Hi, I have started running for first time at 66. So good to read here that I am not alone in that and also that there is hope that zi will keep running! Wonderful to read your stories!
OK so I am a plodder and a backpack carrying millultiday hiker. Slow and steady. so starting Couch to 5k is something very new, getting even a tiny bit of air under my feet haha.
Today was week 4 day 2. That is two lots of 3k runs and two lots of first time 5k runs.
Can any of you remember back that far ? I was exhausted for the rest of the day!!
I really hope this is ok? Should i repeat the week or just keep going even if zi end up on the couch for a couple or more hours after?
Thoughts?
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ytsrik
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Hello and welcome! You’ve done so well so far. All that hiking with weight will have been super preparation. I was listening to a podcast the other day praising exactly that for benefitting running.
It might be worth checking in with your doctor if this persists. None of us are medical experts here but being exhausted for the rest of the day after a couch to 5k run sounds more excessive than usual. Is this the first time that’s happened? When I’ve felt that tired after a run, it’s because I’m brewing a bug or anaemic.
Hello, I live in the Lake District and would be very interested to listen to the podcast about the benefits to be gained for running from hiking and backpacking. Please can you let me know which podcast this was?Thankyou
Now there’s a question -which one was it?! I listen to quite a few, often in small bursts so it’s not always easy to remember ! I think it was the Strength Running one about tissue tolerance. It wasn’t the subject of the podcast-just something that was briefly talked about as part of the episode (I think!). It may have been another episode of the same podcast where they were also talking about “rucking”.
This is the episode (link if you use Apple, screenshot to help if not). I really hope it’s the right one! I’ll try and investigate further…
W4R3 was my least favourite run of the whole scheme. That was mainly due to the weather (unusually humid and drizzly between two summer downpours).
See how you feel tomorrow. You could always throw in an extra rest day.
Did you really mean 3k and 5k, rather than 3 minutes and 5 minutes?
Week 4 might well feel hard. It increases your time running from 9 minutes per session to 16 per session.
As you're mid-week, there's no need to restart the week just yet. When you're ready do the third run as normal and see how it goes. You can keep repeating the same run until you're happy to move on. You don't need to repeat the whole week.
Check you're drinking enough. If you're not replacing the fluids you sweat and breathe out during the run you could be getting dehydrated. I made that mistake myself.
And if the tiredness doesn't sort itself out, ask the doctor for a check. There are many reasons why you might feel that way after exercise.
I'm a couple of years younger than you ytsrik . Imo if having ridiculous night sweats recently and feeling exhausted for the rest of the day are unusual for you it's worth getting medically checked out. Multi-day hiking should help your general fitness, so I wouldn't expect running to have quite such an impact on your energy levels.
That said, if you're running outside in the heat that can also take it out of you, and you'll need to keep an extra eye on hydration. There's a (long) FAQ re hydration here: healthunlocked.com/couchto5...
Thanks for that. The nights sweats are normal, but more intense when the weather starts to heat up. Lost all the gains from 3 months of hiking earlier in the year due to various life circumstances getting in the way. I think I’m just not used to being this unfit haha. But will go to the GP. Thanks so much,
You're welcome. If you haven't been hiking much recently your tiredness could simply be down to disturbed sleep, and increasing and changing activity just as summer's arriving.
I'm wanging on about warmer weather (say upwards of 25°C) running as I personally would happily run in single figure °C temperatures, positive or negative, all the time! I don't find hiking in warmer temperatures nearly as challenging, I rather enjoy it.
I agree that choosing the correct clothing for conditions can be difficult, and I personally would rarely wear leggings or long sleeves for running in 10°C or above as I just get too hot.
However, I wasn't thinking about choice of clothing or getting sweaty when running. I was responding to the OP's mention of night sweats, as my post-menopausal body also struggles to cope with getting overheated. When it does, it's not so much sweatiness as a sudden feeling of being trapped and suffocated by a coating of heat that can't be removed. Horrible.
I was assuming that the OP wasn't layered up as she's in Australia. Though that has reminded me that towards the end of a summer holiday run I once removed my t-shirt and ran along a major road in my crop-top style sports bra, as I couldn't bear the heat any longer. Poor motorists. 🏃♀️ 😱 🚗💥🤣
Yes you’ve got it! I attempted to learn to run 10 years ago when hot flushes were at their worst and just had to give up because of exactly that, And no one in the group experienced similar so there was no help with it .
Now I’m further along, on hrt and better during the day. I still have night sweats probably due to another med I am on as a prophylactic for migraines .
Anyway, things are looking up now ! I love being able to share with you guys 😍
As MissUnderstanding has said, all that hiking will be really useful.., and, as she says, also, complete exhaustion for the rest of the day, maybe does indicate a need for a quick check up by an expert.
But taking up this running is new.. and you are suing different muscles to when you are walking and yes, you are trying to lift your body weight in a different way, than when walking.
Have you felt like this since you began. I do know when I began this C25K programme at 65, I did not feel tired, ( I am nearly 75 now I do know I felt much I felt hungrier!
The runs are lengthening and although you walk, it is useful to get some strength and stamina work in, on some of your rest days too.
Loads of ideas across on the strength and flex forum, our sister site, so do, please take a peek!
Slow and steady you say... that is the mantra that I am famous, or should that be infamous???? for, here... it was mine when I began and it is still mine now... It gets us where we wish to be safely and more importantly, enjoyably !
Thanks! I think i’ll be fine for tomorrow now. Steep learning curve from all the replies and I think i was just a bit careless, trying to go too fast, in hotter weather, dehydrated from the night/ day before, and probably not enough carbs. i didn’t even think to drink when i got home.
Hi. Having spent many years hiking I expected the transition to running to be much easier than it actually was/is. I’m currently nursing a niggle but am about to embark on week 8. Feeling tired and sore after what appears to be a very modest effort is perfectly normal. This for you at the present time is about building stamina. You’re burning more calories and using different muscle groups. Breathing is different. Rhythm and pace. It’s a big change. I would suggest that you keep following the program at your pace. You’re already almost halfway through. If it becomes a bit too much then take a step back. There’s no time limit. Keep going. Keep improving. Keep enjoying. I am 63 and I know where you are coming from. Ensure you have a light snack an hour or so before. Keep hydrated. Eat something post run and drink plenty. Good luck. Keep us poster. 🏃♀️
I do remember feeling quite tired after some runs when I first did C25K but I agree with Miss Understanding about seeking a medical check if you persist in feeling as tired as you describe. I guess it could be a one off where you just had a particularly tired day but if it keeps happening, it probably shouldn’t! Slow and steady is definitely the mantra. I could walk faster than I run some days.
The C25K programme is sneaky in that it gets you to run for longer (more minutes) before hiking the single continuous run duration the next week, so in effect the longer runs are often for fewer minutes in total than the week before! e.g., W4 is 16 mins total running (3-5-3-5) but W5R1 is "only" 15 mins but 5-5-5! 😃 . The same with W6R1 (18 mins total) when W5R3 was run 20! Run 3 is always a killer. Keep going! It works!
I can vouch for hiking being great for strengthening up everything. Since having been a class of 2017 C25Ker (but then falling off the running wagon 2021/22), but then continuing to walk the Camino de Santiago whenever I could in bouts of 200-500km (now for the 7th time this October), the legs have benefitted a lot. So now I'm going back into C25K (W3R3 next) I can feel that my joints and tissues are not suffering as they did way back in 2017/18. The base level cardio fitness also helps a bit too for getting through the first few runs 👍
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I do know I felt much I felt hungrier!
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