’ll not be sorry! Good luck! 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

Liz x

[taggieG in reply to Lillybeth30mins]

Thanks for the support, hopefully it will get easier, I have a feeling I may take more than a week to complete the run, but look forward to getting better

[JoP61 Graduate]

Hi and well done for starting this programme - you won't regret it! The thing is to take it slowly in order to complete each run. As Lillybeth said, any uncompleted run is a practice run, and you can always have another go.

You will get lots of encouragement and expert advice on this forum.

Keep posting and let us know how you're getting on. The fantastic thing you have done is get off the couch and go out and run. Best of luck with the programme! 👍 xxx

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Welcome and well done for starting.

Read the guide to the plan for answers to your question and many others. healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

Enjoy your journey.

[doubletap Graduate]

It does get easier the 1st 4ish weeks all about building strength and stamina . 1 was 18.5 stine when i started c25k and by completion of week 9 i was down to 16st 4lb. Go through app at your own pace and dont worry if you feel you need to repeat a week , its all progress . Dont think of distance just realise the app trains you to run 30 mins

[taggieG in reply to doubletap]

Wow impressive well done you. I’m pretty heavy myself but have recently lost two stone, it’s come to a bit of a standstill so wanted to up my walking (I have a dog) someone recommended the app. I really hope I can do well on it

[sarah65]

My legs really hurt during first couple of weeks. I’m in week 5 now and my legs really do get stronger as each week goes by.

I struggled with week 1 but after all the advice and encouragement here on the forum, realised that slow means s-l-o-w 🐌🐌 and I stick with the ‘slow and steady’ mantra.

Other tips that helped me were making sure I’m well hydrated, eating a good diet, stretching after a run and allowing myself to recover while brisk walking between runs. Reading through the posts on here, following other people’s journeys and realising that others started where I did, with the same hopes and fears and went on to succeed has helped me enormously.

Well done for starting. It’s the hardest part. I look forward to running now and really feel like I’m achieving something.

Good luck 😊

[limberlou Graduate]

Epsom salt baths help too after the run. I was sceptical but they definitely do. My knees aches and my right thigh when I started and the baths sort me right out.

Don’t give up , keep going and you’ll get there. Good luck