After week 9

[janicemason]

I finished week 9 last week and am so happy and cannot really believe it as have never run before.

So today I ran 5 km which is so exciting but took me 49mins so not very fast.

So my question is should I keep running 5km and just get used to it .

Also it is a bit of a jump from week 9 and running for 30 mins last week and today running 49 mins. I felt fine and really comfortable but am used to being instructed by the app to only run and increase times gradually.

It was really just that I wanted to see if was able to run 5km 😊

[gwrunner18 Graduate]

Well done! A 12 minute mile is the same distance as a 6 minute mile. I am new to this but if you are comfortable running 5k, what does it matter how long it takes

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate in reply to gwrunner18]

So true.. I can run one in 30 minutes... today it took much longer... mud !!! But I still ran it and had a ball If somewhat soggy

[JoP61 Graduate]

Well done! Don't know the answer to your question but I am eager to run 5K as well; currently doing 3.5k in 30 mins. It's a bit weird doing without the app! Happy running 😀👍

[janicemason Graduate in reply to JoP61]

Yes it is strange without jo wiley talking in my ear. My husband put a playlist together for me and that was really nice to run to😊

[DebJogsOn Graduate]

Brilliant work on your first 5K!

Now is your chance just to run for the joy of it and work out how to regularly fit running into your life. I really enjoyed trying out new routes andexperimenting with running with spoken radio podcasts, music and without earphones completely once I'd graduated.

Even now when I fancy a bit of structure I use the C25K + podcasts wh ich have really helped me to build stamina and speed.

Enjoy!

[janicemason Graduate in reply to DebJogsOn]

Thanks for the encouragement!

I am excited at the thought of just running without getting out of breath. That stopped at week 7, though I guess if I ran faster then that would be a different story. We are away for next 2 weeks and looking forward to running in different places .

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

Well done... check out the FAQ post what next... some great ideas there

healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate]

Well done on your 5k run today..😊Maybe mix it up a bit janice..some 30 min runs and the odd 5k which will take you longer...all good stamina building.

Happy running 😊x

[janicemason Graduate in reply to Bluebirdrunner]

Thanks. Yes good idea

[Bluebirdrunner Graduate]

Now you have finished week 9 janice, you have officially Graduated the program...Congratulations🎉🎉🎉

Ask for your Graduate badge here

healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

Check out the what next link Oldfloss sent you too!

Happy running Graduate 😊xx

[Jocomoso Graduate]

well done Janice, fantastic

I graduated 2 weeks ago and I would recommend to keep doing 30 mins three times a week, mixing up the routes and with an occasional longer run perhaps for the third run of the week -

I've been doing that and my confidence and stamina are really improving ....yesterday I ended up running 50 mins and approximately 7k! although I give you it wasnt continuous as my husband and I got caught in a torrential rainstorm and couldn't see one foot in front of the other (!!) so we had to shelter under a tree but only for about 3 minutes - but it was so thrilling to be able to run for so much longer time ...

so just keeping doing it! and if you want to increase to 10 k there are a couple of great apps you can download ... I am not going to use one yet, my husband suggested getting at least 6 weeks more of 30 mins x 3 runs under my belt just to build endurance and confidence

all the best xx

[janicemason Graduate in reply to Jocomoso]

Thanks really helps to have advice from peogle who are running after just graduating. I am the only one running in my family. But really enjoy the freedom of just leaving the house to run. 4 kids at home at the moment😀

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Well done.

Technically you probably increased your run by more than the 10% rule, which is outlined in the guide to post C25K running healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

Keep running keep smiling.

[janicemason Graduate in reply to IannodaTruffe]

Okay will check that out. All your advice has been really helpful. Happy to run 30 mins for a while and can't believe I got this far. So happy!

[hicorrie]

I ran my first training run of 5K in October and it was 48 min. Very close to yours. On St Paddy’s Day, I ran in my first official race and got 33 minutes! I couldn’t believe it. As others have said, keep running regularly to build an endurance base. Then consider substituting a basic run one day a week with an HIIT run, for maybe 20 minutes, and then subbing another for a long run of 45-60 minutes. Your aerobic fitness will increase dramatically.

[janicemason Graduate in reply to hicorrie]

Thank you for advice. Yes I am going to just keep running 30 mins for next couple of weeks and build my endurance 😊 so happy to be able to say that!

[CallieGunit Graduate]

Woohoo! Ya did it!!! So I finished c25k 2 weeks ago and have been doing 2 x 30 minute runs a week and the third a park run which means a 5km. I've already seen the times for the longer run go down by 2 minutes 30 seconds, and that's in just 2 weeks.

Just enjoy what you do and keep doing it! Don't forget to reward yourself a little with each victory, sometimes my reward is a g & t other times a pair of running socks. And the biggest thing keeping me motivated has been sharing my successes, as it's been amazing the response of my friends and family and had kept me working on it!

[JamboK Graduate in reply to CallieGunit]

That's the same plan I'm following, rewarding myself with a timed run first thing on a Saturday gets the weekend off to a good start!