Not sure if I should leave Laura...

[r4chsm1th]

I hadn't been for a run since last weekend so I had to make sure I went out today. To be honest, the main reason for this is because I get soooo bored listening to the podcasts. I love Laura but I find the music quite dull and with these longer runs I really want something to make my mind wander rather than not enjoy what I'm listening to.

So today I finally decided to go out for my (kind of) w7r3 run but listen to Zombies Run instead. I absolutely love Zombies Run, I thoroughly recommend it to anyone, and it was definitely a welcome change The only thing is I found it hard to keep track of time as my phone is strapped to my arm and hard to reach so I ran 2 minutes less than I should.

I'm still pleased as it was still a good run

I'm just not sure now whether I should carry on listening to the podcasts or do the same timings with my own music and zombies run... But then at what point do I graduate? :/

Advice gratefully received!

Happy running!

Stats - 3.41 km in 23 mins

[caz1_ca Graduate]

I'd say you graduate when you can run 30 minutes non stop three times.

[greenlegs Graduate]

You can say you graduate when you feel you've finished the programme - I didn't run with the podcasts for most of the last couple of weeks, I just timed them, but I labelled them in my mind as w8r1, w8r2, w8r3, w9r1, w9r2, w9r3 - ta da! Several of them I did extra minutes for, just to see if I could, but I still thought of them in terms of doing each run from the programme. I did use the podcast for my final run, so I could feel I'd said goodbye to Laura!

I think it was worth doing it that way, because by the time I got to the last run, I'd done ten consecutive longer runs, and had built up gradually, and I really knew I'd got the stamina to do it, and do it again.

But it doesn't really matter if you get there!

[Oldgirl Graduate]

If you found it easier running to your own music then that's what to do from now on, you won't be the first or the last to use their own once got to week 7 and continuous running. Week 8 is 28 minutes and 30 for week 9 which would be easy enough to check on an ordinary watch. 3 x 28 and 3 x 30 then you can call yourself a graduate. Good luck and well done.

[LMS2110 Graduate]

I started using my own music in Week 6. Enough blogs on here had told me exactly what would happen, so I planned my own 'album' using timings available on Windows Media Player... so that I put together a mish mash of stuff which added to the required time for the week. Then for good measure I popped on a silly tune which I knew I could walk/warm down to - I had the Monty Python Theme in my collection (how sad) so plonked it on the end. I went out having completely forgotten what was on the player and the first time I used it, I thought I was going to flake out: I got breathless, and heavy legged and was about to look at my watch to ascertain the measure of my 'failure' when on came Monty Python! Instant happiness and gratification that I'd done it after all!

Since then, I have heard unknown Mb/hrs of various music on either of two MP3 players so just walk out for 5 or 6 minutes warm up and switch on to a shuffle of ... heaven only knows what - entirely randomly! My watch is there for times and through the rest of weeks 6, 7 and now 8 I have just done my own thing ... and have been running 30 + minutes fairly easily every time ... so I'm ahead of myself and cruising down to graduation next weekend feeling confident. I use the tracks in the same way as some folk use visual targets on the run ... instead of saying I'll make it to the next tree, I say to myself I'll keep going to the end of the next track... and it may be a 3 minute pop tune or a lengthy section of a classical symphony... but I keep that bargain with myself and so far I've not even thought about legs or breathing or aches and pains... just kept on bumbling along. Life's great with your own music AND C25K completion/satisfaction!

Enjoy, Linda x

[roadrunner_86 Graduate]

I ditched the podcasts in week 7. It's pretty simple from there, it's only a few extra minutes each time (and the schedule is published on the website so it's quite easy to go it alone).

I think the podcasts are more useful when you're starting out, being remided to focus on certain things such as breathing and so on and also for telling you when to stop.

I noticed an increase in speed when listening to my own music at first, which wasn't particularly comfortable and that made the first couple of runs a bit more tricky until I got used to the new pace.

Anyway, try downloading a free stopwatch/countdown app for your phone, you can get plenty of them that run in the background, so if you're using your phone for music you'll hear the stopwatch alarm go off in the background of your music and you don't have to worry about stopping to look at your phone and missing out on those vital minutes.

[r4chsm1th Graduate in reply to roadrunner_86]

Thankyou this was really helpful! I definitely need to download a stopwatch app

Rachel x

[lola465 Graduate]

Have you got an iPod? It's what I'm using - not got one of those new-fangled phones with internet access and fancy gizmos...

Anyway, I found a website that tells you the beats per minute (bpm) of songs and looked up everything in my iTunes - took me AGES, but it was worth it. I then did a playlist of roughly 130bpm and that suits my pace fine. I go to the fitness section of the iPod and put in my run time. The imp lurking in there tells me when I've run 5mins then 10 mins, then when I'm halfway Tec. To be honest it's as good as Laura.

I've found running to my own music much more enjoyable than the podcast and I've run further in the 25mins as well.

[lola465 Graduate]

Have you got an iPod? It's what I'm using - not got one of those new-fangled phones with internet access and fancy gizmos...

Anyway, I found a website that tells you the beats per minute (bpm) of songs and looked up everything in my iTunes - took me AGES, but it was worth it. I then did a playlist of roughly 130bpm and that suits my pace fine. I go to the fitness section of the iPod and put in my run time. The imp lurking in there tells me when I've run 5mins then 10 mins, then when I'm halfway Tec. To be honest it's as good as Laura.

I've found running to my own music much more enjoyable than the podcast and I've run further in the 25mins as well.

[misswobble Graduate]

I thought everyone here was doing the Couch to 5 k programme following Laura's podcasts. If you're not following the podcasts then that's not the programme is it? It's something else

Confused.com. LOL