Jogging vs running?

[Catchat21]

I’m about to start week 9 which I’m so proud about, but I’m definitely jogging! At what point does speed come into it? Judging by how I’m doing, I think it will take me about 40 minutes to jog 5k at the speed I’m at. I’m not sure if I want to focus on moving onto 10k or making my 5k time lower. How do you increase your speed?

[completerunner]

Hi Catchat21...

Don't worry about speed right now, and don't move on to 10k plan until you are at least covering 5k in around 30-32 mins. The more often you cover the distance the fitter you will get and the time to cover 5k will slowly come down. Pushing it too far too early could lead to you not enjoying it (if that’s even the right phrase to use).

Don't forget that to graduate you only need to be jogging for the whole 5K. Well done for sticking with it.

[Roxdog Graduate in reply to completerunner]

But some people can run 10k, because they want ti, but very slowly. I think the thing to do post graduation is to build running legs and run a little longer, a few minutes at a time, rather than aiming for a 32 min 5k. I doubt I'll run 5k in that time possibly ever, but I'd like to run 10k at some point, because I like longer runs.

[K8nno Graduate]

I’m afraid I cannot agree with Completerunner. To graduate you don’t need to have ran 5K, but just have ran for 30 minutes. The distance is NOT a factor here. Once you’ve graduated you should consolidate your runs by running for 30 minutes each time for a couple of weeks. You may find you’re covering more distance, you may not. Once you’ve consolidated you can then look at options depending on your goals. Personally I ramped you to 10k and as a byproduct my 5K time came down. Whatever you do, just enjoy it.

[BonniesRest Graduate in reply to K8nno]

This is really helpful! Thanks 😊 I’m on week 8 run 3 and concentrating on keeping going rather than speeding up, so your response is validating. I’m sure I’ll speed up in time. Frankly staying upright has been my priority, after not having run for 27 years 🤣

[completerunner in reply to K8nno]

You are correct, I got that the wrong way around..... SORRY

[SandraY1 Graduate]

Well done 👍 The programme should have been named C2-30 minutes. The aim of programme is to get you to running for 30 minutes nonstop. Only a small percentage of graduates every get to run 5k in 30 minutes. Just enjoy the process of the programme everything else will come.

[UnfitNoMore Graduate]

Jogging is running.

There’s not really much difference in a 5k race plan and heading to 10k. The first 5k race plan I followed had my long run up to above 10k anyway. Endurance is your body’s fuel tank... there is no speed without fuel, so building endurance is essential to getting faster. If you get to 5k and work on speed alone you’ll get quicker... if you follow a 10k plan you’ll most probably be quicker than that.

Running and motor racing share one non-obvious fact... it’s not use of the accelerator pedal that will get you round a lap faster, it’s the use of the brake pedal. With running there is a saying, “slow down to speed up” which seems counter intuitive until you look into it... running at an effort that’s easy to give will develop everything that you need to become faster... too much speed work will make you slower, because it actually undoes some of the slower run’s good work. Lots of science behind this mensrunninguk.co.uk/top-fea...

[BonniesRest Graduate in reply to UnfitNoMore]

Lovely analogy with the brake pedal there!

[CatMo13 Graduate]

Hey Cat - just to clarify you don’t even need to get to 5km to graduate- just just need to run for 30 mins. Then once you’ve done that you can think about what you want to achieve next. Good luck. 🌈

[John_W Graduate Ambassador]

"I’m not sure if I want to focus on ... making my 5k time lower. How do you increase your speed? "

Those 2 things contradict each other. By increasing your speed, you'll be lowering your 5k but you say you're not sure you want to.

BUT... to come back to your question. What is your aim? What do you want to do with your running? What is wrong is jogging?

Please don't worry or stress about your pace if that is not something you want to focus on. Your pace is your pace.

But if you want to improve your 5k time (ie by getting faster) then there are numerous ways to go about it. Your first port of call should be the 3 supplementary C25K+ podcasts: Speed, Stamina and Stepping Stones. I highly recommend them.

In the meantime, have a watch of this

youtube.com/watch?v=9L2b2kh...(Not working as expected?)

[nattyd1512 Graduate]

Hi Catchat21, I’m in exactly the same point of the plan, I am running marginally further than I was at week 7, but the distance with the warm up and cool down walk is essentially the same. I have found few podcasts on the couch to 5K+ (podcasts.apple.com/gb/podca... but they do seem rather quick, I think I will try them and then look elsewhere if I can’t keep up. Good luck, let me know how you get on?

[Roxdog Graduate in reply to nattyd1512]

Careful , so well done to get this far, but using podcasts which encourage faster running before you've completed the programme may make injury more likely

[nattyd1512 Graduate in reply to Roxdog]

Thanks Roxdog, I have 2 runs left, which I plan to complete first. I am a little nervous about the podcasts, they are NHS ones from 2012, the first one is called steppingstones, but I think I’m on about 140bpm with the music playlists I listen to at the moment and this starts at 150 which seems a big jump (I’ve only listened so far to see if it is something I could use). How did you progress once you had completed, did you run on your own steam or have something to push you on/follow?

[Roxdog Graduate in reply to nattyd1512]

So the stepping stones podcasts are good if you think you'll need to focus on something and have an app to guide you. I just couldn't stand the music, whic you have to have as it's all about running to the beat. I do sometimes use the speed intervals podcast though and notice that my subsequent runs feel easier.

Post graduation is strange and exciting because you are left to your own devices and can discover what sort of running you love. For me, that became running off road on very varied routes with no music and no targets, just to run for as long as I want.

So I don't think there's a one size fits all approach. I thought a structure would suit me, but it didn't. Do try the podcasts though, they are pretty good (not until you finish the programme though!)

[FreedomToRun Graduate]

Love this thread! Really helps me just post graduation. Thanks!!

[Roxdog Graduate in reply to FreedomToRun]

The bridge to 10k forum is useful. It's focussed not just on the plan to run 10k, but is a useful place to share experiences and support. I hope you Enjoy your post graduation running.

[Catchat21 Graduate]

Thanks guys, really helpful replies. To clarify I’m in no rush-looking forward to graduating and then just taking it from there. I think it’s just because I was overtaken this morning by someone I would call a “runner!” Much faster, rhythmic and they lapped me twice. Given I couldn’t run for 5 minutes a few months ago, anything seems possible, but the idea of having that level of speed and stamina feels so unachievable.

[May93 Graduate]

I'm looking forward to week 9, must feel like an achievement, hope you're proud of yourself. I think speed increases incrimentally over time, you could try adding intervals either towards the end or throughout, doing some running drills focussing on hip flexors. As for 10K I'd wait til fully comfortable with 5K, but of course it depends on your personal goals and preferences. Happy running

[Irish-John Graduate]

Lots of great advice and let me add just one more thing

If Mark Spitz ( 9 Gold medals for swimming at the 1972 Olympics - a record for the next 36 years!) and I were on a ship that sank and we headed for the nearest dry land - two things I can assure you of.

He would get there first.

And even if it took me fifty times longer than him - I'd have got there by swimming.

There are competitive runners, gazelle-like runners, slow runners etc - and "jogging" was first introduced to ease people's fears about "running" but quickly became appropriated by those who thought only THEIR kind of running "counted"

Doesn't matter if you time your runs with a Stopwatch or a Calander, if you run - you are a Runner

[Dreambird Graduate in reply to Irish-John]

Great post 👍

[Irish-John Graduate in reply to Dreambird]

Thank you