Started 8 wk beginner's schedule today

Hi everyone - can i join you're thread please? I am very much a running and forum newbie, and have recently finished the beginners 8wk schedule - and i must admit that i found every single week tough going when the run times increased, but i really enjoyed it and persevered. I registered for a 5K race for life to coincide with the end of the schedule, and i think having that goal really spurred me on. The atmosphere at the event was fantastic, and it was non-competitive, so no pressure. I was absolutely elated to finish the run (especially as i have never been a runner, not even at school).

So, i am now doing a 'bridge to 10K' schedule, which follows on from the first plan, and is still a run/walk programme which i find easier to follow. This is my second week, so its run 15mins/walk 1min x3 - so its very similar to the beginners schedule, and i love it cos i need the walk breaks. My ultimate goal is to be 'fit for forty' so i have 18months to achieve it (hopefully).

Hope you all have a good day...

HI all. Minty I'm glad you enjoyed your run, before you know it you'll be up to long stretches and enjoying it even more.
Norfolklass - I'm doing the NHS one too, a week ahead of you I think.

My Sunday run went really well. Did the full 25 minutes, covered 2.3 miles so that's 11 minute miles which is faster than I thought I was going, I thought I was really slow. Has really encouraged me and I'm hoping I'll be able to do the 5k race for life in under 40 minutes. There's a 10 in Battle on September 4th that I am tempted to enter, but the idea of running for over an hour scares me! I was talking to a friend about her Marathon (she did Brighton this year) and she says the time really flies in a race situation because of the atmosphere. So it's a possibility.
No smoking is going well.

Well done to everyone on your recent running, sounds like we are all doing really well at our different stages.

Hi all! Hope everyone’s doing OK?

Norfolklass, well done on running 20 continuous mins! I can’t imagine being able to that! Well, maybe in a few weeks! Have you been out since?

Cheetah – LOL re running backwards! Hilarious! Well done on doing 5K though!

Snail’s pace – Welcome to the thread! Interesting to hear from someone about what happens after the 8 weeks. Looking forward to hearing how you get on. Wish I hadn’t missed the local Race for Life – sounds a great first event to aim for. Good luck with you aim of being ‘fit for forty’!

Ragz – well done with the not smoking! Like Norfolklass, I also gave up with Alan Carr – really recommend the book if you ever have a wobble. Well done also on your 25 min run! And I say go for it with the 10! It’s a few months away, and you could always add some walk breaks if necessary.

 I did my  week 1, day 3 run last night. Seemed a little bit harder than the previous 2 but I think could have been because it was really quite warm still at 6.30. Looking forward to starting week 2 on Thursday. Though I have to go on my own this time as mum’s busy. Wonder how I’ll manage with 2mins of running? Doesn’t sound like much compared with where you guys are up to! But it is inspiring to hear how you have progressed!

Nikki - how are you getting on?

Evening - I'm just back from my run, and I FINALLY managed my 3 lots of 12 minutes (with a minute walking in between!). I changed my route slightly at the end and instead of turning back uphill to go home I kept on going downhill and just had to walk further afterwards! I may re-introduce the hill if I ever get a bit fitter hehe!

Welcome to the thread snails pace, and well done on the race for life!

Well done on the 25 minutes Ragz, and the not smoking - bet the running is helping any cravings and filling your lungs with fresh air instead of fags!

Minty, it really does get easier as you go through the weeks, and I'm much preferring the longer runs with smaller walk breaks and I never thought that would happen.

Good luck everyone with your next runs! 

Ooo and I just put my route into MapMyRun and it's come up as 5.59km 

Hi Snails Pace, sounds like you're doing really well! Congrats on finishing the 5k schedule and the race for life, and for going even further with the 10k schedule. Looking forward to hearing from you how you find it, I'm planning on doing it too after I finish the 5k one but I've got another 5 weeks to go yet so may be getting a bit ahead of myself!

Ragz - well done you on the 25 mins and glad to hear the no-smoking is also going really well. An 11 minute mile sounds pretty impressive to me! Don't think I'm running far enough yet to get an idea of pace, and not sure I want to know… Feels pretty slow, and I'm always being overtaken by sprinty young things!

Hi Minty - went out for W6D1 this morning, and it was HARD. Legs completely leaden and I was really struggling. Not sure if that's after the 20 mins or because I was tired at 6am, hoping the next run on Friday is a bit easier! It really is amazing how quickly you make progress week by week. I remember thinking I'll never be able to run for 5 mins, 10 mins, or 20 mins, but once you get there it's surprising (to me at least!) that although the runs are hard they are achievable with a bit of effort, and it's so satisfying to look back and see how far you've come in such a short time.

Well done you too Cheetah - you'll be bounding up that hill in no time Hope you haven't had the torrential rain we've had here in Norfolk - it certainly wasn't the driest county in the UK today!

Nicky, hope the training's going well ahead of your race for life?

Looking forward to my legs stopping aching, the walk home didn't help!

Hi everyone, thanks so much for being so welcoming to the thread

Minty - i definitely find it much harder to run when its warmer, in fact i'd rather run in the rain, which is just as well as we've had plenty. How did your 2min running go? - every time i have to up the running time i think "i'll never be able to do it", and then by the time the third day comes round its usually more manageable. Keeping a log of your running is a good idea - i write how i feel after each run, and so if i don't run well some days i can look back and get a wee boost of confidence, as its not so many weeks ago i struggled to run 1min at a time.

Norfolklass - fair play to you for running at 6am! Do you always run very early? I'm not so keen on running in the evenings but don't think i could get going this early (unless i put coffee in a camel-pack)!

Cheetah - well done on the 12min x 3 - i'm on 15min x 3 which isn't much different, and like you i did a wee bit of a detour so i could finish downhill today. That was a good distance you covered too - 5.59km. I'm not sure of my distance as i don't always follow the same trail, but my pace is slow (hence the name).

Ragz - you should def enter the 10K - you'll be ready for that by September, and it'll give you a goal to aim for. I bet also that when your Race for Life comes round you'll run even quicker on the day, cos you speed up when you follow others in front.

Nikki - hope your Race for Life training is going well.

Gareth - hope your running is going well too.

Good luck everyone with your next run...........

Hi everyone! Sorry for the short reply as I must go to bed! Eek! I didn't go for my 2 min run tonight as planned. I'm up against it trying to finish a project for my friend's wedding and it has to be done by tomorrow night (and with the kids, I can only work on it in the eves). So I'm going to try to get up and go tomorrow morning before my dh goes to work, as can't go tomorrow night as have hospital appt at 7pm (?!). I'm really not good in the morning tho, but I'm hoping that because I've written it here, it's more likely to happen!

Thanks for the advice re a journal, Snails pace - sounds like a good idea.

Will write more tomorrow! Night night!

Hi All, well, I hope you're proud of me that I went out this morning at 6.30 and did my run 2mins/walk 1 min! Yay!! This is an acheivement for me. My youngest wakes me at 5 - 5.30am most days so mornings are usually spent in a dozy grumpy haze. It was a beautiful morning at the park and I ran on the grass this time. The run felt a lot harder than week 1. Though, I have to say in some ways it felt good - like I was really doing some exercise. By the end though, my right calf was hurting quite a lot, sort of on the inside, towards the front. Still a bit sore now. Hope nothing serious.

Norfolklass - have you done your run today yet? Was it any easier than the last one?

Cheetah - well done on your 3 lots of 12! Sounds fab!

Well - next run on Sunday i think so will catch up then. Going out for a hen night on Sat though so not sure how much energy I'll have!

Happy running!

Oh god, does that sound like shin splints? Just looked it up.

Well done on your run Minty!

I'm not sure if it sounds like shin splints - but when I was about in week two I started hurting just about EVERYWHERE (up the front of my left leg was one of the places - the other was my right inside thigh for some strange reason!). It seemed to get better after a couple of days, and now my legs just feel TIRED rather than achy or sore after a run - so the muscles must be getting used to it! I'd just rest it for a couple of days and hopefully it'll just be a bit of you that isn't used to running so much!

I did my 3 lots of 12 minutes with a minute walking in between again this evening It went really well even though it was chucking it down with rain and I missed my turning (getting carried away!) and ended up running past a Wetherspoons on the local high street (I'm a bit sad no-one offered me a pint on my way past!). I got a wolf whistle though haha!

The hills didn't feel so bad either, I just slow right down when I get to them and I seem to be doing OK now.

I have a dilemma now though.... a week ago I thought I'd aim for the three 12 minute runs, as then the two 15 min ones would seem easy in comparison.....

NOW I'm thinking that will be a step back and maybe I should try THREE 15 minute runs! (Then I tell myself I'm crazy and cancel that idea!)

Snail's pace - what do you think? (I love the walk breaks too - although I'm going to TRY the 30 min run at the running club in a couple of weeks without one!)

Hi everyone, well thats the third run for this week completed (15min run/1min walk x3) - i definitely didn't find it just as hard going as the first two days, and i feel ready to face next weeks challenge of run 17mins/walk 1min x3. I still don't imagine i'll ever get to the run 1hour stage with no walk breaks, but i guess i should take it one week at a time. I've been getting a niggly left knee this past few weeks, so i think i might get a gait analysis done, and invest in new trainers.

Well done on your run Minty - hope the pain has eased off. Enjoy the hen night tonight.

Cheetah - thats brilliant your run went so well. Mmmm.....i can see your dilemma about doing 3 rather than 2 15min runs. I'm not sure what plan you are following, but mine did 12min run/1min walk x3 in week six, and then 15min run/1min walk x2 in week seven.....i was of the same mindset as you, that if i could do the 12m x3 then 15m x2 would be easier, and it was!!! I can see why you want to do a third 15min but i'd worry it might be increasing your mileage too much too soon.....and i think it might be better finishing your run knowing you can do more, and that will keep up your motivation for the final week....good luck with which ever one you choose....

Hope you all enjoy your weekend.

Hi,

Sorry if these seem daft questions but where do you get the plans from and also how do you time the runs?

Hales
x

Hiya Hales

I'm following THIS plan that I found on here:

http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/beginners/get-started-schedules/30.html

I bought an interval timer from ebay so I can programme the whole lot in - but you could use a stopwatch too (I didn't want to be messing around with a watch when I was concentrating on breathing though! )

Thank you Cheetah

I thought it would be abit hard tryimg to use a stop watch!!!

 Hales

xx

Ooops don't know what happened with the link there, but the clicky bit works!

Hi Hales,

I followed the plan that Cheetah referenced above. Theres also another one called Couch to 5K which seems good too.

I time my runs with the stopwatch on my mobile phone cos i always take it with me when i run. However, i would really love one of those Garmin watches - they seem to be able to do everything but the actual run!! Maybe i'll treat myself if i finish the 10K plan...

Hope you find a plan that suits. Let us know how you get on.

Today's lesson learned: don't run in the heat! I normally try and run early in the morning before it gets too warm but as I'm off work today I had a little bit of a lie in and didn't get out till after 9. Big mistake! Today's run was 25 mins non-stop and I nearly didn't make it. The hardest run by far, but I'm sure that was mostly due to the heat. Came home and had a cold bath, still waiting for my face to go back to its normal colour!

Snails Pace - good idea about writing down your runs, esp. about how you feel, I keep meaning to write all over the calendar in big red letters and stick it to the fridge but haven't got round to it yet! I work a four day shift pattern so my days are quite long 9-7, 8:30-7 or 8-6:30, and by the time I get home I'm too tired to go for a run hence getting up extra early and running before work. Hope your knee niggle has cleared up. I'm sure you'll be able to run for an hour without stopping - I bet none of us thought we'd be running as far as we are when we first started.

Minty - hope you enjoyed running in the morning. How was the hen night?!? Hope the hospital appt went well. We're off to a wedding in Bristol this weekend, think I might take my running shoes and have a go on the treadmill in the hotel gym. I hope your calf is feeling better and it was just a normal ache rather than anything more sinister. I have to say, it's only been in the last week or so that I haven't ached before, during and after a run.

Cheetah - well done you for running past a Wetherspoons on the high street! I haven't ventured out onto the street yet, v cowardly! Glad too the hills are getting easier. Don't push yourself too hard too soon, the last thing you need is an injury that stops you running for a few weeks. I agree with Snails Pace, it might be too much of an increase in your mileage, but do what feels right for you.

Hi Hales, I'm doing the NHS couch to 5k programme too, and downloaded it onto my ancient ipod and I wear that when I go out. It's really helpful as it tells you when to walk and when to run and plays music at different tempos to help keep you going. And it's quite nice to be told you're doing really well when it feels like you can't run another step, although I do find myself answering back sometimes

Not running again now until Thursday or Friday morning, when I start week 7 - all running with no walking breaks from now on. Gulp!

Happy running peeps!

do I write too much?!?

Not at all!! Have been reading avidly, but as I like to write decent length replies too, haven't had time to post in the past couple of days, - it's been crazy, but will catch up this eve!

Too bl**dy hot for running today tho!