Having graduated last Friday, I decided to give the Stepping Stones podcast a go today. And it was ghastly!
What speed is it talking about? I could only go at the pace Laura was dictating if I kept my steps shorter than normal, with the result that I did less distance today than I did when graduating. And still couldn't really go at the pace required over the last 5 minutes.
I'm still nowhere near doing 5K - should I be looking elsewhere?
What is Stepping Stones?
It is tricky. Took me a couple of goes to get the hang of it. Basically it gets you focussing on cadence and using it to vary your pace. I would say stick with it. It's fine to slow down. Try doing it uphill and see if that helps.
Or chuck it and just do what suits you. There are no rules.
It's short light steps, keep upright, good for strengthening your legs..1, 2,3,4 feet to the beat!
I really liked it😊x
Yep....look at consolidation first.... you are a very new Graduate.... so....lots of different runs and some 30 minute runs in there too...the C25K + podcasts are not what they seem... they are challenging and they work on the different disciplines in our running...
They are there, as Bluebirdrunner says. to work on cadence, strength, stamina and speed etc.... that is why we suggest waiting a couple of weeks before starting them 
I really liked the C25K + podcasts once I'd graduated and found they helped me maintain a more consistent pace (otherwise it really varied during a run). The Stamina podcast got me to my first 5k and I like the Speed one (interval training) which I think has helped me to run faster over time.
Others on here haven't enjoyed them though so I guess it horses for courses - the best thing about being a graduate is you get to experiment a bit.
I agree it's horrid I tried twice and hated it - since I graduated I just repeat week 8 or 9 over and over 😀
It’s not all slow. It speeds up believe me. Then you’ll be complaining it’s
too hard 😃
They are very good and will improve your running and your fitness. You have to do them though
I do them regularly as I left them on my playlist, so run them as they crop up. Intervals are good practice 💪🙂
Hi - I know exactly what you mean, I couldn’t even run at the slowest pace and i tried doing the intervals podcast 3 months after graduating. Having said that, when you are ready for them, they do make a big difference. I spent my first one swearing loudly to the count of 4 and I must admit I couldn’t deal with the music at all. But when I tried again about a month later it was easier to get into the cadence thing. They are testing, certainly not easy, but they are giving you different running to your armoury. Most running clubs do interval training as standard. I can truthfully say I’ve never enjoyed the intervals, but I do appreciate the difference they now have made to my speed.
There’s a technique called fartlek which you could try introducing when you feel ready. For now please feel no guilt in just running and learning your body’s rhythm.
The lovely Laura is all about encouragement, she wouldn’t want you to be discouraged at all.
Consolidate your runs. Get some 5ks/30min runs under your belt . Find your gears. Your 1k 1m and 5k speeds then look at maybe speed/interval training over the stepping stones pod cast.
I use nike+ run app and there are loads of coaching pod casts on it.
OK. Thank you guys for the input.
I'll file SS away and go back to Michael J and the week 9 runs for a while.
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