Cheated....but it's for a good reason :)

[rockchick69]

Well today should have been my W6R1, but I skipped ahead to W6R3. Why??? 8/ Because from 31/03 i am doing the 5x50 challenge and I want to be able to run for 30 mins by Sunday. I can't do 5k but 30 minutes is allowed for the challenge.

I was very surprised that it went really well. I set off at my usual pace (not fast) and felt great going around. My breathing was good, in 1 and out 2. I started to feel it at about 20mins but then I only had 5 minutes to do so I carried on. I even upped my pace for the last minute as Laura suggested. I was really chuffed when I got home

I am planning to do W7R3 on Wednesday and then W8R3 on Friday. Hopefully everything will go ok. Then on Sunday I can do the big 30 minute run

I already walk a lot and I also swim 2km on my rest days so I'm hoping that I can do the 5x50 challenge with not too many problems. My running is always slow and steady....I hope to run 5km in the future but for now I'm concentrating on the 50 day challenge

I do have a question for the graduates.....Because I won't have followed the programme exactly can I still apply for my graduate badge? I hope so!

[greenlegs Graduate]

It's great that it went well for you! Fantastic effort! As you say you're pretty fit with other activities, you may find you can get up to 30 min running by the end of the week - but I'd be very wary of overdoing it, and be ready to slow down to a walk if you need to. It would be horrible to get injured and then not be able to take part at all!

Most people find the increase in time from 20 to 30 to be quite a steep one (it is an extra 50% on top of what was already a big effort), even over four weeks, without doing other vigorous exercise on other days! I'm less fit, but I found weeks 7 and 8 pretty hard going.

There's no reason why you can't include the 5 min warm-up and cool-down walks as part of the 30 minutes of exercise anyway - so you could just carry on with the programme, and graduate while you're doing 5x50. You never know, by the end of 50 days, you might even have got up to 5k in 30 minutes, if you take it steadily! (Pretty sure I won't have, but I expect I'll be a bit closer.)

We don't want to be encouraging people to overdo things and get injured - but if you're fit enough, and feel up to it, good for you!

Hope that doesn't sound too wet-blanketish!

[rockchick69 Graduate in reply to greenlegs]

Not wet blanketish but sound advice. As I said to Con-brio I hadn't been counting the warm up and down walk in with the 30 minutes!! Sometimes I can be really dim. So all that stressing of not been able to run for 30 minutes was for no need I'm still doing 30 minutes of exercise. On wednesday I will go back to the programme on W6R2 and follow as I should. If I get injured then I won't be doing the challenge at all.....it's better to keep it my usual slow and steady pace.

I think I got a bit carried away....because things have been going so well, I thought it would be ok. But now that I see the figures, 50% on top, it is a bit silly to push myself like that. After a good think I'm going to concentrate on finishing C25K and doing the challenge. The 5 km will be the target for later. During the 50 days I can work towards it

So wise one please keep giving out good advice to crazy people who don't stop and think first

[greenlegs Graduate in reply to rockchick69]

Not crazy, just wonderfully enthusiastic!

[greenlegs Graduate]

Aaaaaaagh! It said it hadn't posted any of them! Sorry.

Then it took ages to delete them...

[con-brio Graduate]

I agree with Greenlegs about being wary of upping the stakes too quickly.

To quote directly from the 5x50 website, you can "run, walk, jog or cycle 5k (or 30 minute exercise equivalent)". With Laura we're already doing at least 30 minutes running/walking... what's wrong with that?

[rockchick69 Graduate in reply to con-brio]

You right Con-brio, I hadn't actually added in the 5 minutes warm up and down.... I was just thinking of the jogging bit...duhhh! On wednesday I will start with W6R2 and continue on the programme. Although it felt ok I don't want to risk an injury otherwise the whole 5x50 plan will be out the window. Thanks for the wise words

[con-brio Graduate in reply to rockchick69]

Better safe than sorry, eh?

All my admiration for accepting the 5x50 challenge... along with the other C25Kers. Am half persuaded to give it a go myself...

[greenlegs Graduate in reply to con-brio]

Yeah, go on! 39 of us so far...

If you've got the time to fit it in, of course. We don't want any tears!