Is this too slow?

[AnnabelLondon]

I know everyone says speed not important but I am so so slow. Any advice? (Am v overweight 116kg, aged 41, asthmatic)

[Speedy60 Graduate]

Answer to questions in turn:

No - too slow for what? Catching a bus? Olympic gold? Honestly, if you are moving forward in a running motion (both feet off the ground at the same time), you are fulfilling the programme. You don't have to do more than that.

Keep going - genuinely, you are doing brilliantly. Just keep doing more of the same! You are a star! 🌟👏👏👏

[Lil5k Graduate]

All looks fab to me, 👍 you're doing great. Go at your own pace that is comfortable to you, don't worry about what others are doing. Taking it slow and steady really is the key and well done 🙂

[Irish-John Graduate]

Nope.

A run is a run is a run If you run, you are a runner. You might not be a "fast" runner, but if all you want to be is "a" runner....you obviously have it sorted Annabell

Wishing you many happy miles in your future

[WillsMum68 Graduate]

Don’t worry about speed and certainly don’t compare yourself to others. You are doing brilliantly! I fell into the comparison trap very early on and it has a really negative affect on your mindset.

I now accept that I will never be as fast as my two pals, who accept that they will never be as fast as others in our Strava group (some have an average of 3.5 min/k, whaatt?!

Take pride and pleasure in what you’re achieving and best of luck for the rest of the plan 👍🏃‍♀️🐌 💪 Xx

[jusgduo]

I was your speed when I started (and finished) the program.

A year on and Im considerably faster. It was v gradual, I just kept turning up and having a go.

You’re doing brilliantly, it will happen naturally if you just keep going 😀

[AnnabelLondon in reply to jusgduo]

This is encouraging. Right now the idea of ever being able to run for thirty mins still seems a very long way away

[Hanzy Graduate]

I am 60 arthritic and COPD so I am slow too, it's the fact you are doing it that is important not speed I juffle along

[poohbear2608 Graduate in reply to Hanzy]

Juffle 😂🤣

[GoogleMe Graduate]

@Speedy60 is right. It depends what your goal is. If it is to become an Olympic athlete, you have a lot of work ahead of you and it might be wise to have a Plan B.

Otherwise, I reckon your only problem is that you are accessing these stats - you somehow think these have more salience than the programme or indeed 'everyone' (which will certainly be everyone here), but they are not encouraging you. If you are doing Couch to 5K the goal of the programme is to get you running continuously for 30 minutes on a regular basis, and you are making progress towards that.

[AnnabelLondon in reply to GoogleMe]

weeeeeel, I would quite like an olympic medal

[Hidden]

I had to slow down to stop my knees really hurting with advice from here. Like you, I'm no gym bunny, but I'm happy that I'm out there and doing it. I keep thinking that I'm the tortoise and not the hare. Slow and steady progress is the best way. Keep going, you're a runner!!

[theoldfellow]

Hey! Only a few weeks ago you weren't running at all! This is a brilliant performance.

I found I needed to have been running for about 12 weeks before I saw any real improvement in time.

There is good evidence that the main health benefits come from the time spent exercising at your aerobic rate - which is way slower than the fastest you can run. Several experts suggest very slow running - as long as it is running - is actually better for cardio-vascular health.

I hope you are feeling that sense of joy when you finish a run. You should, you are already a winner.

[AnnabelLondon in reply to theoldfellow]

Well it has taken me 9 weeks to get to this point... I am repeating a lot of them

[Magellan Graduate]

I love numbers, data, comparisons etc so I always look at my stats at the end of each run too.

They are really useless for deciding what you ‘should’ be doing. If you completed the run exactly to the podcast specifications then you did exactly right, you did exactly what you should do and your speed/pace and distance are fine. The pace you went at was by definition the right pace to go at, because it’s the pace you did.

What the data is good for is comparing yourself with yourself. It looks like on your second w5r1 you got about 200m more distance covered than the previous run. There are so many reasons that might have happened, and it might be good to think about what they might be. Sometimes it’s just because you’re getting better.

Don’t use the data to drive yourself, not while you’re doing c25k. Right now, all that matters is running for the right amount of time, and for that you need to go slower. You’re getting towards some longer runs soon. Remember, when Mo Farrah went from 10k to Marathons, he slowed down. When Jessica Ennis Hill runs a middle distance she doesn’t use her sprint pace.

When you’ve finished c25k and you’re ready to consolidate a bit, something you’ll enjoy is to redo some of the middle runs of C25k. Redo w5r1, THEN look at your stats. You’ll notice you got further when redoing it weeks later than you did the first time, and that’s really satisfying. Once you’re there you might want to think about how to get a bit faster.

Right now, with your run time still stepping up regularly, you should be aiming to run slower.

Good luck and enjoy yourself.

[AnnabelLondon in reply to Magellan]

Ah but I did it again last night and it was 100m less than the second time (so in between the two)

[Magellan Graduate in reply to AnnabelLondon]

Still, it’s not a bad thing. My last run was much shorter than I usually manage in the time, but as long as you aren’t pushing yourself too hard all running is good for you. 😀

Well done for sticking with it.

[RB-I Graduate]

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about the stats. I didn't track my runs at all until about 3 months after I graduated and only then because I needed to feel I was making "progress" in my runs and you don't need that in the programme. I still can't run 5k in 30 mins, but slowly getting faster

[Teddy1751 in reply to RB-I]

How do you track your runs? I can’t find the history on my app. Thanks

[RB-I Graduate in reply to Teddy1751]

Ah, I don't track in the app, use Strava for that (with the most locked down privacy settings possible so only I see my runs)

[AnnabelLondon in reply to Teddy1751]

It is not the NHS app and it does it for me. It is an American app called 5k Runner. I am not sure why I downloaded that one - it was top of the App Store when I looked!

[Sjrogers]

You are doing amazing!

[IannodaTruffe Mentor]

The only useful comparison is with your former, pre C25k self.

[John_W Graduate Ambassador]

I dunno. Is *this* too slow?

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

[Yorki_Girl Graduate in reply to John_W]

🤣 think that’s my pace but I get through it every week

[Yorki_Girl Graduate]

Focus on keeping going... something is better than nothing. As you progress it will get easier and as weight reduces over time you will notice the difference.

Well done 🥳

[Fionamags Graduate]

Speed is not important. Its the duration of running that is the big achievement! Keep on and welcome to one of the largest groups on the forum - Team Snail!!!

[Fleetnot Graduate]

I've been running for over s year now and average 10mins per k...not got any faster. However it has got easier. I also worried about it particularly on my one parkrun..Then I worked out as mentioned above it's not a competition. Also why in Bridge to 10k there's a 60 minute option as would take me nearly 2 hours to get to 10k. Still working on the 60mins but slow and steady etc...Best wishes.

[Gill2000 Graduate]

There is no such thing as 'too slow'; there's just doing the time and feeling proud of yourself. Well done and keep at it.

[Lifluf]

It doesn't look too bad to me. First - get to the end of the programme. Second - consolidate. Third - decide if you want to stretch yourself further by gradually speeding up or going further. Take it easy and enjoy the journey.

[Suesixty Graduate]

I found your post really encouraging. I graduated earlier in the year and on average run 2.6km in 30 minutes and occasionally fret about the fact I am a slow runner (I try to adopt the slow jogging technique) and I am not getting any quicker. Thank you for sharing. Your post shows there are some of us out there doing it slow but doing it nonetheless.

[Elfrun]

No you are doing well well done before you know it you will be graduating

[sTrongFuse Graduate]

I am a bit of a stat fanatic, but the only person's efforts I compare mine to are my own. Even then, I'm looking at the trend over time, not from one run to the next. I'm less interested in my speed than in things like how much less time it takes me to recover after a run. I am well aware that the only time Mo Farah is ever going to look over his shoulder and see me there is if I ever happen to be behind him in the queue at the supermarket, and that's absolutely fine.

Am I faster than I was this time last year?

Am I fitter than I was this time last year?

Can I run further than I could this time last year?

The answer to all of those questions is "Yes" and, really, that's all the detail I really need.