Many a reason. Many an excuse...
Bad weather, Christmas, work deadlines, short days...
I went for a run for the first time since the end of November today.
And it was horrible.
No aches or pains. No breathlessness. But after 2km, I was near an exit point to my house and I decided I wasn't enjoying myself so stopped.
The couch won today.
We all have down days regarding running BarryR, have a extra rest day and run again the following day, perhaps you ran too fast today, next run, run a little slower, drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration, good luck.
Use it or lose it.............
As stated in the guide to the plan, healthunlocked.com/couchto5... you lose no significant condition in the first two weeks of non running.
After that loss of condition is gradual.
All any of us can do after a lay off is to go out and see what we can comfortably manage, then build back up gently, using C25k or something similar as a guide to weekly increase.
The couch did not win because you got off it! Someone said to me that 'a bad run is better than no run' and I'm living for that - I've had a couple of dodgy runs exactly as you describe where I've copped out early but it was still a run, and the next one always tends to be better x
I agree with Nexus, Barry! the couch did not win. 2K is 2K. Some runs are tough and make you feel rubbish but you will get back there. And 2K is much further than the 60 seconds of wk1 run 1 too!
I agree with them! I have struggled running in the dark at all, so have dropped down to 1 run a week at the week-end and my personal goal was to maintain a minimum of 20 min each week to keep the fitness 'simmering'. This was based on the disaster of my first consolidation run where I barely made 10 mins! I have now run weekly and upped to 25mins each time, which I am very happy with, given the conditions I'm running with. Roll on Spring and lighter evenings, I say! Also waiting for the gym to re-open so I can top up with the treadmill. As I said to my husband on an unrelated subject - this year we all have to grit our teeth and carry on😉
Go for it BarryR! It’s a terrible time of year to be outside running... I can’t see any way on earth I would have been doing this preCOVID! 2k is a definite victory over the couch, especially after a break. I think just keep trying to run a little bit - goals of 15 or 20 minutes, whatever is comfortable, and by spring it will all be a lot easier.
After some time off you're going to need to work up again.
Your 2km run wasn't a failure. It just showed you how much you're able to do at this point.
My guess is you ran for about 15 minutes. Maybe you could do some intervals runs from C25K? Perhaps try a Week 4 run?
What a difference a year makes!!
What a difference a day makes 
Looking Back What a Difference a Year Makes 
What a difference a year makes ....
