My neighborhood only has one flat stretch, the rest is all steep hills - the biggest of which I can’t talk in full sentences after walking up.
So… I haven’t even officially started yet! Instead I spent the last week and a half walking the route, followed by one minute of running on the flat bit.
Today I did the 20 minute walking route followed by 10 minutes of week 1 style running. Conveniently the only flat bit takes me 1 minute to jog and 1:30 to walk back, but boy is it boring.
My heart rate chart (and perceived exertion) from the walk is surprisingly similar to the alternating jog/walk because it is a series of short hills.
I’ve never been a runner because my knees always hurt - but food changes and yoga seem to have helped this. But I don’t want to jog downhill as I know my knees will complain… so… circles on the flat bit it is
I’m 38, naturally skinny, love yoga, but only manage to do yoga a couple times a week. (And I did read the awesome guide!).
Now I just need the motivation to officially start :p.
Written by
WhaleSongC
Graduate
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Why not try walking the whole nine weeks, WhaleSongC? I'll bet you won't be out of puff walking up those hills by the end of it and you're less likely to have hurt your knees! I walked the whole C25K twice before starting to run it, and that was pretty much on the flat! 😉
I have done a halfhearted attempt a few times before - but I loose motivation after a month when it doesn’t seem to get any easier - and then I end up gardening instead :p.
Welcome to the forum and well done on your decision............you have decided to start, haven't you.This guide to the plan is essential reading..........but I think you have read it, healthunlocked.com/couchto5....
and includes advice on minimising impact, stretching after every run, hydration and strengthening exercises, all of which will help.
You say you lose motivation half way through......... what are the reasons that make you start?
Unless they change, or become irrelevant, surely you have reasons to carry you through.
If you get half way through, you must notice that your stamina has improved.
This is the gateway to a huge change in your health prospects.......both physical and mentally and while it may be tough at times, we will cheer you on.
Remember, a nice easy pace is optimal for your development. Faster is not better.
Could it be your trainers? I’m not an expert in any way but I always find when mine are worn out, I get pain in either knees or hips.
I feel your pain-I also live in a hilly area so I’ve had to very quickly get used to running up and down them. Strangely enough, when I did a flat run around a local marina I found it really boring!
Hi WhaleSongC , I also live in a hilly area so had to run hills from the start of C25K. I've ended up far preferring hilly forest trails to flat terrain!
How steep and long are the hills near you? The reason I ask is that if doing a whole route on hills is too much, perhaps you could jog a little way up and down, as well as doing some of the intervals on the flat parts.
You are right about the shoes - yes, since I started buying $$$ shoes instead of whatever was available, my knees improved a lot. The knee troubles were worst in my youth when I wasn’t the one paying, or a broke uni student!
My tactics for running shoes when I find a pair I really like is to keep an eye out for when they’re on sale/available in an outlet. I buy the next pair before the old ones wear out so I never have to pay full price. That’s saved a few quid over the years.
That's 67m of climb in 1.6km. That's a huge amount of climbing! My hilly local parkrun only has about 50m of climbing in its 5km.
(Some of us can only think about runs in SI units.)
I live on a hill. I cheat a little by using my warm up walks to climb to near the top of the hill. Then almost all of the routes tend to be mostly downhill.
But in C25K I had a more flat out-and-back route. It started with a little dip then a long slow climb, another little dip and a further climb up to a railway bridge. I'd get the half way bell and turn round just short of the bridge. Most of the return leg was then downhill, except for that little rise right at the end, which back in my C25K days was a killer at the end of a session. 18 months on from graduation, I hardly notice it. That was only 30m of climb overall in about 3km. It was along a main road, but the road was quiet due to it being during lockdown.
Would it be possible to travel a little to find somewhere slightly flatter?
Phew, your calculations are the same as mine nowster ! I was a bit freaked because the figures are on a par with my maratrail and, come to that, my run today!!
I’m so glad you said that - my (former) GP told me that my walk wasn’t ‘real’ exercise and my fatigue was obviously due to (nonexistent) poor lifestyle choices! (Thankfully docs are now way more up to speed with younger healthier people not always bouncing back from viruses quickly!).
It is steep - I gave up the British isles for the caribbean isles - so totally different terrain. If I travel .8k in the other direction the elevation gain is 140m! (The type of hill where car passengers sometimes have to get out and walk :p)
So yes, Cmoi I’m going to continue like I did today - walk the dogs on the hills, and then attempt partial C25k on the flat bit while the dogs laugh at me in from the shade.
(And I’m inspired that people are running that now after being at the very beginning like me!).
Yes! I just took a trip down Apple Watch memory lane, and there are two flat public routes I can do - but with busy kid’s schedules they are hard to get to.
Maybe I can use those occasionally to judge my weekly progress while I deal with my hilly route the other 2/3 days a week.
And looking down watch memory lane, my cardio health did improve when I stuck to walking it, I guess my perception is just off! In 2019 The big hill got me to 140bpm instead of my current 160-170bpm!
Sounds like a plan! I was wondering where you lived, as your description didn't match any topography that I could think of in Britain.
As nowster says, you notice hills less the more you do them over time, so if you're walking them that should be a big help. In any case on steep sections, both uphill and downhill and particularly off-road, it's often safer and faster to walk rather than run. I certainly didn't run all of my trail marathon!
So there's a total elevation gain of 220 feet over 1 mile?
If I've both understood you correctly and not messed up the conversions (I'm in France so use metres and km) I'd agree that's steep, and very challenging for C25K. That's why I was wondering if you could just do partial ascents and descents of some of the hills, combined with the flat section. I might well have misunderstood though.
So there's a total elevation gain of 220 feet over 1 mile?
If I've both understood you correctly and not messed up the conversions (I'm in France so use metres and km) I'd agree that's steep, and very challenging for C25K. That's why I was wondering if you could just do partial ascents and descents of some of the hills, combined with the flat section. I might well have misunderstood though.
It’s hilly here too! I found that there were football and rugby pitches around that were (almost) flat… and so did many laps around those while on C25k. My other tactic was similar to yours there… run to the bottom of a hill and then turn around and run away!
I came here with a 30 year long history of daily knee pain… I tried to be a super hero and blast my way through the plan… and my knees stopped me. The wonderful OldFloss and IannodaTruffe told me (nicely) that I was a fool! I got pointed to the strengthening exercises and I’ve never looked back. Now I start a lot of runs with a steep downhill… very slowly… very short steps… and I let that hill give me a tiny bit of extra impact. My knees have been completely pain free for over 3 years now… where the doctors failed for years, this place succeeded! I think I will always be slower downhill than up… which amuses people when I do one of the park runs near me as I spend the whole run overtaking people who then pass me on the way back down… and vice versa. Give it time and the right cross-training and running will strengthen your weaknesses.
That’s amazing! And oh so inspiring! Yoga has helped my knees so much, but I do notice I need to do more strengthening exercises. I watch my 5 year old jumping off things I wouldn’t dream of.
Hey WhaleSongC . Just found this post. I use the Footpath app to find places to run. If you build a route and save it, it will give you the incline too. I tested it in the tiny Caribbean island where I used to live and most of the trails are on it. Hope that helps finding a flatter bit (if there is one) or helps confirm the uphills at least.
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