hey guys well i found a pace i can complete w1r1 at but i feel im gunna knock my running pace back to the pace i walk at brisk walk seems to be the way to go but i am wondering does running pace increase naturally during c25k or is the slow jog you start at what you finish at with this program?
Just curious tbh have never done the program at all and im more than happy trying to increase pace AFTER the program lol my main goal is just to be able to jog the 30 mins without stopping
Hi, I ended up having to slow my pace at week 6 and I now keep that slow pace since graduating - happy slow running 🏃🏽♀️ 👍🏻
yeah to be fair mate i wouldnt want to slow down much further than what i am at now its equal to a brisk walk for me i feel tho on my current speed id actually want to boost it up a bit but as you say further down the track might want to slow it down so i might just stay at current speed for entire duration on c25k n work on pace afterwards. Planning on going into 10k aswell after 5k finishes til i can run 8km without stopping thats my ultimate goal
I totally felt the same that i couldn’t possibly go any slower but I also wanted to finish the programme so now I’m consolidating and have run a few 5k runs (at 34 mins) I want to keep trying to see if I can improve on this speed a little bit.Why 8k? Why did you choose that distance?
Its distance to my work lol love tp be able to jog home or to work
Can you get a shower in work? 🥵 running home sounds good but you may feel tired by the end of the day 🥱
The slow conversational pace is definitely the way to go, embrace your inner snail 🐌. I had to slow right down to walking pace (although still running just with the tiniest of steps) but by doing that I've made it through to graduation and can now comfortably run for 30 minutes. I'm told greater speed will come as stamina improves. ☺️🏃♀️🐌
Your main goal is THE goal. It’s all about time… those 30 minutes will change your life regardless of pace. Running faster could make this both harder and less effective… running within ourselves at conversational pace is the quickest way to gain fitness.
Will your pace improve during the plan? Maybe. What matters isn’t the pace, but “perceived effort”. If you are measuring and keeping to a pace you can probably do so, and then maybe you could run a little quicker over the next two months. What I’d recommend though is sticking to the same perceived effort. What do I mean by this? Well if sprinting is 10 and strolling is 1 then you want to be going about 4/10 effort… which can be brisk walk and slower running. Running to effort level means you can slow to it on an uphill and maybe speed back up to it as the ground levels out… it also means if you didn’t sleep so well your pace will be slower, great nights sleep the opposite… and also applies to the many other variables that determine how we are at the start line. If you can run 30 minutes at 4/10 when 100% ready on the flat, you can run 4/10 over some little inclines when 80%. The best way to measure that you’re 4/10 is the ability to speak in full sentences without gasping… it’s more accurate than any of the fancy stats even an expensive watch can estimate. It’s the pace that will develop your muscles and cardiovascular system the most effectively… it happens to be the pace that elite athletes do most of their running at, they just don’t show it on TV!
C25k is doable, but a reasonable challenge… keep running at the right effort and you’ll start feeling you could run it all again as you finish… resist that feeling and you’ll be an awesome new runner!
I’ll add to this… after c25k I kept running to that effort, mainly… I tracked all my runs but never really looked at the pace. My tracker gave me an average pace for each month and when I looked six months after graduating I was delighted to see it had been slowly speeding up with zero extra effort from me.
hey thanks for the info dude much appreciated
UnfitNoMore has said it all !
ok cheers guys im happy with the pace im at il stick to that i feel c25k is very much doable if i do il work on pace after graduation thanks again
just thought id mention as well the past 2 sessions ive had finding a good speed has left me feeling fanatastic just in a really good head space for remainder of the day found myself smiling for no apparent reason lol
It feels great doesn't it! All those endorphins! I am one of those snails but currently out of action due to plantar fasciitis. I'm so close too, ready to do week 9. Congratulations on starting this great journey and well done on recognising that you need a slower pace. I didn't until week 7! 🙄 Enjoy x
I started paying attention to pace from week 6 onwards by using Strava (my graduation run is today!). I haven’t consciously tried to increase my pace, but I seem to have naturally got slightly faster over the past couple of weeks, with the same effort. I guess it all depends on your goals - I want to be able to run 5K in under 30 mins - that’s my goal - but I don’t mind how long it takes me to achieve this after I graduate, and I’ll obviously be taking all the normal precautions to stay injury free as I progress.
For now I would definitely keep doing what you are doing. You just need to complete week 9 run 3 at the end of the programme. After that different paths open up. I was 66 years old at that point, so I chose to steadily increase distance rather than pace. That entailed reaching slow 5ks , getting a few 5ks done, and then following the pattern of 2 5ks per week and one longer run the latter increasing week on week. Increasing pace came later when all of those longer runs had helped me to build up leg strength and fitness. Running intervals helped…so it all came together about 12 months after C25k. Had I been a fit 36, I might have made different choices; you need to find what works for you.
I always thought couch to 5k was the wrong name. It's couch to running 30 minutes.
Some people manage this pace and some do at a later date and some people will never manage it.
You have to remember we are all different ages , with different level of abilities and fitness.
We all have to do what is right for us.
I have said this exact thing all the way through ‘why is it called couch to 5k instead of couch to 30 mins?’ But it doesn’t sound as good does it? When I got over my anger at this 🤣 I decided I would be extremely happy to run for 30 mins without stopping and that was good enough for me for completing the programme 😋👍🏻
Some fantastic guidance here. Individually, where are you starting from, what's your purpose, what's your reward? For me it was a health scare, never having run in my life, needing to take responsibility for my cardio-vascular health, a better quality of life. At my age I doubt I will ever run 5k in 30 minutes but I can now run 5k comfortably in 40 minutes and I could keep running still at the end. My reward, starting and finishing a Parkrun, 4 months ago I would have scoffed at the suggestion. The people who have already replied offered me the same advice. I read all the links and followed the advice and stuck to the C25K programme. You have the potential to run at what's best for you, C25K will unlock that potential.
im just about fitness tbh mate i dont have health issues atm besides being overweight n unfit im just at that age now where i feel i should start taking care of body because this is the age peoples health start going to poo but i do have a fantasy of just going out the door n going for decent run 1 day at a fast pace ideally id like to run to work which is about 8km away so when i graduate from 5k im moving straight onto 10k
A great target. Stick with it and consider training outside too as well as on the treadmill, it's a different experience.
Hi, I had a lot of trouble controlling my slow pace, I kept fading away the last few minutes of each run. I downloaded a metronome app and run to its beats and as I get better I will slowly increase the beats. Good luck.
Everyones natural pace will be different. Oddly your own comfortable pace may vary from week to week. Just goes what feels comfortable to you on each run. Sometimes my comfortable pace is in the high 7 minutes/km. The following week it's below 6mins/km. Go with what your body feels is right. When I embarked on c25k in my 60's all early runs were in the 7mins + pace. Most now seem to have settled into a 6 to 6 1/2 mins/km pace. I haven't tried to better my pace. It's just happened naturally over the last 3 years. I set my Garmin watch to alert me if my pulse rate exceeds 140 bpm. If it does, I slow down just a little.
Hi, just thought i'd chip in here.
I too was very worried about pace, and i even posted about it a few weeks ago. I was doing a VERY slow jog for most of the programme, i'm on the final week now and my pace has definitely gotten faster and i'm now doing 5k in just under 30 minutes.
It just comes naturally over the programme. So don't force it, just go at a comfortable pace. Just try not to get fixated on pace like i was. Focus on finishing the 30 minutes, rather than going at a particular pace. That can all come at a later time.
Even if you get to week 9 and you are going at a brisk walking pace, you will have the endurance and stamina to begin building on that after the programme🙂
Pace thing worked!!! Just ran 9K!! :D
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