How much should I be stretching myself?

[cheekychipmunks]

I’m only wondering because I came back from doing W5R1 earlier and felt really great! I’m not complaining as I know the runs only get harder from now on, but should we be pushing ourselves during each run to gain fitness and end each session (not literally) on our knees?

My assumption was that I would save the pushing for when I’ve graduated and I’m trying to speed things up to reach the 5k goal, but today was so easy (watch me crash and burn next time .... 😅), and it got me thinking.

Any opinions/tips? 😀

[cheeseheads]

glad to see w5r1 wasnt to bad. im fixing to go do mine in a few minutes. Keep an eye open for my post. and great job

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to cheeseheads]

It’s fine, really. Have fun, and thanks! 😀

[ancientrunner Graduate]

The goal is 30 mins, that's not 5k for most people. I don't think you should aim to be on your knees at the end of your runs. I recall Laura saying something about having a bit left in the tank for a sprint finish. Obviously you need to feel like you have put effort in but push too far now and you will injure/exhaust yourself. Save it for later.

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to ancientrunner]

Yes I thought as much. I’d hate to get injured. I do have more in the tank, but maybe I’ll just lengthen my stride just a little for the last minute. Thanks for the reply!

[misswobble Graduate in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Stay slow and steady peeps!

Every poster today seems to want to go faster today. Rein yourselves in!🙂

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to misswobble]

We’re all too keen clearly! I was just wondering whether pushing a little bit now will help with my fitness. I’m certainly not pretending that will be anywhere near fast!! 😀

[misswobble Graduate in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Nah don’t go pushing anything. Honestly! Slow and steady sounds boring but it will save your legs Running legs take some time to get built. Slow runs and rest days build them. Do something other than running on your non-run day. Trying to speed up before you’re ready spells trouble. The injury couch is the loneliest place in the world ☹️

Slow running is delicious. Enjoy it 😋😃💪👍

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to misswobble]

Thank you, I will. I do yoga and walk my dog on off days. But I’m always looking forward to my next run day!

[misswobble Graduate in reply to cheekychipmunks]

I borrow someone else’s dog 😃. I love yoga! I am doing a Tamal Dodge dvd’s 🙂

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to misswobble]

It’s great isn’t it? I do the Yoga with Adriene vids on YouTube. I’m especially proud as I’m doing her Yoga for Runners vids now too! 🙏🏻 🏃‍♀️😀

[misswobble Graduate in reply to cheekychipmunks]

Brilliant! Yoga is just the bees knees isn’t it.

[sallenson Graduate in reply to misswobble]

Is it the heat??

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

Developing your body is a slow adaptive process, driven by progressive overload..........you do more, so your body gets used to it. For the average C25ker just jogging at an easy conversational pace is adequate to trigger the adaption.

I wrote this post to try to explain why there is no need to push hard while doing C25K healthunlocked.com/couchto5...

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to IannodaTruffe]

Thank you, just read that brilliant article and it all makes total sense. I’ll hold back and enjoy the scenery on my runs!

[sallenson Graduate]

You shouldn't get to end of any run on the programme and feel knackered. You should feel as if you've got plenty left in the tank so you can bottle it up and enjoy on the next outing

Ideally when you get to the end you should be thinking "That was fantastic, I've got loads left in me, I can't wait for the next one." And then you should STOP!! Go home, stretch, rehydrate, eat a banana, whatever. And look forward to the next run and feel positive about it. Don't think "Oh, I'll just carry on until I'm a bit more tired...."

As we say, "Slow and Steady..."

[cheekychipmunks Graduate in reply to sallenson]

That’s exactly how I feel, including having a banana! 😀