15th Consolidation Run

[Dodgylungs]

I’ve posted my run today because thus far I have been a little embarrassed that I am nowhere near completing 5K. However, I wanted to stop and reflect on the fact that I ran my fastest 30mins to date and the first leg at 7.04mins per km was my fastest so far. I could barely run for 3mins when I started C25K and was running my fastest leg at the pace of 8.50mins per km and so this is significant improvement over time.

Today’s run was tough and I have @pr0fess0r to thank for getting me through as I read his post this morning and he said he felt like giving up but knew if he did then he’d bail every time. I went through a stage of doing just that and so this morning I had to dig deep and keep going.

My legs were aching from the start, though I ran my fastest first 1km. By the time I reached 10mins my legs were aching and my head was screaming at me to stop. I ignored it and at 15mins I was fatigued and feeling sick. I really have to stop eating Chinese food the night before a run. I’d been away working yesterday and didn’t feel like cooking when I got home and it was all too easy to order my usual chow mein and foo yung dishes.

From 15 to 20mins was brutal but I knew I had set off faster today and so I just ignored my head and carried on running. From 20 - 25mins was difficult as my legs were aching and I felt really tired but I knew it was just my head messing with me. Once I hit 25mins it felt like the tank was empty. I just carried on as instructed by Jo and finally reached my target of 30mins. My legs were wobbly but again I ignored that and did my not so brisk walk to Gails for a skinny latte and croissant. Elvis Costello was a big help though I’m sick of Radio Radio now. Need some new tunes.

I am giving myself a pat on the back today. Even though after 15 consolidation runs I’m only just running 4K, I have to remind myself that I’m not a natural distance runner and I struggled at the beginning of this process. I haven’t bailed out on a run for ages and feel that mentally I’m stronger than ever...

[pr0fess0r Graduate]

Well done David and congratulations on your times - 7mins per km! I'm hoping to get there at some point once the run becomes "easier". I know that one of my weaknesses is to make excuses and no do things, so I knew if I stopped my run early last night, it would open th door for more excuses in future. I am determined to run 5kms every two days rain or shine (but hopefully snow - I'd love to run when it's snowing... haha). So well done and keep it up! We have that Hackney 5k to do in May 😂

[Dodgylungs Graduate in reply to pr0fess0r]

Yeah the Hackney 5K! That’s a good target. I think I’m moving towards a decent level of fitness now. I haven’t run beyond 30minutes yet as I want to see how close to 5K I can get in half an hour. I’m always so knackered at the end of these runs that I can’t run beyond the 30 minute mark. How long do you run for?

[Rennur Graduate in reply to Dodgylungs]

4K is still good. I am 12 runs behind you and would love to get to that pace. After Christmas l, I will just increase one run per week by a few minutes each fortnight and eventually I will get to 5K that way.

[Dodgylungs Graduate in reply to Rennur]

Yes that’s what I was going to do but have increased the pace of the run slightly instead. I want to get close to doing 5K in 30 mins.

[SueAppleRun Graduate]

Well done you, if it’s a struggle though slow down more and you will be able to run for longer, our first 5k took 52 minutes we’ve done it since in 40 minutes and i’ve run 10k very very slowly it’s not about speed Good luck for your next run

[Dodgylungs Graduate in reply to SueAppleRun]

Thanks for the feedback. I am trying to run 5K in 30 mins, that is my eventual target. I’m not going so fast that I can’t finish, but I have purposely upped the pace a little recently. Since I’m on run number 15 I feel I’ve earnt the increased speed. Once I’m comfortable at this pace I’ll extend the distance a little to maybe 35 minutes (at 2 minutes per week). That should get me around the 5K mark.

[SueAppleRun Graduate in reply to Dodgylungs]

Sounds like a good plan