Self Belief!

[Mrs-BG]

Hardest part Self belief!

So am on week 3 run 2 completed today. Hardest part believing I can do this!

I used to run at school…(many moons ago) then stopped then started again then stopped again! First time I did C25K there was no apps just paper print outs! Feel so old now!!!

Any way need to do this for me. It’s not about loosing weight (although added bonus) it’s about my mental health and doing something for me with out my boys….I love them dearly of course I do. But sometimes I need to pause mum mode.

A hard part for me is trying to get my breathing under control so that I don’t feel like im about to collapse. I don’t feel like I’m running more like jogging so don’t feel like I’m going to fast. But something I need to work on.

The hardest part for me is self belief and confidence that I can do this!

what if people are laughing at me? Judging me? I’ve taken to FB to post pictures of my daily run for some accountability for my self. What if people don’t care? What if they don’t want to see my pictures? What if they saying look at that big bird running?

All things are in my head and are not being said by anyone (to my knowledge)

Why oh why can’t I believe that I can do this when I’m on week 3?

Hopefully one day I will believe I can do this! Cos I am!!

[chrisl72 Graduate]

Hello, just wanted to acknowledge your post and give you encouragement. I'm about to start week 3 myself. Keep sharing the photos with us!

[MissUnderstanding Administrator]

Welcome to the forum! It sounds like you’ve made a brilliant start. If you’re struggling with breathing, the best way to fix that is to slow down even more. Speed really doesn’t matter-it’s time on your feet that will build up your fitness. Sometimes running can be even slower than walking when you first start out. That will change as you get more experienced. It’s counter intuitive but you’ll develop best as a runner keeping it slow and steady at a pace where you can talk in full sentences without gasping.  Most of us go too fast! Recovery days between runs are absolutely essential too. You mention a daily run-hold off on running every day in case you injure yourself.

healthunlocked.com/couchto5....

The self belief thing is interesting. What is it that you don’t believe you can do? You don’t have to believe you can do the week 9 runs yet. All you need to do is focus on the next step you’re going to take and the programme will get you there in time. You can do it. You are already doing it!

I’d suggest not focussing too much on how you feel about running and just doing each run as it comes along. Running is such a mental challenge for so many of us. Personally, the antidote to being in my own head is to switch my brain off and just run. Good music. A nice route. A little treat at the end. Permission to stop if I have to without judging myself harshly. Now I really try to start each run with a “let’s try this and see” rather than spending a long time analysing whether I think I can do it or not. That’s come with practice though! The more you run, the more you find strategies to help you put your shoes on and start which is usually the most difficult thing!

Really good luck to you. Keep updating with your progress and asking questions as they come up. We love chatting about all things running here we especially love sharing things that have worked for us. Whether Facebook are interested or not, there’s always someone here who is ❤️

[Mrs-BG in reply to MissUnderstanding]

lots of thinking points here! Thank you!

Rest day today! And my boy wants to come with me tomorrow which I’m sure will make me run slower so will be interesting to see if that helps with the breathing(not that I don’t believe what your saying) and hopefully it will help with PMA if he’s coming too! I do like to run alone but will be nice to share this with my 7year old.

I have a lovely canal that i like running down. Every walk/run is different so find this helps.

Good playlist is interesting too as I normally hit shuffle and go!

Thank you

[Bluemerlegirl Graduate]

I totally relate to the running for our mental health. Running is the one activity that gets me out of my head. I love walking. I like strength training. Running though has a totally different effect on me and it is the one activity that, when I can't do it, I actually start to feel depressed and/or anxious. I also understand the "accountability" part. When my doctor gave me the okay to try running again, I immediately signed up for a 5k! I knew if I signed up, I would put the effort in to practice and train. I wouldn't talk myself out of running even though I knew this was going to be tough starting out. I doubt very much I will finish that 5k next month without any walking, but I am going to show up and give it my best. If posting on Facebook is what keeps you accountable, post! If people don't want to see it, they can scroll past it. The people who matter will support you. I just joined this group on here, and I already love the support! I feel like if you post on here, you will get a lot of support and accountability! As far as believing in yourself, I read once (I read a lot of running books ), that, "Running isn't just a release, it is also a connect". When you run, try to connect with that person inside of you that already knows you can do this! 🏃‍♀️

[Mrs-BG in reply to Bluemerlegirl]

Thank you for this!

Interesting point about connecting…..! Made me think alot last night in a positive way!

[Scarrlet]

I am on week three, run 2 too☺️ ( I took a week off to avoid the snow) I am full of self doubt

The nice thing is I feel amazing after the run. I don't quite believe I did it🤩

[Mrs-BG in reply to Scarrlet]

same! I couldn’t believe that i did it yesterday as wasn’t up for it but I did. It might have been a slower pace than normal but I was really proud that I did it!

Well done to you too! We got this!

[Scarrlet in reply to Mrs-BG]

Yep. We got this 👍

[OldManRunning Graduate]

Mrs-BG, you are doing brilliantly and that happened the moment you took the first step on run 1/1 AND then went out again on 1/2 AND... I think you get the picture. But one thing you have to be told is you are not alone with these thoughts, I'm still having them and I'm now training for 10k and if you looked through all the posts on this forum you would see many similar comments. Bust everyone else this is about you and only you. If there were gold medals in worry, self criticism and self doubt us human beings would have a sackful. The help available on these forums and the quality of those who run them is second to none. Just ask and they are there 👍

Remember what I said you're doing BRILLIANTLY 😁

[Mrs-BG in reply to OldManRunning]

Thank you so much for this! It helps knowing I’m not alone!

Rest day today legs are aching…..so hopefully that means that I’m doing something right!

[OldManRunning Graduate]

Achy legs, and that's why rest days between runs is important. It's quite amazing how our bodies repair themselves in the rest periods. I took several longer rest periods as things weren't quite right in the leg department, it did no harm to my running 😁

[Wavy-chick28 Graduate]

well you can! This is a magic plan read the guidance and believe !!

[Oldfloss Administrator Graduate]

"Believe you can and you're halfway there" .

Theodore Roosevelt

And so say all of us! Go for it

[Beistol Graduate]

Hi Mrs-BG

[Beistol Graduate in reply to Beistol]

Hi Mrs-BG

I totally understand where you’re coming from. I felt exactly the same as you, thought everyone would be judging me. I’m on W6 now, and am getting better at not letting what others think bother me as much. To be fair, no one is really interested anyway, just getting on with their own stuff whilst we get on with ours. Keep at it, you’re doing great. You’re out there instead of just thinking about it then feeling guilty when you’ve let another day pass.

Go for it!! 😊

[CatP73]

have you joined the C25K Facebook group? There’s lots of positive vibes and advice and guidance from people just like us who have been where we are and made it through! I have just done W2R1 and really struggled, so goodness knows how I’m going to get to running 30 minutes solidly!!! 🥴