I came out of hospital on 3rd March and have been working up to restarting the program again .
That journey has also had several bumps in the road .
I started off with my first very tentative 10 minute walk on Sunday 5th March which went ok .
The cardiac rehab team suggested I then build my walks up very slowly over the next 6 weeks to 45 minutes including a 5 minutes warm up and cool down at a very low pace .
This I did , and gradually building up the intensity of the main walk .
Then the first bump in the road !
Plantar Fasciitis !!!
I had suffered with this before I started C25k , so more than 3 years ago now and it eventually just disappeared.
This time it came on after my 3rd 45 minute walk and was really quite painful, so that stopped my walking !
I wanted to continue with my recovery so decided (with rehab approval) to get my bike out !
I went for a 30 minute bike ride and felt quite happy with that , but did have a little lower back ache.
Then the next day I could barely move , could hardly get out of bed .
I made an appointment with my sports physio (Extreme marathon runner) but that was not for another week !
So I hobbled about at home doing not very much at all .
When I saw the physio it was starting to calm down a bit , anyway this resulted in lots of excercises from the physio and 2 more appointments!
After which I was feeling almost back to normal until I bent down one morning in the bathroom to pick up a towel and Bang !
It went again 🤬
All that day I could barely move again however it was significantly better the day after .
Since then it has been a gradual improvement each day untill the point I felt I could tentatively start my walking again .
I did this over a week or more to the point where I was getting out and walking fairly briskly for up to 1 hour.
I had a few other concerns over breathlessness, which after a heart attack is obviously a worry, following various tests, ECG, Chest X ray and blood tests there is nothing to suggest this is cardiac related .
It is still an ongoing mystery that is being looked into !
So again with rehab approval I decided to restart C25k today , 3 years to the day when I first did week 1 run 1
I have to say , I was rather nervous and it was also quite emotional!
But, it was a lovely morning so shorts and t shirt on and off I went .
It was obvious I hadn't run for a while and I certainly kept the pace down (completely conversational)
I was aware of the shortness of breath but it didn't really impact my runs and I was monitoring my HR throughout.
My calves were aching a bit but nothing much and the runs went ok.
So happy to have got that first one in.
I still have one or two hurdles to get over but at least back in the saddle and feeling more positive 🙂
Written by
Instructor57
Graduate
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Congratulations on re-starting c25k! After everything you've been through lately, it's so great to read that you're well enough and fit enough to restart the program 👏👏👏😃 fingers crossed they'll find out what's causing the breathlessness soon. Good luck with c25k. Enjoy it! 👍🏃♂️☺️
A very inspiring post from you Ian, a big congratulations to you on restarting C25K with run 1 of week 1 in perfect weather for running and walking, I am glad you enjoyed your run and took it at conversational pace on the anniversary of you starting C25K 3 years ago to the day, well done 😀,
As for me, well today 24th May is my 77th birthday and to celebrate I ran 🏃🏾 a 5K, just a easy run at 07:07 k/min pace in a time of 35:36, my daughter and sister are working today and hope to take me out for a birthday meal as soon as they can, for you onwards and upwards to run 2 of week 1 either on Friday or Saturday.
Yes!!!!! That's inspiring stuff. Splendid to hear of your determined progress since your heart attack, Instructor57, and wonderful to hear you're now on C25K. Heartfelt congratulations on your comeback, well done. 👍🏃🏅🙌
The PF is probably due to your period of forced inactivity, and hopefully will disappear again as your feet gradually adapt. It's good that you have someone who is working with you on it. In the meantime it's a pain (literally).
You know what you're facing this time. You know what's possible. You don't need any of us to tell you what to do. The very best wishes from me.
Great news that finally you’ve managed to get out there on your Runniversary after all your trials! Congrats on restarting C25K and successfully completing Week 1, Run 1 👏👍🐟
No idea what the fish is doing there, but I liked it so thought I’d leave it 😊
Oh that is just so good to hear! Getting the blessing of the medics is obviously great news.I hope you enjoyed it and I'm sure that getting running again will rebuild your confidence in your body after so many knocks. You are clearly a shining example of being committed to your ongoing health and fitness - a doctor's dream patient!
And I've just realised you started a few months after me - I graduated a few weeks before the first lockdown - what a joy it was to run during those very odd times!
Oh this is such fantastic news Ian! So happy for you! 🤗The hesitancy and nervousness is totally understandable but hopefully the breathlessness will just be a transient thing.
Happy Runniversary! I think its definitely a good omen to be restarting on this date
Many thanks , it was not easy to write the post about the heart attack, it took some time before I felt ready to do that, but it actually helped me come to terms with it .Enjoy the programme 🙂👍
This is really good to read and I can imagine how it got you feeling emotional 🥲 well done and I hope the program goes well for you.
I’m taking my 11 year old son through it - currently just finished week 2 - he’s not enjoying it but the route and listening to Sanjay is bringing lots of memories back for me - it’s been 1 year since i started - I look forward to reading your posts - good luck!
What a amazing read 👍 I am so sorry for all that you have gone through but what resilience and determination you have to have come back once again 👍👍💪 I look forward to reading more of your posts but please take it slowly 🙏 as I know what that back pain can be like and how easy it is to happen 🙈
Fantastic news on your return to couch to 5k and congratulations on a successful run 1. The hardest of all week I have found so far was the actual starting the programme and those first few runs. I’ve still a way to go get myself.
Go easy on yourself, you must be chomping at the bit to get back out there and back where you were. It will happen, but don’t force it and trust your instincts and listen to your body along the way. I’m so happy for you that your health is better and you are ready to go smash your goals again. 😊
I completely missed your post about the heart attack first time round but have read it just now. I’m so sorry - what a horrible thing to go through. On a rather less dramatic scale I recently had my own ‘running saves your life experience’. I was admitted to A&E with dangerously high blood pressure and was also told it could have been a lot worse without my healthy lifestyle. We can’t escape our genetics but we can certainly take measures to lessen their impact. All best wishes for your renewed running journey and continued good health x
I’m sure you will -but just in case you need reminding -keep building gradually and carefully. I look forward to hearing all about your return.
Major sympathy with what you’ve been through and so glad to hear you are On The Up now!
(I had the wretched PF out of the blue about 5 years ago, from walking. It’s the most bizarre , painfully disabling and unnecessary condition which sounds pathetic and is in fact anything but as it feels like torture. It passed eventually but I can still feel where it was when I flex my feet. Obviously not in the same league as your heart problem but a cruel extra with the back issue too-like your body was telling you to take some time out!)
sorry to hear all you’ve been through recently. But glad that your running had made your heart stronger before the heart attack and possibly got you back on the road to recovery and back to running quicker than perhaps otherwise. Thank you for being honest and for sharing. I’ve recently been discovered as having crazily high blood pressure and they say they need to get it under control otherwise I’m at risk of heart attack, stroke or worse 😞 but I’m still running regularly (but monitoring the running) and now taking medication. Sometimes I worry and think should I cut down the running or cut it out but I’m hoping it does more good than harm.
Well done on that first run again, hope it goes well now, your running journey started just a few months before mine, i turn 60 later this year, would never have dreamed i'd be so into this running lark, even did my first 10k race, with my daughters at the weekend, which was also quite emotional. 😪Anyway, as i say, hope you can keep at it 🏃♂️ without anymore hicups! 😃
Congratulations and happy anniversary! You seem to be a model of patience, level-headedness and positive thinking. I hope you clear the last hurdles easily.
Sorry this is a late reply. What a journey you have been on and what an inspiration you are to everyone. Thanks for telling us that with determination and grit, we can with patience and perseverance, do what we want to achieve. Well done and three cheers for you. 👏👏👏👏
Aw, this is absolutely brilliant. The dedication to push through and go from scratch is inspiring. The running is definitely making a difference to me and I hope it will continue to work for you. I shall follow your progress with interest.
Many thanks .... Starting from scratch again and following a well tried and progressive training programme is in my mind the best way forward ..... I know it works 🙂
Man! You are getting kicked from one side of the street to the other!I admire your tenacity I57 - and my very best wishes to you on your journey to full recovery and fitness 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
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Grrr! After running 5k 3 days ago, couldn't even manage 20 minutes today :(
Post-Couch to 5k: My first ever outdoor run.
At last! Week 9 run 3 done ( 3 years after I first started!)
Exactly a year ago today...
