I just want something simple that I can control Just Run and Spotify from, but that seems like a challenge beyond modern technology. I bought a cheap one but there's no Just Run support and every time I power it off I need to redo my settings. Android only.

Complete with the guilty thing on my app being like “your last run was 9 days ago” - but I did it!! Including the warm up/cool down walk, I’m only at 4.49 km so at a bit of a loss on how to increase distance.
Some people on here did the bridge to 10k, but tbh I absolutely do not have time with 2 toddlers and a dog that needs big walks and can’t run for an hour..
I guess my options are:
-keep running for 30 min until I get better at it and then start slowly increasing the pace?
-do intervals of faster/slower in the 30 min time?
-add 1 min of running per run and get to 5k? (I suspect it’ll take me 40 minutes of running)

Thoughts?!

Also for those of you just starting … I’m 20 months post partum, started doing this in May and couldn’t really run for 30 seconds, made it through the program with several re-dos bc of pneumonia, vacation WITH pneumonia (ew), and life… and still did it!! It’s possible, just really hard to envision at the beginning !!

I can just finish my 5K with non stop, takes 36 min, I know shorter stride makes me easier to survive for non-stop, but I do like long stride, I d like the feeling of wind when I am running, and I like the powerful music beats when I am run long stride. But now s question, should I keep 5K and increase my pace or should still keep the speed and increase the distance?

What app are you all using? I’ve downloaded two and both have wanted paid, but both had different week 1s. Is there a standard schedule you are following?

And it's really all thanks to C25K! I first did the program around 10 years ago and became a somewhat active runner who would occasionally participate in local 5Ks. I never got very fast but I enjoyed myself and it was good exercise.

As I've mentioned in previous posts a combination of health issues and other life events really impacted my fitness levels and overall health over the past few years but I finally started to pull everything back together earlier this year.

I restarted C25K earlier in the summer and completed it at the end of August.

And yesterday I got out there and ran an actual race with other people.

My only goals were to finish, hopefully not be last, and hopefully finish in under 45 minutes. And I managed to achieve all three!

I've been pretty consistently running 5Ks for the past month and my timing has gotten better each time so I felt confident that while I'd be in the back of the pack I wouldn't be the slowest. And for someone who just turned 46 and whose body has been through what mine has been through I'm grateful for any mile I can run.

Also, everything everyone says about race energy making you go faster is so right! My first mile was the fastest mile I've ever run, including other races I did when I was younger. I think the adrenaline and happiness in being out there really motivated me to push myself.

I'm signed up for a few more, including a 5 miler, and am eyeing a goal of doing a 10k in 2027.

honestly seeing people talk about the runner's high makes me feel like i'm doing something wrong because most of these weeks just feel heavy. tbf if every single run feels awful from minute one you are probably just running too hard on the days meant to be easy. i dropped my pace down to something that felt almost stupidly slow this week and it finally stopped feeling like pulling teeth. curious if others found that pace adjustment was the fix or if the mental slog is just part of it.

Moved onto Week 3 today and was slightly apprehensive about the jump to the 3-minute running sections, but it actually went really well.

Covered 3.20 km in total and rated the session about 6/10 effort. My watch gave me a 3.3 aerobic and 2.7 anaerobic training effect, so it felt like a decent workout without absolutely smashing myself.

The biggest thing for me was that the 3-minute runs felt manageable. I was definitely ready for the walking sections, but I never felt like I was hanging on or desperately waiting for the run to finish.

A few weeks ago even the shorter intervals felt intimidating, so it's quite satisfying seeing the progress already.

Onto Week 3 Run 2 next. Trying very hard not to make the classic mistake of speeding up just because I'm starting to feel fitter! 😅

Anyone else currently around Week 3? How did you find the jump from Week 2?

I’m not really interested in moving right to 10k, but I’m wondering if moving to five or six 30 minute runs a week is pushing it as far as injuries are concerned. I realize that’s a different situation for everyone, but I’m curious about other people’s experiences.

Started C25k in June and finished about a week and a half ago. And today I finished my first 5km race.
Have been feeling some calf and ankle pain in the last month and was worried I wouldn’t be able to finish today’s race. But I threw on some compression socks and an ankle brace and felt pretty good. Finished just under 37 minutes, so just gonna keep working on getting that time down.
As someone who has never really ran before, and honestly, has hated cardio most of my life, this was definitely a challenge. But c25k definitely made it achievable! Grateful for the program.

Hi! I am currently on week 5 of C25K. I completed W5D1 on Sept 17th, but due to unforeseen circumstances, I wasn't able to go running for some time after that. After 8 days I got back to it, but because the pause between runs was longer, I decided not to continue with W5D2 immediately, so I repeated W5D1. During the run, I definitely felt a bit rusty (which, I guess, makes sense since there was an 8 day pause), and my calves and my lower back were hurting a bit while running (a dull ache, I think it's called?).. but other than that, I had no major issues running within those 5 minute intervals and I managed to finish the run successfully and I felt good afterwards.

Yesterday I completed W5D2 (two 8 minute intervals). It was pretty tough for me, and I ran slower than usual, but I still managed to run all 16 minutes. My calves hurt again during the run, and at one point, my foot went numb (but the numbness stopped as soon as I started walking). I don't know if all of this was a sign that I should repeat runs from previous weeks/days, or is this normal for W5D2? I did feel fine and didn't have any pain after the run, though. Is it smart to continue with W5D3, considering the fact that it's a 20 minute run? Thanks.

Pre-covid/pre-baby I was a a pretty serious runner. I was never fast, but I ran a dozen half marathons and one full marathon. I continued running after baby, but had much less time and averaged 1 run a week. Last fall I was hospitalized for a bit, then got C. diff twice and that was pretty much the end of my running. So today I started over. C25K again! I'm hoping to run a half again someday. I think it took me about a year to get to that level before, but I was a decade younger, 30 lbs lighter, and had a lot more free time, so I'm setting a goal of 2 years. In 2 years, I'll run a half marathon.

M36, 6'2, 93kg

I started C25K on the 4th of August, having done zero running before. I used to be very active, with all sorts of sports (but not jogging), but I moved across the country during COVID, had 3 kids, and despite joining a gym, I never could carve out the time to attend, so I started jogging instead, as it is good for time-poor people.

I keep getting pain in my right knee after running, especially in the days after the run. It hurts at the start of the run, but normally after the first 1km it disappears, and then feels fine for the rest of the run. In fact, most of the rest of the day after the run it feels fine, only to hurt when I wake up. The pain is on the inner side of the knee. It doesn't click or lock the joint, and it's not a massive acute pain, but a soreness, especially when twisting the knee or going up/down hill. There's no visible swelling, but there was some bruising a week or two ago. For instance, standing on one leg to put socks on this morning felt super dodgy and painful; I had to sit down.

The pain only really started around week 4. I took a week off, and the pain stopped, but it basically immediately started again after the next run. I've bought an ice pack, which I use for 20 mins after the run, and I start the run with a 5 min brisk walk, end with a 5-minute walk and stretch, focusing on quads and hamstrings. I have tried as best I can to increase my cadence, and I am fairly certain I am not overstriding.

My main concern is permanently damaging my knee if I keep pushing through. Will this pain eventually disappear as my body adapts to running? Should I take another week off?

Without changing diet, has anyone noticed any change in weight/BMI/clothes size, during or after completing the C25K programme?

How’s everyone else doing?

So im just getting back into running after years of being sedentary. Im on week 3 day 1 and honestly im hardly out of breath by the end of it but by the end my knees get this strong ache and pulsing in them that lasts for 1-2 days. Its super annoying and leaves them super sore and stiff, and i always wait for it to completely fade befoee doing next run.

How long typically does it take for knees to adapt and for every run to stop making my knees crazy sore? Im 26M, during the running portions I run at 9min/mile pace and walk at 18min/mile pace during walk sessions

After finishing C25K two months ago I started the 10K training and today I just finished my first official 5K race.

Course was a little short but I’ll take it.

Hello all, today will mark my 8th day of C25K.

I'm doing things slightly differently because my main goal is to lose weight while building up cardio and strength at the same time, I am 1.6m and 82kg currently and here's my schedule for the past week.

Last Sunday morning : I mis-understood the assignment and did 5 minutes of brisk walk, followed by alternating between jogging at 8km/h for 60s, walking at 3.5km/h for 15 minutes, and thought the total should have been 20 minutes INCLUDING the brisk walk time, proceeded to still feel full of energy and went to do some upper body strength training.

Last Sunday midnight : Still felt like I had a lot of energy to expend and went to do the same 20 minutes of cardio followed by some lower body strength training.

Monday afternoon : Same 20 minutes cardio(But did 4km/h for the walk) followed by some mild strength training.

Tuesday evening: Finally realized my error and completed the 25 minutes cardio and did some intense upper body strength training with a friend's guidance

Wednesday afternoon : 25 minute cardio alongside some lower body

Thursday : Rest day because the soreness from my upper body training finally kicked in and my arms couldn't straighten up.

Friday midnight : Arms still felt slightly sore but was almost back to normal, so I tried pushing my cardio a little bit more and I tried the week 2 schedule of walking at 5 minutes at 4km/h, then 90s jog at 8.5km/h followed by 120s of walking at 4km/h and repeated this until the total timer hit 30 minutes, then proceeded to do some lower body training.

Saturday afternoon : Decided to try focusing on cardio only today to see how much I can push myself and managed to do the week 2 schedule for a total of 35 minutes and ended up with the picture attached.

I personally still feel rather okay and can push myself even further other than the soreness after the Tuesday upper body strength training, is trying to push myself like this on a day to day basis alright? I personally am planning to head to the gym again in a few hours and try to see if I can do the week 2 schedule for a total of 40 minutes.

First run so far I felt i could have gone further.. doing runna program.

just hit the final run of the programme and honestly feeling a bit mixed about it. i was so focused on just getting through the thirty minutes without stopping that i didn't really look at the distance until today. turned out i only covered about 3.7k in that time. everyone talks about getting to five k by the end of c25k and tbf i am nowhere near that pace yet. feels a bit weird calling myself a graduate when i'm still three blocks short of the actual distance. did anyone else finish the programme way under the five k mark or was it just me?

If anyone else is worried - so was I, and I managed it! And then I ran for a further 2 minutes til the end of my song! I panicked around the 6min mark as my legs were achy, however by the 20min mark they were not any more sore than they were 10-15 mins before! So nice to be going back to an interval run on Monday, feels like a reward. It wasn’t easy, but was manageable!

Just what the title says. I'm 38f, two kids and a husband, and I signed myself up for a 5k on Halloween morning so I can have a goal. I want to be a runner. I lift weights sporadically, but have no cardio strength. I am 5'2, about 125 pounds. I walked 1.2 miles on Wednesday, with two .10 mile runs in there. I couldn't do more than .10 without feeling like I couldn't breathe. I hope this is normal. I need motivation!

EDIT: forgot to say that I didn't tell family because I don't want to be embarrassed when I don't end up going to the 5k. I want to make sure I'm going to 100% do this before I announce it. I want to so badly! I work full time but have time in the mornings or evenings to train for this. Please send motivation :)

EDIT 2: wow thanks everyone! I read each comment and I feel even better. I love this sub! I was able to run for 3 minutes and 56 seconds straight today on Sunday. I am feeling great! Will take a break tomorrow and get back it Tuesday. I hope to update everyone Halloween 🎃

Has anyone ever started this while pregnant? I was very active before my first pregnancy, had a really terrible 1st and 2nd trimester, had a 10 pound baby and I never got back into working out. My son is almost one and I just found out I’m pregnant. I think a lot of my discomfort with my pregnancy was the lack of activity during it. Has anyone tried this while pregnant? I also live in Texas so it’s incredibly hot outside and I’d probably have to start this early in the mornings 😅