A lot of us start C25K having done little or no exercise since we left school. Others used to be active but life intervened - work, children, illness, injury, other responsibilities. Were you advised by your doctor that you needed to get more active. Or did you just take a look at your sedentary lifestyle and decide that you wanted to step things up a gear?
What made you lace up your running shoes and brave the world that beckoned, that different world where you would soon be someone who could run for 30 minutes without a break?
In my case a knee injury in my 20s led to arthritis. As I got to the end of my 50s the doctor said I'd probably need a knee replacement at some point. For years the prevailing wisdom was that running would wear the joint out quicker, but in 2020 I read that it could actually help with arthritis.
It took me about a year to actually get round to starting with the C25K app, and I've barely stopped since then. The knee pain has more or less gone away in the 3 years that I've been running regularly, which is more than I could have hoped for. Oh, and my osteoporosis has now improved to osteopenia which is a real plus!
So, what was it for you? How's it going so far with the program? What are the changes you're noticing? It's a wonderful thing to take on a new challenge especially if it's outside your comfort zone
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Yesletsgo
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Hi Yesletsgo, it wasn't the reasons that many people start C25K such as doing no exercise or losing weight when I began running and starting C25K just over 6 years ago, as you will see on my profile page I have led a healthy lifestyle since I was a child, I began cycling when I was 7 but cut that down when I was around 70 years old, I wondered what to replace cycling with.?!!Running, I was a good runner at primary school but gave that up for the bike, in October 2017 I was watching The Great Scottish Run and there was a short break promoting C25K, during the winter of 2017/18 during my long Sunday walks I tried running for around two minutes, that went well, I even ran/walked 5K in 42 minutes so the time was ready for me to start the course, I officially started C25K with run 1 of week 1 on the 18th April 2018 and graduated on 18th June of the same year.
I wouldn't say it was easier than cycling Yesletsgo, a 50 mile cycle bike ride is as hard as running a half marathon, however, as I now only go shorter bike rides, a 5K bike 🚲 ride is less tiring than a 5K 🏃🏾 run, most of my bike rides on a Sunday vary from 8K to 18K.
Up to before I started running I cycled at least 4 times a week, the distance then varied from in miles, 18 to 50, although I did take a short break at half way.In those days I didn't have a Smart phone, when I did get a Smart phone I went on my favourite bike ride using Mapmyrun app but setting it to cycling mode, my favourite bike ride which I went a lot was just short of 26 miles which of course is a marathon, yes a favourite distance cycling but no way I would run it.
You must be very fit! I once did an 18k bike ride (long before I started running) and it completely did me in! Those long distance rides must have been fantastic. Quite a change to do the shorter runs.
That's so inspirational Yesletsgo 😊 and a great question. For me it was when I was working for Barnardo's in Hull. A friend came up with an idea to run Hull Marathon as a team of 5 and they needed someone to do a 5 mile leg. I said I'd do it and although I used to be football fit, I never really ran.
I went home and googled 'How do you run?' And c25k came up. I started straight away in November and loved running in the cold and rain. I have pretty much been running ever since!
We never did that Marathon relay in the end but I've run 5 full Marathons in 5 years with another later this year. Running really changed my life 😊
Oooh great question! I was already exercising regularly but I’d never really got on with running. I’d had a few failed attempts where I’d basically set off at a sprint, run out of breath after a couple of minutes and then given up!
After breaking my little toe, for some random reason I decided it would be a good idea to give it a go to get back to fitness again in a cheap and easy way. I did Couch to 5k and got totally hooked! Any ideas about it being cheap have gone out of the window. I started off saving money not paying for a gym membership but that got more than cancelled out when I discovered how much I love buying run kit, especially trainers! I am now paying for a gym membership for the other stuff I’m doing to support my running!!
What’s kept me going is how much I love the feeling of freedom while I’m out running and how much I love a new challenge. It’s been up and down with setbacks and injuries but I’m still going after a couple of years and I’m currently training for my first marathon (injury permitting!!) in October. It’s amazing where the programme can take you!
I completely get what you say about the feeling of freedom. There's something so immediate about it just being you, nature and a path, I suppose that this is what keeps us going beyond the injuries etc.
A friend of mine was doing the programme and after talking to her about it, I thought I would start. I thought if I was able to finish, it would make a great birthday present for her.
I loved the programme and finished but she had a fall (non-running) and injured her knee. She’s just back to the programme and I’m hoping we can run a 5k together in the Autumn.
What a lovely idea for a thread! And I completely think the stuff about running not being good for your knees is not true as long as you support your running with strength and flex. It is amazing that it has done so much for you!
I have run on and off through my 20s and early-mid 30s. But I had so many injuries and struggled with it so much.
I've struggled with my weight and fitness entire life and when my daughter was about 18 months I was thinking about how I really want to set her a good example, and I figured participating in Junior parkrun when she's old enough would be a good thing for her to do. So I started C25k in the hope that she would be excited to join me in the future. That was a bit over 15 months ago and I'm running Leeds 10k tomorrow! I attempted a 10k about 13 years ago but DNF due to injury. I am confident that at the age of 40 I'll achieve what I couldn't then (daily yoga has been the thing that has kept me injury free).
I am so proud that my little girl sees me go out regularly - over the winter she kept putting on my running gloves and running up and down the hall. I'm hoping it'll be second nature to her to be active because of what I'm doing. But also (and I really wasn't expecting this) I love running. I feel like I'm achieving stuff I never thought possible and that makes me so proud.
I liked a bit of yoga, occasionally did Zumba but running! I used to watch a lady running during lockdown and the thought of that freedom tempted me, felt so self conscious it took a while to pluck up courage but once I’d found c25k I was off!!
This new found hobby has helped me physically the aching knees have gone like you had a osteopenia diagnosis and running was recommended but the best thing it’s done is give me that freedom feeling.
Helped my mental health which has been sorely tested with the gems later life has gifted too 😂
What a good question! For me I suppose I didn't so much start as never really stop, infants school was a mile away, once I was old enough not to be met I found I could get home quicker if I ran it. Secondary school was 3 miles away, if I ran home and cut through the woods I could beat the bus. I ran in my early 20's, with a friend for a couple of years, eventually we spotted a track on our runs and signed up to an athletics club, 6 nights a week off we went, ran there, 28 times round the track and ran home, my daughter still remembers playing in the long jump sandpit while I ran round and round. Over the years I ran a bit here and there until one day my daughter text to say her and her son had tried run 1 week 1 of C25k and after asking what it was and downloading it new running adventures started.
Why do I still run? F.. .knows!!! Giving up smoking twice and gaining a couple of stone over the last 12 years, a few bouts of COVID that have left me more breathless and getting slower and less fit so make me wonder why I bother, but I still dream.. . And dreaming keeps me going.
that’s a really good question.. I was a gym bunny and used to love doing the Les Mills classes especially Body Combat. A friend of mine runs marathons and I always told her she was mad and you’d never catch me running. I just couldn’t see the point of it.
Then Covid and lockdown came. I was literally going mad without my classes and even doing them at home it wasn’t the same. I remembered that the lovely weather presenter Carol Kirkwood had said C25K really worked for her. In our hour of being allowed outside all of us in the household ( me hubby son and then girlfriend now DIL) decided to give it a try. The golf course is really near to us so we spent most of the early weeks running over the fairways. It really was a godsend. So it came from necessity more than anything. I found that I really enjoyed it so I had to eat my words about running being pointless.
Four years later I’m the only one still running…why? Because I found I liked the headspace and time to think. There’s been some lovely and some tough life events along the away and ironically those are the times when I paused the running as having to think about fitting that in amongst everything else was just too much. But I gave up the gym a year ago supposedly to save money but as others have said, if you want to take running seriously those shoes don’t come cheap! Buying nice new gear keeps me motivated too, but kind of offsets the savings🤣
My biggest motivation now is Ebony. Her predecessor was too old to run with me when I took it up, but when we got her it was always in my head to run with her once she was old enough. After a few stop starts again this year I decided I really needed to commit and so four years after my first graduation I’m aiming for 60mins on the magic plan. My first injury has meant I had to take an enforced break for a couple of weeks but strength and flex has kept me going. And I did my first recovery run this morning .. it felt good 😊 I missed it. So here I am running, trying to keep relatively fit and healthy as the years creep up on me whilst having an unrequited love affair with Coach B 😂
It's really weird looking back to 2020 and only being allowed out for an hour. It seems totally unreal sometimes to me. Luckily for you, you were able to form good habits and are still running.
Glad the injury has healed, recovery runs can be lovely. it's always so good to feel 'yes, I can still do this' isn't it?
That first run is so daunting but it's the most important one of all.
It took me a really long time to actually start to run, you wouldn't believe the excuses I made to myself but this meant that when I did start I was really ready and determined.
Doing the C25K program can work wonders for your mental and physical health, self esteem, body image, you name it.
I had done a bit of running many years before, but had to pack it in because of hip issues. Once I had it resurfaced I was scared to try running for years, so didn't. I also knew that the other hip would need to be fixed at some point in the future, so was wary about aggravating that. However, just before Covid I developed plantar fasciitis. It was helped by orthotic insoles, but as they became progressively more complex and (if I'm honest) annoying, I thought "this is silly" & gave c25k a try. The podiatrist had already told me that my muscle tone was bad due to years of walking with a dodgy hip, so I reasoned that any exercise that would strengthen my legs would be worth a try. As it turned out, I loved it & became a regular runner, and no more plantar fasciitis! I've now had the other hip done (almost a year ago) and am taking it very slowly, but hoping to get back to regular runs again. I just love being out & about outside on my own, lost in a dwam (good Scots word there) or listening to my running playlist & seeing how people's gardens are coming along. Happy to be out plodding along in any weather except icy.
I'd had the C25K app on my phone (actually two phones as it transferred when I changed phones) since a few days after it was launched. It had glowered at me in the app list, but I never got a "round tuit".
Then that blond man in a suit appeared on our TV screens in March 2020 and told us all to stay at home, with only 30 minutes a day allowed outside for exercise.
The following day I decided I'd go out and try this Couch to 5K lark.
I thought I was reasonably fit. I couldn't have been more wrong. The first run session was awful. Day three was even more horrible: I had palpitations, cold sweats, a stitch, nausea, etc.
I eventually realised why this was happening. There were two reasons. Firstly I wasn't properly hydrating. Secondly, don't take up C25K when you're half way through a course of isotretinoin (Roaccutane) as you shouldn't do strenuous exercise when you're on it.
Once I was well off the little rugby balls and had also got over an infected insect bite, I restarted C25K in late June 2020 and completed it at the end of August.
Being limited in the time we could spend outside really focused the mind on what best to do in those precious minutes. The fact that some people started C25K and are still running is a small positive to come out of those very difficult times, there aren't many.
I began to run at the behest of my daughter and son in law... way back in 2015... they had started running across the fields and around and about. They invited me to join them one day and I felt I may not survive that first run.
They then gave up, feet issues and shoe issues and I did too... but then, after six or seven hedonistic weeks in the Dordogne, too may duck confits and delicious treats... that Autumn, I came home and thought... hmmm. It wasn't a big, I have to lose weight or anything decision, I just felt, sluggish
Carrying a tad too much weight and a size 14/16... and feeling sluggish... I scrolled around, found the NHS C25K plan and the rest as they say, is history. I did not start posting on the forums straight away... but then when I discovered this.. I did
It felt good, ( not easy at first ), but as a child and teenager I had always been active... running for the County etc... and then later as a climber, walker and cyclist... but this was different.. Slower running which was just great and seeing , and learning so much on each run, each week. I then began writing my rambles and logging and recording all my runs, too, in a running tome!
Graduated December17th 2015.
I have never regretted my decision to begin... ever ! Now, at 74.. a lean, mean running machine... ( I am jesting) !
If you are thinking , even just vaguely of starting this. just do it.
We are all so glad that you took to running and to posting, what you write is always a joy to read. Thank you for sharing your wisdom. Keep doing what you do Oldfloss , both the running and the writing
In my 60's and I had a high blood pressure reading last September, for the first time. I knew I wasn't doing enough exercise. My Hba1c was borderline pre-diabetic, and had been pre-diabetic a couple of years before. I was relying on good nutrition alone to keep me healthy.
My last blood tests in January showed a reduction in Hba1c, and cholesterol levels which are now in range. My blood pressure is now normal at 115/70, RHR 59. My waist size has dropped several inches and I rarely felt cold over the winter!
I can run for 30 minutes on fairly flat levels, on a good day with the wind behind me... inclines are another matter, but I'm improving!
I've entered several 5K trail races and finish in a time of around 47 minutes with a mix of running/walking. Some of these have had an elevation of 90+ metres, so have been a real challenge!
I never mind coming in at the back of the pack as I know the health benefits are such a big win!
What an amazing achievement to make such a difference to your health.
Funny you mention not feeling cold over the winter, I used to be 'that woman' in the office who was always asking for the heating to be turned up. Since C25K I've been known to run in November in shorts and a vest 😂
You're also right about the joy of being at the back of the pack. Most of us will never be the fastest but that doesn't mean we are any the less for that. It really is all about the taking part, isn't it?
Thank you! I will always be surprised that such a small amount of time running each week (around 60-90 minutes) can make such a big change to my health, and in quite a short amount of time too!
I started running because I go to a bootcamp and my achilles heel has always been the running. I was so bad at it and really struggled during classes if there was a lot of running involved. I decided that I would do the c 2 5k to try and improve and make my life a bit easier at bootcamp. I'm still pants at running but it is a bit easier for me now.
Sounds like you must have been pretty fit already, glad that the running is getting better. A lot of us don't have what could be considered a 'classic' runner's body which means we have to work harder to achieve the goals that the taller, thinner (male) people find easy. This doesn't devalue our achievements, quite the opposite. If you're finding the running easier pat yourself on the back for doing so well and don't let anyone tell you otherwise or I'll have to come and have a word with t
I did find the first 4 weeks of c25k a breeze due to being a bit fit (I'd never say I was really fit. I like being a couch potato like everyone else) but once the runs got longer I struggled big time. I've always liked exercise but I have had my lean years where life just got in the way. The middle age spread started, and I thought,'I don't like this at all'. My husband was part of bootcamp already and he had been on my case to sign up as 'I would love it'. To shut him up I went and 9 years on I'm still there. At 61 I'm one of the old people that goes, and the younger people run rings around me but I don't care. At least I'm giving it a go and keeping those aches and pains at bay.
Good for you, keeping at it. I kind of like being the old lady too, less pressure in so many ways 😂My husband had been nagging me to run for 30+ years before I started C25K. He'd stopped running by the time I started but about 6 months later he decided to join me on my runs. Now he dashes off ahead while I plod behind, suits us both 😁
I have run on and off for years but always tried to do it by myself and always found it really hard. Switched to cycling and swimming for a while but circumstances changed and went back to running. I really like that C25K is guided and there are hints and tips and techniques that really help. I spend all day at a desk and feel really crotchety and stiff if I am not able to get out. The head space is really important to me, the number of times a solution to a knotty problem has popped up when I am out on a run is more than a coincidence.
You're absolutely right about the headspace that running gives. You can choose to have a blank mind, to be in the moment, or even to run over an issue in your head that you otherwise wouldn't get round to.
Once you graduate C25K you might like the Mindfulness runs on the Nike Running Club (NRC) app. I hadn't come across Mindfulness before so it was all new to me but found it very helpful in drawing attention to different bits of the body, the surroundings etc.
NRC is free and you don't need to buy Nike things to use it It has lots of guided runs and training programs and you can just dip in and out if you want to. I found it really useful once I no longer had the guidance of the C25K app and it's really taught me a lot.
I started to run because I wanted to lose some weight…that was my first reason…my second reason was I was a stay at home mum at the time and if I wasn’t cleaning the house, I was at the supermarket or on the school run…don’t get me wrong, those were the best days of my life but I needed some me time…and I was still grieving the loss of my mum…& always will be…but I found running such a therapy…I could just run through my thoughts and I have mostly enjoyed it…I’m working now…that was 7 years ago (almost)…now I run for a very different reason…I’m sat on my behind teaching 17 year olds to drive and there should only be one spare tyre in the car!!!
An interesting question. Why running? Despite being a cyclist and reasonably fit, I just couldn't run. It was too exhausting and if I tried I always got injured. Pandemic year arrived and hubby started running. Intervals at first, eventually leading to running. He got there but I didn't! Again and again I tried and then I loaded C25K in Feb 2023. First few weeks, my latent fitness carried me through, until it didn't anymore. But I persisted and with all the help and support that I got on this forum I graduated and can now run 10k. More than that Garmin has clocked me running 800k in the last 12 months, which my non running self would never have believed. Pre running, I had issues with my knees which needed professional help from a physio, he got me on the right track, but the running combined with the S&F have continued to strengthen everything and I no longer have any issues. I love my morning running fix I think it's here to stay.
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