I went out on my first post graduate run this morning, not feeling 100%. I think I overdid the celebrating on Monday (walked about 8 miles in the heat after my run) and got cooked for 5 hours at work yesterday (gardening). Managed 13 minutes of the Stepping Stones app before I decided to call it a day.
Never mind, I’m going to have a short break, do some cardio and weights at the gym then be all refreshed for my first Parkrun with youngest son on Saturday (this was my biggest goal for C25K). Back to Stepping Stones after that I think.
Anyway, I have got myself a belated 50th birthday and graduation present - a Fitbit for extra motivation to carry on. Just seeing how low my resting heart rate is now is motivation enough 😁
Happy running everybody 👍😊
Written by
TailChaser
Graduate
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Hey TailChaser Good on you for getting straight out there and giving it a go anyway after that mammoth walk and getting fried yesterday! Enjoy Park Run!! And your Fitbit!! 😱🤗
Fitbits are great and make keeping track of km easy too if you time it on the qtr hr Does sound like another rest day might have been needed after all that :/ Good Luck on the #parkrun - I’m not quite brave enough for that yet maybe one day
Thanks awaw, I’m sure you’ll do it one day. Mine is only a short walk away so I’ve no excuse really. The Fitbit is particularly great at the moment as it’s making me sit down and read up on it 😂
Well done..but.. you only graduated three days ago?
We advise at least a couple of weeks consolidation runs before even looking at other stuff... let alone the C25K+ podcasts!.. short routes, new routes and long routes... then.. think maybe about trying the podcasts !
We are all different, but we do advise some 30 min consolidations and a variety of routes etc before moving on... this is mainly because the running muscles in our legs have only just begun to build up... and need further action :)....but it is your choice... the C25K+ podcasts are challenging and about the discipline in our running...
If you are enjoying it... that is just fine... take it gently and carry on
Ok, thanks Oldfloss, point taken. Maybe I was a bit too enthusiastic but I really didn’t run for long enough today for it to make any difference. Tbh, the Stepping Stones warm up walk was actually slower than my usual walk and the 150bpm run wasn’t a great deal different to my usual run so I don’t think I pushed it, I just wasn’t feeling 100%.
OK TailChaser I'm obviously a bit dim but how exactly does a FitBit work? Internet? Do you have to wear it all the time even at night? Also there are sooo many different ones! : If I just wanted to track distance etc on my runs (in the future) is this what I should be looking at or some other device? TIA
You're not alone SuperMouse I was bought a Fitbit Charge (I think!) for my birthday last June(!!) should really work out how to use it.... and locate its charger 😳
Oh crikey, well...Mine is a Fitbit Charge 2. That got the best reviews on Amazon and it’s a reasonable size (I don’t like little watches). And there’s lots of second hand ones on Ebay from people who don’t use them anymore.
Not totally sure how it all works yet but it’s synced up with my smartphone so all the settings are done on the app there. When I went on the internet to set it up, it told me to install the app on my phone.
I’ve set various goals on there, like how many steps I want to do in a day, it’s taken my age, height and weight and worked out my ideal various heart rates when I’m working out. It counts the number of steps I take, it tells me my current heart rate, how many flights of stairs I’ve climbed, how much I’ve moved in the last hour (it reminds you to move if you have a sedentary job).
In answer to your running question: You can start and stop it during a run, it’ll measure your pace and how far you’ve run and you can sync it up to something like Strava to get your route (haven’t done that yet so not totally sure how that works). So it’s like having all the information you get on the treadmill on your wrist. And it’s all saved and logged on the app with charts etc. So it would probably suit what you want it for.
It does loads of other things I haven’t investigated yet (i.e. sleep, weight, nutrition management).
Does that help? It’s all pretty new to me but it does more than I need I think. My phone measured my steps and gave me a distance for my runs but never accurately, so this should help me judge how close to 5k in 30 minutes I am.
Thanks so much TailChaser for your detailed reply.
I will have a proper look but think maybe it offers too much for me and I probably wouldn't use all the settings (bit like my washing machine). Isn't too much choice confusing!
I am a technophobe! and would only want it for my actual runs and nothing else and my smart phone is pay as you go (old fashioned I know) lol, internet is turned off so it couldn't be linked to it.
Will have a look at Strava and see what that is all about but the less I have to faff about with the better as find just too confusing. I would want something that is ultra simple and basic to use.
It's like your own personal computer on your wrist really isn't it.
Thanks again and you have fun experimenting with it!
I know, I don’t think I’ll need everything on it. I certainly don’t want to wear it in my sleep! And yes, it really is like having a personal computer on your wrist. It fed a text message over from my brother earlier which it took from my phone, quite amazing really.
I’m not too bad with techie things but everything is getting so much more complicated as it connects to everything else. There was an advert on the app for a special water bottle that connects to your phone to remind you to drink!! Couldn’t quite believe that one!
My partner gave me a Bellabeat Leaf a couple of years ago. It looks like a piece of jewellery, you can wear it as a necklace or bracelet, or clip it onto your clothes. I just clip it onto my top (or bra if I don't want it to be visible). It counts your steps and times how long you have been active, and if you wear it at night it also tracks sleep. There are various exercises listed, so if you go for a run you just tell it you were running and when. It also has guided meditations on there that I do sometimes if I'm finding it hard to get to sleep. The data it collects is very simple (nowhere near as much or as detailed as a Fitbit) and it is easy to use via an app on your phone if you have a smartphone. My phone is an ancient non-smartphone so I just link it to my slightly less ancient iPad mini if you were after something basic then something more like this could work for you?
Now I've started C25K I'm thinking of getting something that gives me a bit more info- my partner has a fancypants sports watch and sometimes comes along on my 'runs'. It's been quite interesting to see how far I actually went even if all the stats about heart rates and steps are about him.
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Never mind sounds like you have a good plan worked out.
if you were after something basic then something more like this could work for you? 
Naked Post-Grad 5k ☺️
Post-grad Adventures!
running life post grad !! 
Advice for a post grad please
