I m going to start week 9 this week but even now when “ Laura” tells me I ve completed 5 minutes and should be “ getting into my stride” ........ 😫I AM NOT !!!
I don’t seem to get into the zone until about 8-10 minutes 😳. Before that it’s all a struggle 😣, but once I ve done the 10 mins my rhythm seems to appear like a magic genie 🤔. Don’t get me wrong . I m glad it appears 👍, albeit a bit on the late side 😠, but does anyone else find the first 5 minutes still a struggle 🥴
It's the 'toxic 10' and we all get it now and then. I'm sure someone will respond with an interesting link which was posted on here about it. It is a scientific reason to do with getting enough oxygen to get your muscles moving.
I've had it lots of times, but have found that if I do warm up exercises at home before my warm up walk it doesn't happen so much.
I also find doing yoga breathing during my warm up walk helps!
Good luck, this is completely normal!
Thank you roxdog . Unfortunately I don’t know anything about yoga . Tried it once or twice but I m not supple ( or young 😂) enough . Must admit I ve never heard of “ toxic 10” 😳😂. Unfortunately I don’t just have it lots of times , I have it EVERY time 😣. I thought it was the music I was listening to originally. I couldn’t get a rhythm going between my stride and the music . After the first 2 weeks I changed tactic and just played what I like listening to and my “ rhythm “ seemed to settle . Does it go , this “ toxic 10 “ with time . I m about to start week 9 ...... is it something I will just have to live with . Maybe I m just too cold . Hoping the warmer weather might help 🤔
So yoga isn't just for young and supple people - it helps with flexibility and strength. Yoga breathing teaches you how to breathe deeply and I do find it helps with the toxic ten, although I do still get it sometimes.
Around week 7/8 of the programme it was nearly every run! I think you just get used to it and know it will disappear so don't over think it.
Toxic 10... or however long it takes!
So many posts on this and so much written about it... here you go
healthunlocked.com/couchto5...
PS
Sometimes my Toxic 10 lasts much longer!!!
Thank you for that . I shall have a peep once I ve stopped crying over wales losing 😫
They played a blinder.. a few more minutes! I am in Wales right now...! They came back amazingly ! xx
The toxic ten think everyone gets the toxic ten just relax and you be fine 😂👍
I don’t feel so bad now I m not the only one . Does it go with time ? If I keep running , will I suddenly be ok in week 15 and no longer be affected by this “ toxic 10” 🤣
I had the toxic ten for 15 minutes lol 🏴👍
You re supposed to be cheering me up on this forum ...... a few white lies wouldn’t go amiss 🤣🤣🤣.
Lol the more you run I find it’s getting less about a one second every time I run 🏃♂️ so I am down toxic 9 minutes lol
That s much more believable 😜
Well, I’ve been going for a year and I still get it with anything other than Japanese Slow Running, which is an ultra slow running technique. 😄 Anything like a “running pace” in the usual sense and whoops, toxic 10, or even 12.... Really brisk warmup helps. 😊
Will try a brisker 5 minute warm up .🥴... I m always afraid if I puff myself out with the warm up I won’t have enough left for the run 😳🤷♀️🙈😱
Know the feeling. 🤔 Try a really brisk 5 minutes, then a minute of slack-off to recover, and then start the run?
That s a really good idea . Something tells me you ve thought about this 😂
😄
I sometimes have a toxic 15!
Oh please Jell6 , don’t tell me that 🤦♀️. It’s difficult enough getting through the first 10 😫😫....... at least I know it s a “ thing” ...🤣🤣🤷♀️
You ask if it goes.... I find it less if I take deep breaths on the warm up walk, start slower, and of course, when you get into longer runs less of the run percentage is "toxic "😁🤣
I can’t run any slower 🐌..... at my age I m just chuffed to keep going 🤣. But I don’t worry about breathing anymore. I couldn’t wait the first week for the 60 second run to be over so I could catch my breath . Now sometimes I catch myself humming to the music I m playing , so I know I m making progress. I just couldn’t work out if I m making this progress why I m getting so annoyed at “ Laura s getting into stride “ comment after 5 mins . I told Laura to “sod off” last week 🤬 ....just as a woman walked past me and gave me a frown . ........ I guess it could have been worse 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
🤣🤣🤣. Somewhere on here there is a post asking for ideas about how to improve the coaching if/when they do a new version of C25k. If you see it, you could contribute! 👍
Hi Granspeed They could do an Ozzy Osbourne version 😳🤦♀️🙈....
I know there s a sat nav version of him . I heard him screaming expletives 🤬at a taxi driver about a year ago when the taxi driver has obviously taken a wrong turning . I can just imagine him screaming 😱 at me to run faster ......I would cry 😭. Not quite the encouragement the whole c25k regime is looking for eh ?? ......🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
🤣🤣🤣
Yes, most of us get it. I’ve found that really going for it during my brisk walk really helps and that it doesn’t last as long.
You will become more efficient and eventually not really notice the toxic 10.
Just to be clear for those who don't want to go trolling through old posts (or indeed for those who may find this post in the future) your body when you start running has to get enough oxygenated blood flowing through the body - more than when you were just walking.
To do this, your heart rate and breathing rate will increase, as your body compensates for this new demand. This is where you feel the toxic 10.
After about a mile (or around 10 minutes) your body would have caught up. You breathing and heart rates drop back to normal levels. You get into the zone.
As I said, you become better and more efficient at doing this. However, if you are doing fartleks or intervals, you will be pushing your body back into the toxic ten and out repeatedly. Hard work, but does wonders for the metabolism and weight loss.
Today mine appeared at 20 mins.... typical 😂
That s enough to put anyone off 🤦♀️. Good on you for keeping going 🥳. I think I might have cried off until another day 🥴
I kind of think, I’m out now, stop whining and get on with it.. 😂
Oh , last week I got to the half way mark , 14 minutes . It had started chucking it down with rain , and with the direction I was running , the rain was coming right at me - I so wanted to stop . I kept thinking I ve done half , if I stop now I will have to do it all again and another half on top . So I kept telling myself to run past my nice dry warm 🚙 and get my 🍑 around the rugby pitch one more time . Because of that I m starting week 9 tomorrow 🤷♀️
Hi Karen
Absolutely! The first 5mins my body and my brain are asking “ why are you doing this”, then they remember and I get into my stride. I have noticed that period has got shorter, especially now I’ve gone past 5km.
I ask myself the same question EVERY run .”why am I doing this?” To be honest I still haven’t worked out why in the past 8 weeks !!! 🤣🤣
I just hope at the end of week 9 I won’t just sit back and say I ve done it & sit back on the couch again 🥴
I ask myself this too every time but I’ve just graduated this week and I’ve kept going. Somehow it’s just addictive!
Yes definitely it is more like 10 I’m on week 7 run 2 tomorrow but once I get into my pace I’m ok I do go steady I will worry about my pace when I’ve completed the training 😁
I remember shouting at Michael (my C25K coach) in week 9 when he congratulated me on completing the first 5 mins of my run, I was sure I had run for much longer. Seems daft now but it felt like torture at the time and the rant helped me to keep going. The first 10 minutes of my runs are still not easy but better than they were. Some days I have a great run and love itbut others are a struggle the whole way through. Just know you’re normal and the fact that you keep pushing through is amazing. Give yourself a big pat on the back and well done 👍 👏🏃♀️
Oh I agree . When Laura pipes up after 5 mins I m horrified it’s only been 5 mins and I m sure it was 10 mins , then when she raises her head above the pulpit and announces i m half way I m partly thinking , “that went quicker/ oh God I have to do it all over again “🙈. I m waiting for the “ enjoyment “ !!!!! 😳🤷♀️🥴🙈🤣🤣🤣
Karen, I am 52 and do yoga/pilates once a week but like you, am really hacked off when Laura tells me I've only done 5 mins as it ALWAYS feels like more and I am expecting her to tell .e I've done about 12 mins🙄 I cant deep breathe when I am running. A while back Laura said " breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth", but my nose is always running like the Niagra falls so that is totally impossible. I start Week 9 tonight. I've given up trying to regulate my breathing as it was I interfering with my ability to run. I hope it will get better as my fitness improves.
Glad it’s not just me who makes sure she has a pocket full of tissues 😂. Oooooh I think I remember the breathe in through nose and out through mouth thing . ...... but in the beginning I was just desperate to breathe 😳, so didn’t listen to a word she said about that 🤣🤣🤣. To be honest I don’t go fast enough to get out of breath . On the odd occasion Laura announces how well I ve done and invites me to “up the anti” for the last minute / 5 minutes . I m just relieved my legs are still going and I can reach the end of the required time 🥴. Hoping to complete week 9 this week 🤞
Ps I can t do yoga ..... I m like an elephant trying to get up from the floor or down on to the floor and yoga has far too much of that for me . 😫. I m better with Pilates, although I ve only done it once or twice . Should try and find class . 👀👍 . I m into zumba at the moment . Did a run last week before my Zumba class and could hardly get up if sofa in the night 🙈. I can tell I m having another birthday this week - my body is screaming “ another year older 🎂 “ at me 🤨😫🙄🥴😳🤷♀️🙈🤣🤣🤣🤣
Hi, yes im also on week 9, and experience exactly the same phenomenon. The mind plays tricks with the first 5 mins for me, and it doesn't get really get any easier until 10-15mins into the run
So glad it s a real thing and I m not just struggling . Obviously Laura doesn’t know about the “ Toxic 10” ..... I think someone should jolly well tell her 😳
Oh yes, I go through what’s known as the toxic 10. It’s hard going isn’t it and then like magic, it’s over and the run begins to get better. So don’t worry and have fun x
Thank you ...... it’s good to know I m not on my own in this and it’s a real “ thing” 🤣
We all settle differently Karen50 don't worry to much, one of my last runs I was overthinking and only at about 5k in I got into my breathing
It used to be called second wind, at school. All sport people get it, try a few more minutes longer warm up. 😉
Yes , I recognise the term “second wind “. Going to try and give more oomph to my 5 minute warm up 👍🥴
Yes!!! I don’t really get it at all. Nothing but grumpy 😡! Then I make myself actually smile. Music helps to. Shoes, thinking about shoes helps a bit...
I don’t get this smiling lark ....... my Zumba teacher has one all the way through the hour. I m busy trying to co ordinate my arms , legs and. 🍑 , according to the rhythm playing . How the hell can I remember to smile too 😳.......
And I feel the exact same way about running 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣. I m so glad I have music 🎧 . I couldn’t run in silence 🥴😩. I often wonder if I ve run enough to warrant a Cadbury’s Twirl 😛
😂😂
You're on to something with the music. I used to have pumping tracks to get me out the door and down the road. I think they just contributed to my poor body's shock at suddenly being asked to do this ridiculously stressful activity. It was when I listened to the head coach from Nike talk about slow runs and negative splits (running the first half of a run slower than the second half) that the penny dropped. He advised playing your favourite slow, most chilled tunes you might listen to on the beach.
Now, instead of Queen, Black Eyed Peas and Pink, I start with Dire Straits (Romeo and Juliet), George Harrison and The Sutherland Brothers. It doesn't eliminate the toxic ten, but it certainly makes life more fun and less stressful.
Happy running.
So much! I think it takes my brain that long to accept what's happening
It definitely gets easier.
The main thing is that after a while you know that you can do the distance and maintain the pace so the early struggle us just something you put up with.
And it does stop being so much of a struggle the more you run.
I actually find it easier now I have graduated and just put on some good running music and don't get information about time. I know my route and my watch & app keep track of all the data.
I have improved my distance and pace considerably in only a couple of weeks.
It also helps if the first five minutes or so are run on a fairly even surface. No hills or steep inclines. Get really warmed up before you hit those.
Yes yes and yes
Just think we need to warm up get the breathing right and get into the zone
Just takes more than five minutes
Definitely the norm
First 2km were always difficult for me. I agree with you, it's more than 5 mins!
I so agree . I still love chart music and quite willing to listen to Ibiza anthems etc when they re on the radio ..... just not when I m doing this !!😳. If I m listening to something I like , my brain is not listening to my legs complaining they can’t keep going 😂........ my brain is saying “ shut up legs .... I m enjoying this song “ ....😂😂. I know professional runs aren’t allowed music when the run / train - it must be so lonely / boring for them because they train every day and run miles . All I want to do is half hour in 20 minutes and I m done 🤣🤣🤣
Keep going, Karen, it'll get better. Find something to distract yourself while you run, whether it is your music, watching the world go by, or whatever helps you. As you complete C25K, you will discover that you can run through it, and it gets better. Your consolidation runs afterwards will also help. A brisker warm up and a short rest may also help.
After completing C25K, I started doing park runs - I've done about 15 now. My routine is to park about 5-10 minutes walk from the start, and use the walk as my warm up. About 3 or 4 runs in I was a little late, and needed to run to get to the start in time. Not quickly, more of a brisk walk interspersed with some gentle running. I had a few minutes rest at the start, but I felt completely unprepared, and thought that it wouldn't be a good time, but as it turned out, I chopped around 20 seconds off my personal best. Since then, I've always tried to include a short run in my warm up for park run.
Running from home, I walk briskly up a gentle gradient as my warm up, then start my run by running back down the hill. It's not steep, but it is enough to get my legs moving without feeling I am struggling. From this, I usually run around 6k, sometimes 10k if I have the time, and once managed over 12k. The gentle down hill start really gets me through that initial toxic 10.
I've often started a run and a few minutes in, thought that 2k distance will be optimistic, yet it does pass, and you feel much more comfortable further into the run. You can do it!
Thank you Simon . I did what many of you suggested this morning and did really quick walking for the first 5 mins ....... just as I started to run I felt a stringy bit niggling at the back of my left knee . I thought maybe I should not go ahead with the run but I stopped and give the back of my knee a good rub and it was fine . I even “ went for it “ during my last 5 mins ( although I think that was mid judged - next time it will only be for 3 mins 😳🙈).
I agree. I find the first 1k of the parkrun the hardest.
I suggest a proper warm up helps consisting of a brisk walk and very gentle jog (not much fasterthan the brusk walk) . Secondly accept a slower pace to start with and a gradual increase when you find your rhythm. That works for me.
Keep up regular exercise and don't worry about speed. It takes time for your body to get used to a new regime.
Best wishes
Why is the first 10 mins harder than the last 15 
End of Week 5 - finished my first 20 min run!
10km - 59 mins - difficult run
Why is the first 5 minutes always the toughest? Or is it just me!
W9R1 done, first 5 minutes still difficult
