After a great end of week 6, my first 25 felt nice and doable), i did my three runs of week 7. Each of them was really hard, i couldn't breath properly, and slowed down all the time, but nothing seemed to work. This morning i did my last run of the week. It was so awful i was thinking to stop at about 15 minutes. I even felt i was going to puke at some point. I kep going super slowly and still not going well but completed it because otherwise i would feel really bad for the rest of the day.
I was thinking was i did different this week. The only difference is that i went running early in the morning instead of the evening. I will switch to the evenings again next week and see if it makes any difference.
Did anybody else felt such a big difference from week to week? I really enjoyed week 6..can't uderstand why it was so bad this one.
Thanks for reading this and have a good weekend!
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Enjoyingthis
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You bet I did. I hated week 6. You had a bad run by the look of it. We all get bad runs. I hate them and they come out of nowhere but I’ve learned to accept them now. The only other reason for a bad run might be for health reasons. Maybe you have a cold coming on.
Everything going on in our lives can impact on our performance as a runner. Restedness, hydration and nutrition are at the top of my list of variables that need to be optimised to enable enjoyable running.
Get those sorted and run at a pace at which you can speak clear ungasping sentences and you will be fine.
With apologies to those who have seen me say this many times before, it is pretty much an unwritten rule of C25K that at least one of these later week runs will be HORRIBLE. For some it will be non-completion, for others like you completed but a real effort, no fun at all.
There can be some genuine reasons that can explain or we can look to tweak for the next run - I am not sure when we ever get immune to the occasional setting off too fast for example - but it is easy to get into overthinking too. Looking at your experience of three tough runs (you really should be congratulating yourself - this was not a fun week for you but you succeeded) you might benefit from some different routes or looking at ways to keep your mind usefully occupied. (If you are using the app presentation, it could be that a spoken word accompaniment is worth trying compared with music)
I believe strongly these experiences are some of the most important learning the programme offers us - that bad runs happen and to pick ourselves up, take our rest day and go again.
As others have advised, many factors can impact our running, some are less obvious than others.
I don't say categorically that it is the issue at the bottom of your struggle in week six, but it is worth understanding the phenomenon of the 'Toxic 10' which affects us all intermittently and may have been contributory in your experience this time. Here's a link about it:
Thank you all for your helpful advice. I didnt expect some many answers...and sorry for my terrible misspellings, i didnt even read my post before posting it.
I will start week 8 tomorrow evening, and ill read more about hydration. Looking forward to it!
The time of day makes a big difference to me. I can do a comfy 4 or 5k in the morning. If I wait til after work I struggle through 2. Can't wait for the lighter mornings!!
Hi. I think if you switched time of day that could have a big impact. We are either morning or evening people. I am a morning person so go out early. I honestly don't know if I could summon the energy to do an evening run, although I have decided that I need to try this at some point so I am not scared of trying it.
If you went out in the morning without anything in your system your energy will be low and you may feel nauseous. I was doing fine running in the morning, just drinking some water before I went out. However, when it came to Week 7 and the longer runs I started feeling nauseous and the running became more of an effort. I read somewhere on this site about having 1/2 a banana as well as drinking water before going out in the morning. This worked brilliantly for me, so my last 25 min run of Wk 7 was actually pleasurable. I have just started Week 8 (28 mins) and done the same. It felt quite tough at times but I wasn't feeling nauseous and I did manage it all.
You are doing really well sticking at it. It is a learning curve for body and mind. I agree with the suggestion above about having something different to listen to along side the app. I have rediscovered a love of country music using the BBC Sounds app so now I can't wait to get out for my run.
Will be good to hear how you get on this week. Good luck!
Thank you all for your comments and encouragement. I went last night for my Run 1 Week 8 around 8 pm and it was very doable again!!! Ill write a longer post later on but I am so happy. Definitely the time of the day is a big factor! Thanks again
I only started running during the lock down so I am a novice at this, but I find running later in the day better as my body is warmed up from all the other daily activities.
I have definitely found a big difference with W6 and W7. I have read many posts that have said we have good runs and not so good runs.
Like you I feel that sense of disappointment when something does not go right. Don’t beat yourself up. What you have done so far is massive.
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The ups and downs of week 7
Week 7 run 1 a success
Struggling on week 7 
Starting week 7 in the rain
Week 7 smashed- in the rain!
