Jeshi

@Sean, totally! I'm looking at repeating runs as a comfort "I made it yesterday, I can do it again today, and better" runs. I'm planning on repeating today tomorrow! @Anne Lang, hi! I had the same problem. It became too stressful to time and count in breaths, then out breaths, while maintaining my posture and foot-falling correctly. I changed it to breathing in normally/deep in thru the nose. Keep your shoulders/chest down. Your breath will fill your belly (even if you don't feel/see it expanding). When you exhale, push the air out of your lungs with an audible "ha" sound. During warm-up/slower walking, you may be exhaling gently. When you're in the run interval, you may need to push the air out more forcefully, to force the carbon dioxide out of your body. Our bodies like to keep a certain level of carbon dioxide. When you have too little (you exhaled too hard too fast), you'll get dizzy, light-headed. When you don't push enough air out, you don't have room to breathe in. Breathe in to re-fill your lungs. For the above technique, don't stress over it. Understand the motion and practice it. It took me about 6 weeks to get the hang of it. Don't give up! The technique is just based off of exhaling harder when you are working your body harder. 10/27/15 Tuesday I'm going to be honest: I woke up cold this morning and didn't want to run. I got an early start but I wasn't in a positive frame of mind. Week 5 Day 2 consists of two 8 minute jogs. The first one went fine (I checked the clock twice). Did not have much soreness today. Yay! My body really is becoming stronger. The great, great mental change has been wanting to make healthier choices. Sticking with my c25k sessions and trying to eat better and manage my portions has made a notable difference in how I feel, and how my clothes fit. I'm not getting enough sleep (I notice myself being cranky, foggy-headed where I'm making simple mistakes at work). This has slowed down my fat-loss. Instead of berating myself, I understand that I'm someone who needs to make little changes and stick to them before incorporating more changes (changing everything at once is just too overwhelming). So, now I'm feeling silly for not getting enough sleep. The mindset is: if I'm exercising regularly, and I'm making myself control my portions, shouldn't I just get at least one more hour of sleep each night? I've been justifying the lack of sleep with "well I'm preparing healthy meals for the next day" and "keeping my area clean." One goal I want to put into place this week is to finish everything early, and then do something relaxing until I get sleepy. Then, ACTUALLY GO TO SLEEP! Two of my biggest self-sabotages are continuing to eat after I'm full and not going to sleep when I'm sleepy. I've been able to deal with the first one with the help that when I overeat, I feel physically horrible. Enough times of that horrible feeling and I'm like, "nope, I'm done [eating for now]." Back to the second 8 minute intervals. After the 5 minute walk (which I felt good about), the second 8 minute interval was a killer. I was constantly looking at the clock until I had to shut out my overthinking (analyzing while running, what am I going to post about today) and just go back to breathing and landing my feet. I'm happy that I made it even though I needed to slow way down on the second interval. For a motivation boost, I'm going to repeat this session tomorrow. I would like to move onto Day 3 with a positive experience with Day 2 instead of leaving it as it is. You guys are doing great. Keep it up~!

I know it feels strange when you first start out. I have to remind myself to adopt that posture every morning that I start out. But pain-free; I'm hooked!

Since I'm a 32H, I wanted to put in my two cents. Freya Active has by far the best, most comfortable, most supportive sports bra I've ever used. Both breasts are separated and supported and move with your chest. It's hard to advise if you don't have a bra-fitting store like Intimacy/Rigby & Peller near you. I'd say get a tape measure to measure your rib cage under your bust to get the band size. Then try different cup sizes to find the perfect fit.

Shanaf, just wanted to let you know that slowing down does not mean you failed. Slowing down (no matter how slow) and finishing the interval is the goal right now. Like Natcatvet said, try slowing your pace. I find focusing on breathing in through nose and exhaling forcefully through my mouth takes up all the brain power--no room for doubt, or looking at the time, or what that other person is thinking. When I work on my breathing and landing my foot properly, well, that's all I CAN do until I hear the announcer.

Hurray, Natcatvet! I'm in the same boat. Going to face Week 5 Day 2 tomorrow and I didn't know there were 8 minute blocks! I'm not going to psych myself out, just keep pushing onward!

P.S. Out of curiosity about the strength improvement of my muscles, I wanted to see how fast I was running on one of the intervals. Monday, after 2 rest days, should give me the best time. Sure, there's inclines and what not, but it looks to be at about 3.9 mph. That speed is really great for me and I know it'll get better with time! I just wanted to post it because seeing improvements in my own performance gives me a little boost of motivation. This is a great baseline to compare for future runs. However, I am going to start MapMyFitness/Run at the beginning of the warm up so I don't have to manually log workouts to meet the challenges. Take care!

Thanks for the positive feedback! It lifts my heart up I hope that others with the same struggles can find something in this tread that helps them. 10/23/15 Monday Started Week 5 Day 1 today. Looked down at the run timer. 5 minutes...5 minutes! Tough, but not the straight 20 minute run that I thought it'd be. I made it a whole 4 minutes before I thought, "I wanna give up." I told myself, "No, you don't. Keep going. Look! You're doing it!" I'm doing it! I really need to hear these positive, encouraging pushes from myself. When someone is shouting at me externally to push harder, I shut down. I develop a "I know my own body limits; don't tell me what to do!" attitude. But when I look at the interval timer and hear the announcer's soothing voice, "Begin walking" (relief) or "Begin Running" (okay!), I'm surprisingly happy to oblige. My attitude regarding walking intervals has changed so much. Instead of being bitter than I'm forced to walk because my calves are burning and I need this walk, I relish in the walking interval, like a little me time. I keep myself moving forward at a moderately brisk pace and take time to enjoy the walk instead of being resentful towards it. Then, it's vibrate-beep "Begin running" and I start running, focusing on my breath and my foot fall. Twice, today, I had the urge to give up. And twice, today, I continued past that urge. And am so excited I finished my first day of Week 5! I tend to hold myself back as I'm afraid of failure and don't think I can complete each new session. The secret, I learned, is to just keep going. Running--as I previously thought it was--was torturous, painful, and something only masochists enjoyed. Well, I'm glad to know that, generally, if I'm hurting, I need to adjust my foot strike/posture/breathing, etc. I have a medical condition where a few of the symptoms include extreme fatigue, muscle weakness, depression, and anxiety. When I read about others who are in the same boat running, it gave me the hope that I might be able to as well. And I'm here, doing it! Thank you for reading. I hope you come to your own "Aha!" moments. And may you have happy running injury free!

Great job! How did W1D3 go?

Sean, make sure you're hitting the ground with the ball of your foot, not your heel. When I started running this way, I discovered that my left leg was to the side of my body instead of the center and I was hitting with the outside edge. After fixing my stride/posture, the pain went away (still have muscle soreness when I run, but no pain now).

Rob, feel free to browse through the weeks and start at one that matches your current level. No need to start from the beginning of the 13.1 app if you've already completed the 10K app.

Hi, Mahey. For the most effectively fat-loss via cardio, you need to raise your heart rate. Start by finding out what zones you need to reach. One way to calculate Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) = 220 - Age 1) Warm up for 5 minutes 2) 1 minute intense 80% Maximum Heart Rate (MHR X 0.8) 3) 2 minutes normal 70% Maximum Heart Rate (MHR x 0.7) Repeat Step 2 and 3 Five more times. 4) Cool down for 5 minutes Try to mimic the motion in the attachment during your session. Try to land your right and left foot 180 times each minute (that should definitely get your heart rate up!) During the 80% maximum heart rate intervals, your lungs will feel like they are on fire and feel like you cannot breathe in enough air. The 70% MHR should be difficult, but doable. Hope this helps!

Tap the music symbol at the bottom of the app to choose your music.

You can do it! Build up gradually so you don't get injured. Use the app, even if you don't feel like it; it's addicting and will hook you right back in!

Hi Pam, start with Week 1, Day 1, and walk faster on the "run" intervals and normal speed on the "walk" intervals. Do this until your legs become fatigued. Repeat until you are able to complete Week 1. Set your own walking pace for the remaining weeks. Just because the interval says "run" doesn't mean you shouldn't walk it. If you can complete 3 sessions a week, your body will become stronger and it will get easier for you. For 3 years, I sat inactive at a desk job and would come home and continue sitting/laying down until it was time to sleep. I repeated Week 2 for 3 weeks before I moved on because I wanted to get comfortable with my body. Don't feel like you have to finish a Week (program) each (calendar) week. Personally, the announcer has been helpful in pushing myself to complete the interval. If you are struggling with the interval, slow down. I "run" at a walking pace. I find it helpful to forcibly push the air out of my lungs on the exhale (make a "ha" sound). Let me know if any of these help you on your second session.

Congrats on the 20 minute run, Natcatvet!

That's what I'm currently doing: Run Monday & Tuesday, rest Wednesday, Run Thursday & Friday, rest Saturday & Sunday. When I first started, I was running on Monday, Wednesday, Friday.

10/22/15 Thursday Bummed that I ran on the treadmill this morning because it was raining outside. I didn't want to slip in the rain. I set the incline on 3.0 to try to mimic the road. I kept the run intervals at 3.2 mph and the walking ones at 3.0 mph and had to really focus on my breathing.

Glad to have you here, Jené Rosser!

Good for you! Keep us updated when you complete Week 1 Day 2.

Great job, Sean! Sorry for this late reply. The general rule of thumb is to listen to your body. If you are tired or excessively sore, I would leave a rest day in between. Otherwise, you will be fine. However, it's important to have one rest day a week.

I can't wait to try it next week! I want to join you guys.

staffymad, I recommend a running store that will analyze your gait to fit you with the right shoes for you.

When you repeat a Day, the old data is wiped out. The app only records the last session of each Day.

AutisticDaze, so glad you're hear. I was really self conscious when I first started. Focusing on breathing and landing on midfoot helps me block out my negative thoughts when I'm running. Keep us updated on your progress and feel free to ask any questions.

Proud of you, Rosalie! I'm looking forward to hear about your Week 1 Day 2.