So, I haven't been particularly active on this forum but I had read and loved so many of your posts, following your individual progress with great interest.
At school I was always a sprinter. The cross country runs were dreaded and I had no idea about pacing myself. I just always assumed I was crap at it. Looking back, I simply ran too fast too early. Since then, I have, from time to time, dabbled in trying to run as an adult (I am 35 now) but it always tailed off for one reason or another.
Thisvtime, I started out (as I always do) using the Zombie run app which is more of a train to run 5K than run for 30 mins. After finding myself more committed than I have been before but hitting a bit of a wall with it, in addition to seeing others make progress with C25K, I decided to switch. I am so, so glad that I did. I compared the workouts to my fitness and decided to start at week 4. I haven't stuck rigidly to the 3 x a week runs because life often gets in the way and I like to give my legs an extra day of rest sometimes.
So today, after a 2 day rest from my week 9, run 2, I set out at 6:30am... on a Sunday! Who is this person that I have become!?
The run felt ok, not easy, never easy, but ok. Oddly, for the first time my left calf felt tight. I couldn't decide if it was lactic acid build up (do I sound like I know what I am talking about?) from the inclines or perhaps something more sinister... I paused for a few seconds, somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes to stretch it then carried on. The sun was shining and it was quiet. Runkeeper let me know that my pace was slower than usual but I decided that was ok as I didn't know what was going on with my leg. The stretch helped and before I knew it, I was 20 minutes in and facing a lovely, mostly downhill final 10 minutes. Then the pins and needles started. Ultimately, I finished the run and enjoyed it. I felt like I could have run further but by this time my leg was going a bit numb and there is plenty of time for running further and faster. I still can't quite believe I have done it. ☺ Happily, after a short walk, the pins and needles disappeared.
So basically, I wanted to say thank you to all of you that contribute to this site. Your posts and replies have inspired me to run on days when I had talked myself out of it. Your enthusiasm and advice is such a motivator and I love having a quiet moment at home to check in on how everyone is doing. The positivity of this online space is fantastic and I now know that if I wish to inspire myself to get out there and run, this is the place to come. It works every time.
Thanks again, and to anyone questioning whether this is for them, if I can do this, anyone can. 💪
I did it!!! I can’t quite believe it :)
W6R3 I did It!
W9r3: I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! I did it! AND I did 5k!!!!!
I Only Went and Did It!
Week 5 Run 3 - I did it! I did it!
