Beginners aches and pains

[Photogeak1]

Completely new to running. I’m on week 1 of couch to 5k and finding my hips are aching also the soft tissues that attach quads to hips Any tips?

[Buddy34 Graduate]

Great for getting started. Some new aches are to be expected as you are putting your body through a new exercise it should settle down in time . Make sure you are stretching after every run. Just go slow and slower again if needed and make sure you're drinking plenty water 7 days a week not just on run days. Good luck😊

nhs.uk/live-well/exercise/h...

[Annieapple Administrator Graduate]

Excellent advice from Buddy but just to say welcome & well done for starting!! 👏👍🎈

[ForbiddenPlanet Graduate]

I just did Week 6 Run 1 on Sunday, so it was not so long ago that I started the programme. My experience was that I did get various aches and pains which mostly disappeared before my next run. The most frequent aches I experienced were around my knees.

One thing that has suited me is that I take my extra rest day after the first run each week, as I assume there may be a step up in effort from week to week. So I do my first run of each week on Sunday, the second on Wednesday, and the third on Friday. I guess having that extra rest day floating around may help if experiencing a more persistent ache.

The upside of those aches and pains is that now, having reached Week 6 my legs appear to be significantly stronger. I notice this particularly when walking down stairs. At age 62 it appeared to me that my legs had become a collection of parts which didn't work so well together anymore when stepping down. C25K appears to have reversed that and it is as though I have woken up wearing the legs of a much younger person!