Rest day ramblings...

[Plinth]

Was going to post question but feel this is more a rambling really!! We are planning to split runs into 2 during working week and one weekend. Fridays are no go so it will either be min weds sat or tues thurs sun, probably the former. That means 2 rest days but presumably that's ok as 3 sessions during 7 days creates that! Now I've also got a chesty cough. We are due to do my third hubbies second run tomorrow. As its mostly walking I still want to do it as if I stop now I may not start again!

My third rambling is about distance. According to my app, we already did around 5k! This included a 5 min walk to the common before starting the official walk as we didn't want to do first run up a hill (learnt that the hard way on my day 1). Also the podcast ended before we got home, in all we were out 45 mins. Dies anyone have tips for workin out how to end the session in a suitable place, or is it all luck?

Ah well, learning curve I guess!!

[PamJK Graduate]

Ah, judging the right distance is a tricky one. I always struggle with this.

I've used Google Earth before to measure the distance once I knew roughly what I was expecting to cover. But each new week brings a different routine and potentially a differentdistance so it's a bit trial and error. Several times I've got it wrong and been 5 minutes away from home or too close to home so I just end up walking up and down my road until the time is up! I was expecting to cover more ground with each week but I was surprised to find that I covered less in week 2 than in week 1. But maybe I just slowed down.

Maybe I'm a being a bit cautious but I never venture far from home, just sticking to the neighbouring roads so I'm never really more than 5 minutes away.

Take care of yourself with that chesty cough.

Good luck!

[Landesman Graduate]

I use Garmin Basecamp for plotting tracks which gives distance and elevation, but, although the software is free to download, I think you may have to buy the underlying maps (I'm in France and had to get those, but I'm not sure what they supply for the UK).

Alternatively if you have RunKeeper you can plot routes in your account on their website, and that gives distance and elevation too.

[LMS2110 Graduate]

Hiya, like Pam I tend to stick quite close to home for routine runs, so it doesn't matter too much where the running ends as the walk home will likely be somewhere around 5 minutes +or- 2. The distance thing is quite difficult to work out, but I have plotted a few using MapMyRun on the PC as it is possible to add or delete bits of a route to get close to the distance you require. Alternatively, since almost all of Laura's podcasts are destined to last for 30-35 minutes (pretty much through all 9 of the weeks) why not just do about 15/17 minutes in whatever direction you like and then just turn around for the return run/walk home.

As for rest days, I think that very few people complete the entire programme on alternate days! Of course, much depends upon your current state of fitness. However, as the weeks do get harder for many of us, and we need to let our bodies heal and rest after some of the outings, you will see that quite frequently 2, 3 or more rest days are mentioned in blogs. The C25K challenge is not a race against anyone, after all, so use it to best fit your lifestyle and any ups and downs in your health. Look after that chesty cough... no point in making things deliberately hard for yourself if you're not feeling 100%. Take care, and stick with it at your own pace.

Lots of luck Linda

[greenlegs Graduate]

First I used wtp2.appspot.com/wheresthep... - you can see ordnancy survey maps alongside aerial photographs, and you can draw out routes and measure them (and see the hills). Then I discovered I could use google earth for measuring my walks/runs, and the elevation plots are good for seeing where the slopes are.

Now I've got myself a garmin watch and it's even easier. Lovely toy!

[alcopop Graduate]

I use runkeeper on my phone as it tracks your run and gives you stats at the end, you can then upload them to your PC. Good thing is it's free!

I also only start tracking when I start running and do not include the walking (for week 6 onwards)

As for rest days, I run Mon, Wed & Friday, and have a rest at the weekend, although I do go for a swim on Saturday.

Any how - good luck with whatever you decide to do, you can always change your routine if you need to.