I started C25K a while ago but didn't get beyond the first week! It wasn't that I didn't feel better for doing it, but life just took over and I found it too easy to make excuses to not leave my house!!!
I have a 5k event in July that I've booked to do with my daughter ... at the moment I'm not sure I could even walk it as I get so puffed with exertion.
This weekend is due to be dry and sunny, so trying to motivate myself to restart the programme!
In my experience, chasing the feeling of being “motivated” is a fruitless task. Aiming for habit is better. I feel most excited to run when I’m running regularly and can see I’m getting fitter, but that just takes a bit of bloody minded grit to say “I’m not really feeling like running so I’m just going to get out and do it”. If I want to feel great and have that feeling of flying when I’m running, that requires me to push through when I can’t be bothered and just do it anyway.
I give myself permission to not particularly enjoy it. I tell myself half-arsed runs are better than no runs at all. I remind myself that I usually have a decent time when I’m actually out there…and I almost always do.
Your legs don’t care what your head is thinking so just get out there and do what you can to make it an enjoyable experience with a nice route, good music/podcast and the knowledge that you really are doing something good for yourself,
Reading that back, it sounds really negative! I absolutely love running. I’m totally hooked. I guess musicians need to practice scales to play the symphonies and if you want to run regularly, there are often going to be occasions where you just have to get it done. Having an event in the calendar is great because you know in July, you’ll be on the start line and you need to get round the course. You want to be as ready as you can be. Tell yourself that when you’re waving about going out because of generally can’t be bothered ness!!! It’s totally fine (and the sign of a sensible runner) to skip runs when you’re ill or an injury is niggling or life is genuinely too tricky.
If you’re feeling puffed walking, it might be best to build up to a thirty minute brisk walk first and then start the programme. There’s a useful hits and tips post here…
healthunlocked.com/couchto5...
One other route to tap is accountability. Can your daughter be a help in training by running with you or committing to sharing her training journey with you too? It doesn’t have to look the same but knowing someone will ask how it’s going and tell you how they’re getting on can help on the days when the sofa is proving hard to resist!
You’ve already shown you’ve got the motivation you need because you’ve decided to sign up for the event and you’ve decided to start the programme. That’s a massive step and you can absolutely do it! Really good luck to you and you’ve got loads of virtual run buddies here too!
This is such a spot on reply MissUnderstanding - I agree with every word! It’s all about consistency and turning up! Getting out there regularly, even when we don’t feel like it, is definitely what helps my running most.
I also love having an event to work for too.🏃♀️🙂
Think I’m going to save this reply to read if my mojo 😈ever goes missing!🤣🙂🙏
Thank you! That’s such a lovely reply. ❤️
I think I’ve got this week’s catch up corner topic sorted now!!
Hiya. So here is a little motivational story for you. I am turning 50 in May, so still currently clinging on hard to my 40's and will do so up until the last second. 😀All through my 30's I was an absolute couch potato. I lived the good life and only did bits of exercise every now and then. When I was 42 I had a good talk with myself and said I'd do a C25K plan. I tried and I failed after about 3 weeks. A few months later I tried again and I did not stick with it and I failed. Again a few months later I tried and guess what, I failed. It is hard, really hard. I was 3 stone over weight, really really unfit and it was a real struggle. I was unhappy with myself from a fitness and health point of view. I really wanted to get fit and healthy, but I wanted a magic wand to make it happen, unfortunately it doesn't exist as we all know. I decided to try again, and this time take it one week at a time and try and stick with the C25K plan, I also found this amazing forum and community. Bit by bit, week by week I was improving, after week 5 I got into it and I was elated when I was able to run for 20 minutes without stopping. I remember week 7 being hard and so I repeated it again and I managed to stick with it. Just as I was graduating from C25K I found parkrun and I fell in love with it. I was not fast, but no one cared. It took me about 40 minutes to do my first parkrun with walking and running. Over a few months I got down to about 31 minutes to run 5K. The first time I went under 30 minutes I was at my first 5K road race. I finished in a time of 29:58 and felt as if I'd won a gold medal at the Olympics. I then worked hard and I lost the 3 stone of extra weight I was carrying, running became to much easier as a result and I loved the new me. I got into a healthy BMI and was able to run 5K in about 26 minutes.
Six years later, I'm still running. Sometimes life gets in the way or I get kind of lazy. My fitness falls away and I struggle to run 5K again. But I start back and I build myself back up. I gained a Covid stone and an extra stone for good measure over 3 and a half years. Since October I've worked hard again and I have lost the 28 extra pounds of weight I was carrying. I'm back running more again and I'm working towards getting my parkrun finish times back down to 25 minutes. Two months ago it was taking me 35 minutes to finish 5K with a couple of walking breaks. Now I can finish in under 29 minutes. The finish times are not important, but it is a measure and proof that hard work does yield positive results.
Running has changed my life. I've been fitter and healthier in my 40's than I was in my 30's. I've had ups and downs, but we all do. It's hard to stay focused and stay at it non stop. Sometimes a little break can be good. But it is important to get back at it again, build yourself back up. I've done 173 parkruns, volunteered at parkrun 31 times, I've ran at 10K road races, 5K road races, I've even done 2 x 13K mountain races. I'm back in a healthy BMI weight, I feel amazing and probably look 8 years younger. I'm not an athlete, I'm a middle aged man who discovered running 6-7 years ago. I plod along and I bimble sometimes, and sometimes I train hard and I work hard to get a little better and fitter. But I've stuck at it.
Why have I stuck at it? Because of parkrun. It's an amazing community, people who race, run, jog and walk. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming. It is on every Saturday morning. Register today, print out your barcode and pop along to your local parkrun tomorrow morning. Don't be nervous, just dress as if your going for a walk. And walk at parkrun. When you finish you will have a 5K finish time. That's it, you'll have completed your first ever 5K event. Simple. Start doing C25K and each week incorporate parkrun as one of your runs. Each week you will finish a little faster, you'll get a new PB time. You will meet lovely people. And you will feel amazing.
That's an amazing story of your running journey damienair, that should inspire anyone to get off the couch 😀
This is such a wonderful read. Massive good luck with getting that parkrun PB. Loving following your journey. ❤️
Ah thank you so much. I'm just in after doing a nice gentle 5K run with my Cocker Spaniel Ruby. I was sitting down after and thought how great it feels to be able to run a nice easy 5K. Even that on it's own is a great achievement.
That sounds absolutely wonderful. Those little victories just keep you going.
I agree massively with MissUnderstanding above - motivation may not always be there (it’s great when it is) but don’t rely on it to get you out the door.
I did c25k twice, once in 2016 and again in 2022. What I found helpful was breaking it all down into baby steps: putting my running stuff out the day before, then on the day telling myself that I was just going to put it on (ideally first thing), then being like ‘well I’m dressed, Ill just give it a shot’. Once I was dressed to go I sort of had to or I felt like a twerp! 😂 I still do this all the time now, I almost never go for impromptu runs!
Recently when I was sort of dreading a run I saw some advice that was along the lines of ‘just get out there but give yourself permission to stop after 5 mins’. I like this, you probably won’t but allowing yourself that ‘out’ lessens the pressure.
Finally - the best motivator I have found is this forum. When I was doing the programs I religiously checked in here, read about others days and runs and posted about mine. There was another member doing it the same time as me and we cheered each other on the whole way. Coming here to read about others runs and progress with the programme is still inspiring to me.
Good luck, you can absolutely do it and try the baby steps to get out the door. 😊
What I found helpful was breaking it all down into baby steps: putting my running stuff out the day before, then on the day telling myself that I was just going to put it on (ideally first thing), then being like ‘well I’m dressed, Ill just give it a shot’. Once I was dressed to go I sort of had to or I felt like a twerp!
I do this too!! Plus, if I’ve gone through the effort of wrangling myself into a sports bra, I’m going to make use of it!!
Great tip!!
Schedule your runs so that you'll get a reminder. Once you've completed a few, you'll start to feel the benefit and be amazed at how quickly you progress!!
MissUnderstanding has given you a fabulously sensible and brilliantresponse!
You know what to do... and all I would add is, be kind to yourself, a, take it slow and steady and of course... enjoy !
Don't Think just Run. Have an excellent day.
Hi kitten you've had some brilliant replies already, so this is just to bolster them really. I wrote a post recently about how I tricked myself into running the last run of week 5.
I didn't feel like going out and I didn't think I could so the distance.
So I started by getting into the gear. And the thing is once I'm in my running gear for some reason I don't absentmindedly scoff a bacon butty and say to myself oh oops I can't run now I'm too full!
Then I find myself heading out, because I'm in the gear, so I might as well at least start, and maybe I'll just do the warmup walk and see how I feel, and maybe I'll stop half way if I'm hating it, etc etc, and before I know it I've done it!
And I definitely agree with MisUnderstanding that if you've made the effort to clamber into a sports bra you might as well run, you've already done the hard part! 😅
You have already had some inspirational replies and I haven’t got too much more to add but here’s my two penn’orth for what it’s worth …
Find the best time of day for your walks/ runs and make it a habit. For me it’s first thing .. once the animals are fed, dishwasher emptied and I’ve had my cuppa it’s time to get the gear on. I find I’m less likely to talk myself out of it!
Use this lovely forum or anyone else to check in - it’s a great motivator and everyone is lovely - you’ll get your own cheerleaders!
Ignore the gremlins - go out even if you don’t feel like it and you’ll be surprised at how good you feel after!
The plan really helps keep you on track, its programme makes you get out regularly and build up your stamina - so rewarding!
Finally enjoy it - stick on some bangers or a podcast and enjoy some ‘me time’
Good luck and keep us posted 😊
Go for it - something is better than nothing! I had a break if about a month after week one die to a bug - but am back in the swing now. It is possible - bit by bit!
Week 4 - motivation needed 
Motivation needed
Motivation needed! 
Motivation needed
Motivation needed!!
