Couch to 5K - Week One

Before i start this post, i want to clear a few things up..

1. I do not do exercise - the thought fills me with dread
2. My idea of exercise is the odd long walks - by odd i mean, hardly ever
3. I try to eat as healthy as i can, unfortunately the exercise never seems to follow

I started running (i think thats actually an insult to proper runners, lets call it more jogging/walking!) a few months back. I loved the way it made me feel. I had so much for energy, i didn't overthink things as much and my anxiety seemed to become less. So overall i was a lot happier person. But sadly i find it so hard to stick to things, and i to be honest, i can't really run.

So, thats when i heard about the Couch to 5K (you can get more information, here) which has been designed by the NHS and i thought i would give it a go. 

I have downloaded the app to my iPhone which is called '5K Runner' and has a yellow background on the icon. Unfortunately it wasn't free - even though i think there is a free one. It cost £1.99.

I googled the results of how people found the Couch to 5K and i didn't really find anything, so i thought i would log my progress and how i found each session for people who want to try it out in the future.

The idea of the app is to take you from a couch potato to running 5K in 8 weeks. Each exercise is generally around 30 minutes, so it is easily fitted around your day to day lifestyle. It is recommended to repeat weeks if you don't feel confident or that you can ready to progress onto the following week. It also only recommends you do this no more than three times a week. As rest days are extremely important for your body.

Day One - Wednesday

This was my first time getting back out there running. Not going to lie, i had to literally drag myself out of bed, i even debated with myself if it was even worth getting up for! - i know its awful. But the main point is, i got up and i went!

I started off with a brisk walk for five minutes, which i found fine, towards the end of the five minutes though i found my legs starting to ache and feeling the muscles work!

Then the next 15 minutes is running for one minute and then walking for one and a half minutes, you then alternate this until the woman tells you to stop. There is a lot of hills where i live, and unfortunately i am not able to change my route to avoid the hills. So some of the running parts were a lot better than others!

Then the last five minutes was a cool down.

Unfortunately as this was my first attempt doing it, i didn't time to judge my distance as well as i could have. As my route ended up being too short and i had run out of time (as otherwise i would have been late for work!). So i ended up cutting it 10 minutes short (which cut out two running and walking intervals, and then the cool down session). But i did my own stretches at the end of the run.

Now that i am more aware of what i am doing, i can judge my time and distance better for Friday!

Day Two - Friday

There is only one slight change from Wednesdays and Fridays work out. Which is that on Wednesday you run 6 times and Friday you run 8 times. I am finding that i am struggling, especially when the hills are concerned! I can't seem to keep my breathing at a steady pace. Also i am finding myself slowing RIGHT down to a slow walk after the run, instead of a brisk walk! But i am putting that down to habit, but when i realise i have done it, i pick up the pace.

Also, it was raining this morning and i still went out for the run! 

Day Three - Saturday

I have changed route!

This was due to the hills. I have know found a much easier route with no hills in sight - amazing. I do come back on myself a bit but i can deal with that over the massive hills. I am finding that using this app i am more willing to go out running as i am working to achieve something. Also i have found i am not getting so out of breath during the running moments - this could be the non hills or the fact i am slightly getting used to the exercise! I am definitely starting to feel my legs muscles working. Stretching is not included in the app but i do my own stretches before i run and after the cool down to try and prevent my muscles from aching. So far so good!

 I am really enjoying these runs so far, they make me have so much for energy for the day ahead and i don't feel like i am yawning until 11am!

I started this off on a bit of an odd day being Wednesday and i struggled to get my runs in while still having rest days in between.

Starting next week i shall be running Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Fingers crossed i can keep up the motivation to do it!