Congratulations Chris on getting to week 8 run 1, you do not need to run 5K in 30 minutes to graduate, all you need to do is run continuously for 30 minutes at your own comfortable pace three times, the third run being your graduation run.
About 10% of graduates on this forum manage to run 5k in under 30 minutes at graduation...........so you are in good company.
Graduation requirements are to run for 30 minutes three times.......you will do that and if you continue to run, in the coming months you will see your pace naturally increase.
Hi chrisc. I think the real emphasis is on running continuously for 30 mins initially. The 5k is to be achieved in the consolidation runs following where you can experiment using the 10% rule.😀
Consolidation runs are ther runs you do after you have achieved a goal, so say you finish at 30 mins, you would do a week or two compounding that time. After that you can increase EITHER your distance or duration by 10%. So then you spend a week running 33mins and after that you increase by 10% again. Alternatively you could try doing speed challenges or fartlek (yes that is a word and a thing) runs post graduation. But in the interim cut yourself some slack because you are already doing an amazing job and smashing it 🤩🤩
I’ve worked out I increased by about 0.5km a week over the last couple of weeks. Hoping to be at 4.5km at the end of week 9 (I include my walking warm up and cool down). I’ll be really pleased with that if I can do it. If im shy of that I’ll still be pleased. I keep reminding myself of week 1 - by far the hardest week for me!
When I did C25k I used to extend my warmdown walk so that the total distance was 5k, just so I knew what the distance felt like and could see the time for that distance coming down (though with some anomalies!) But then I always did like walking.
As everyone have already told you, relax, as you don't have to run 5k under 30 min. Speed will come in time. The program name is misleading, it should be couch to 30min
So enjoy every run in your own pace and don't think about the numbers. At least not yet
It was emotional to get there but now I’m on 28:37 👌🏽 just keep chipping away but by bit. It’s a slow process but enjoyable! Try ibuprofen for the knees. They’ll settle in a week or so.
Having just done W8R1 this is exactly the post and replies I need! My knees have also been a bit stiff but moving definitely helps. I’m due my W8R2 this afternoon so hope the rain eases up... Other than that, can’t really say I’m enjoying it - except when I stop! Main issue is my breathing which is still a bit laboured. Any tips?
Same with my knees.. almost hobbled first part as was so stiff. Just couldnt get into a rhythm. Will breathing, just dont panic.. deep breathes and regulate it.. just calmly do deep breathes. Your body needs all that oxygen to keep those muscles powering you along. I also find listening to music as I run (technically jog!) helps regulate the breathing too. It's hard work but just keep breathing deeply and keep putting one foot infront of the other.. whatever speed. it's not a race.
Thanks: I do the music thing which definitely helps although I am thinking of switching to a podcast because however hard I try to ring the changes I still end up with ear worms. Just hope Laura doesn’t offer her welcome words of encouragement at a critical point! But deep breaths...
My Couchto5k didnt start. Thought Ms Wiley was a little quite.... good job the Nike Running Club App was on! Otherwise that would have been interesting! Yes, if you are running to talkie things at the same time.. yes you want Laura to parp up when the other isnt jabbering!
don't worry about doing 5k in 30 minutes, concentrate on doing 5k in your own time. It will come. I now do 5k every lunch time in around 30 mins but do the park run in around 31 mins. But at the end of the day you are doing 5k.
it will come, it is just a case of time. Don't try to run beyond your means, before using the app I tried to run a park run and ended up walking and running most of it, but after doing the app and still doing park runs I could run non stop for the whole 5k. I have amended my diet and stopped eating chocolate and crisps and eating healthily and losing 2 stone has made running easier. Yes my left knee hurts occasionaly and I wore a strap on it but this has gone but that could be due to not having so much weight hitting it. Some of my problems were mental, saying lets give up and walk but pushing past this, all of a sudden when you get past half way you think wow, nearly there, carry on.
Good advice.. i've lost over 1 stone in 6 weeks.. another stone to go (target 11st).. will hopefully help the knees too. Yeah no rush.. main thing its helping clear the head and making the body fitter. That's a massive goal in itself, never mind parkruns, 10ks, half marathons and marathons i see all over instagram.
well 10K might be a little beyond me at the moment but never say never. Just saw on Park Run this morning a lady who has lost 7 stone and now does 10K in 50 mins, her before and after pictures look like a totally different person. I never thought that at 55 I would be enjoying running again.
For context, I did Wk9R1 this morning and did 3.41km, the farthest I've run so far but by no means 5k! My goal is to get to 3.5km by the end of the programme, that just feels like a nice round number! After that, I will be working towards 5k by extending my distance very gradually over the coming weeks. Just a thought about your knees - I obviously don't know what is causing your knee pain so this is only a suggestion because you may already have seen a doctor and taken medical advice, but for what it's worth - I suffered really badly with mine during Wks 3 and 4, so much so that I had to take a week off before beginning Wk5. I ended up buying some knee brace support things from Amazon and I've had very little pain since. I am going for a gait analysis on Saturday, just out of interest more than anything because I seem to have solved my knee issues with the braces, but perhaps this might work for you? In the short term at least until your knees strengthen up a bit?
As everyone else has said, it's the 30 minutes continuous running that counts. I didn't measure distance during the programme and I think I just about scraped in at 5k on my first run after graduation. That was last January and since then I have slowly but steadily increased my pace to the point where I did a Park Run 5k in less than 22 minutes the other weekend. That kind of time would have seemed a ridiculous impossibility to me this time last year, so that just shows how much you can improve if you keep at it.
Enjoy the rest of the programme. You'll be on the podium very soon and doing 5k in less than 30 minutes before you know it
LOL, no! This time last year I'd just started C25K having never run before and was having trouble with shin splints and struggling to do the 5 minute runs.
I ran my first Park Run on my 50th birthday last month and then knocked a minute off my time on my second. There was a guy there well into his 60's who finished in 18 minutes!!!
Once you graduate I can recommend running with a group or club. I'm lucky to work somewhere that has a lunchtime running club with a coach who has taught me techniques to go faster.
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Surprised by myself: I ran 5k!
Week 9 run 2 
Week 9 run 1 - done. Oh, and I did 5k!!!!!
Week 9 and unlikely to get to 5k
Week 9 Run 3 DONE!!
