Jeshi

TeeNyne, I just wanted to chime in that it is always hard for me start as well, even when I know I'll feel so much better during/after. It really helps me to block out 3-30 minute morning sessions each week. That way, I can kinda stuff my obstinate "I don't wanna" child voice to the side and just do it. When I first started, I had the fear that I wouldn't stick with this program (I never do), but I'm on my 4th week and I've been improving each week. Happy running!

Hi, Amanda. Awesome of you to make the decision to start this program! I also want to run a 5K with my family and this program's been the one tool that's helped me get started. Don't give up; I'm looking forward to your updates!

10/5/15 Monday Wow! Today was a breakthrough for me. I got dressed early as usual. When 7:00 AM hit, I started doing the "I don't wanna" thing. I started putzing around and dragging out my start time. I had to tell myself if I started too late, I wouldn't finish my session AND I'd be late for work. I had to put the voice out of my head and get myself out of the door. I started by doing my laces differently. At the beginning of this program I was only tightening the last part of the laces, leading to top of the foot pain because it wasn't being supported. Last week, I tightened the entire lace section to where my foot felt like it was being pulled into an arch cup. This morning, I made the lower part snug and the upper part tight. This time, when I ran, I concentrated on my feet landing. I quickly realized that while my right foot was hitting midfoot and pushing off at the right angle, my left foot felt like I was riding a bicycle! I must have been heel-striking while supinating slightly. I focused on leaning slightly to the right from the ankles and landing on the inner middle of the left foot and voila, no outer foot pain! The pain that used to be on the shin/outer calf from compensating for the foot rotated out was gone! I finished the first 90 seconds (decided to repeat Week 2) with ease. Hurray! As I progressed through the session, I acquired more burn in my calves while climbing hills, but it was even throughout my calf and more of a workout burn than a pain. Of course, I got progressively tired and decided that I'd finish Week 2 this week instead of moving into Week 3. I am happy to say that this is the beginning of my 4th week and I've been on target of completing 3 sessions a week! At the end of my 33:41 session, I looked at the mileage and saw 1.92! I can honestly say that today is the first time in my life that I believe I can run a 5K if I keep training at my current pace. That is incredibly liberating! I grew up with the resignation that I'd never be able to run. And look, I'm doing it! I wasn't planning on my speed increasing until after the 8th week when I had built up endurance, but already, I can see that I increased my mileage by 0.12 from Saturday. These small victories are great! Finding a way to RUN OUTSIDE without hurting my shins, and realizing I made it almost 2/3 of the way to 3.1 miles was a very nice morale booster. Thank you C25K. You gave me the confidence and training plan that I needed to start running p.s. I wanted to mention the most amazing discovery: I think I got this breathing thing down! Breathing in through nose and quick, forceful exhale through mouth has almost become second nature. I'm able to continue that to keep from getting winded while focusing on putting down my feet correctly and leaning my body correctly. I passed other people while I was jogging and I didn't even make eye contact because I was was concentrating on my foot-landing and breathing. (Also, to prevent that negative voice from thinking negative things). I do greet people during the walking portions. p.s.s. Since I've been running on sloped asphalt, my balanced has improved significantly! After my run, I'm able to balance on one foot much better. This is huge for me because I'm big and have neuro-muscular issues.

10/3/15 Saturday Still having outer left foot pain, but it decreases at the halfway point, when my left calf begins to get sore. I made 1.80 miles in 33:34. 10/4/15 Sunday It's a rest day. I'm ready for tomorrow!

I did Week 2 Day 2 today and I FINISHED it! I did my run outdoors where it's kinda hilly. My left foot hurt on the outer part on the first half of the workout. During the second half, my calf became sore as it compensated and the pain disappeared from my foot. I jogged very very slowly, but I kept to the run/walk intervals!! I completed 1.69 miles in 31.5 minutes.

Thanks for moving the thread, KellyAnn! Your post along with the others has kept me going. It's so therapeutic to write out my thoughts, experiences and plans for improvement. This morning I tackled Week 3 Day 2. Unfortunately, I started 30 minutes later than usual. I started MapMyRun workout. I started c25k Trainer. After the 5 minute warm up, I was relieved that the first jog was 1:30. I did it, but I felt pain in the outer part of my left foot. 3 minute walk, I got this. 1:30 into the 3 minute run, the pain in my foot, shins, and calves was unbearable, so I walked for the remaining run interval. I thought, hmmm, since I have been walking on the outer part of my foot to correct protonation, maybe I'm over doing it and supinating. I turned my foot slightly inward so that I was running on the right half of my left foot and the left half of my right foot (not the inside of each foot) and I ran 1:30 of the 3 minutes of the next walk interval. The pain disappeared. I finished the rest of the walk interval and then walked until I heard the halfway tone. At this point, I had to make the decision to finish the session or to stop early and roll my legs before work. I've noticed that I have to roll warm (warming up doesn't work, it has to be after a work out) or I get really tight. I REALLY wanted to finish my session. I had completed all the previous ones. Since my foot, shin, and calf was injured, I decided to suck up my pride and end my session in order to roll. I completed 0.82 miles in 14:35. I don't have any heart rate metrics as I don't have access to a heart rate monitor outside of the treadmill. One great thing I got out of this is my improved breathing. I felt I could not expand my lungs at the beginning of this program. During the warm up, I was able to get into the rhythm of breathing in through my nose and out through my mouth. I'm used to breathing in and out through nose or in and out through mouth, but not in a circular pattern. Even if I never make great lengths, lung capacity improvement would be worth training for endurance running. Since I cannot make the 3 minute runs, I am going to try Week 2, Day 1 tomorrow. What do you think, KellyAnn? I don't think it's a 'setback' as I moved from 0 incline on a treadmill to hilly outdoors. Thanks for reading!

Hi, loa_Dezera. I recommend the running form in the attachment. It's taken away the pain in my shins and calves! Another thing that helped me was building up foot strength. When our feet are weak, another part of the body has to compensate, which results in pain in the body part that is compensating. I built up foot strength by being barefoot while indoors. While outdoors, I wear shoes made of soft leather stitched together. It has no treads or support and feels like wearing a thick sock.

Thanks, Kelly. Could you move this thread to Accountability? Today, I had a realization that made me cry and laugh at the same time. I'm glad it happened when it did, and not later... Today, I had myself motivated for Week 2, Day 3. I have to keep myself on track because I know it's too easy to make excuses. I need to push myself to stay on track. I started my warm up at 7:05 this morning. Walking to the gym, I felt good about the cushy asphalt underneath my feet. I reach the gym area and glance up. Uh oh, both treadmills are in use! This hasn't happened to me since I started this program. I could wait to complete this workout tomorrow...no! I -had- to do this NOW! Putting off the workout after preparing myself for the effort, for the success, I know would derail my entire drive to finish this program. Later this week, I might put off another work out. Next week, I might only finish two days. Pretty soon, I would give up on this program. No, I needed to do this program now. I cannot wait for them to finish. I had to keep to my schedule and get to work afterwards. I made the decision to do it outside, in the parking lot. Cue the horrors! They say that running outside is different than running on the treadmill. There's variable inclines and wind resistance and traffic to worry about. Practice running outside before race day. Well, today, I found out what that difference was. I had been using 3.6-4.0 mph on the treadmill, but only because I was lifting my feet and placing them down per running form that I learned. When I tried jogging outside, I probably could have made a quarter mile in an hour. You know those cartoons where the animals are lined up and the race starts and the snail barely moves? I started jogging and my scenery stayed still. After several seconds, I was still in front of the same building. I was chugging along like the slowest train in the world while trying to pump my feet like pistons. I looked silly. Passersby probably thought I was doing some kind of aerobic train dance. I ignored them and continued at my pace. I'm sure I only made any measurable distance because of the walking intervals. My walk was probably 2.5 mph and the run a fraction of that. I now know the meaning of jogging in place. Halfway through my workout, I checked on the treadmill during one of the walking sessions and both were still being used. At the end of my session, I did not feel like my heart/lungs had been worked as intensely as my previous sessions as I didn't push my legs to meet the cadence target. While I pushed through the embarrassment of my train jog, I don't think I could have managed looking like a crazy person (pumping my legs up and down 180 times each minute). I also did not sweat as much, possibly from cooling off outside. My plan for Week 3 Day 1 is to use a GPS program to see how much distance I cover in 30 minutes. I downloaded MapMyRun today and will try it on Wednesday. Do you think I should start Week 1 Day 1 again while outside?

Thanks, Aideen. I'll admit that I started getting discouraged when I ran into difficulty. I grew up with that mentality and I've resolved to work on that through this program. I completed Week 2 Day 2 this morning. Since the run intervals are longer than week 1, I decided it's best to go at a maintainable aerobic pace, I dropped my speed down to 3.6 mph. I read that you need a 1-2 incline on the treadmill to mimic wind resistance outdoors as a zero incline is the equivalent to running downhill. So I increased the incline to...0.5. And...my calves begin burning. I could feel my shins. I was trying to keep the 180 cadence to keep my running form and my heart rate high, but I got lazy and thought to myself, "Do I really need to lift my legs? How about I just shuffle along?" BIG. MISTAKE. Running from my knees put a BIG strain on my left calf and shin. I almost had to stop from pain before I realized what I was doing. Silly girl. I picked up my legs and started running from my hips. The pressure lessened and the pain was gone. You may be tempted to "conserve movement." Don't. It leads to injury. Since I am moving my legs so much now, it's difficult for me to breath. I have to focus on pressing down and keeping down my chest and shoulders. I have to force air into and out of my lungs (I settled on a one second in, and one second out rhythm). When I gained a lot of weight and increased in size, it became difficult to breathe. I felt like my lung hit my outer body like a wall and I cannot Belly-Breathe in a lot of air like a balloon. More like a small lap-banded stomach. I FEEL like I get more air when I Chest-Breathe vs Belly-Breathe. But I don't do that. Because chest breathing at that exertion hurts. I'm happy to say that my run pace of 3.6 mph was at 88% of my max HR and my walk pace of 3.0 mph was at 72% max HR, rotating me between aerobic and anaerobic. The -reason- why I quote these numbers is that it gives me something to work with. I know that I'm working my heart appropriately even if my body is uncomfortable or not used to it. My ability to breathe and the pain/lack of pain are also important indicators of whether I need to slow down or speed up. Focusing on breathing and posture help me run without injury. I think this focus pass the time quickly, it helps me stay in the moment, it keeps me from thinking 'omg, when is this going to be over'? Doing this each time is getting me through the workouts. And the knowledge that I'm continuing with the program makes me happy. I think aiming my pace with heart rate percentages instead of speed is how I am building endurance and it's motivating me to look forward to the next workout. Thanks for reading!

Congrats on quitting smoking, jedimomm and #Iwillbefit!; that's a great accomplishment in itself! Keep going and you'll make it to the 5k! Natcatvet, the fact that you attempted the session - put on the clothes, started up the app, and started the walk - is already a success! Even if you do not finish the entire session the first day, even finishing part of it is a success. Keep adding each success, and you will be on your way to a 5k!

CatLover74, did the shoes help with your calf and shin pain? I find rolling them out helps (although I'll admit it's difficult to do being big). Make sure to stretch AFTER you warm up. I tried doing that cold and ended up in pain before realizing what I was doing.

Hi, Natcatvet! Nice to meet you! I'm 85 pounds overweight and have never been able to run before. I was a bit anxious to do week 2 as well (and also really happy that I finished the first week!). Well, guess what, I finished Day 2 of Week 2 today and am fine. It -was- more challenging than week 1, not going to lie, but I was able to do it. You can do it! :cheerleader: Keep up posted on how it goes.

Hi, runbuccorun! If you don't want a rest day between running days, you could cross train (swim, weight lift, bike, etc.) This will help you prevent injury as it builds up muscles differently than running. Always remember to rest at least one day a week!

Drat, I just wrote out a nice post and it got deleted before I could post. I just want to let you know that you're doing a great job sticking with this program for 3-4 months and that nothing is insurmountable. They say you should run the slowest you can; if you can run slower, you are running too fast. Try experimenting with different walk/run intervals. Personally, I was able to get my heart rate faster in week 1 than in week 2. Week 2, I had body pains and had to focus on forcing air into and out of my lungs even though my heart rate was lower. Just try different things. Regarding your aches and pains, changing my posture eliminated the pain in my shin and calves. Check out the attachment!

They say to run as slowly as you can to build up endurance. If you can slow down, you're going too fast! You took the first step by finishing the first day; you can do it!

Carlie, I bet the looks you received were, "Wow, how does she manage to run AND balance the buggy? I want to do that!" Keep up the good work!

Hi, kidreader! I run on a treadmill so I place my phone in front of me. I try not to look down at the phone the entire time as that strains my neck - look straight ahead and slightly up to keep your neck comfortable. If you're going to put your phone in your pocket or hold it in your hand, tap the lock symbol to keep from accidentally tapping any keys. You'll want to keep the app open in the foreground and NOT in sleep mode in order to receive the voice prompts. One thing that really helped me was setting the jogging pace slow where you are able to talk, but not sing. Good luck and let us know how your first workout goes!

Hey, Ariel, were you able to finish your run in 40 minutes? I really enjoyed your log and am hungering for more!

Thanks, Aideen! I started reading up on my medical conditions, which started to bum me out. I've realized that my attitude toward running reflects on what I did the day before. Tuesday, I wanted to start Week 2, but forced myself to recover that day. Wednesday, I didn't want to run, but convinced myself to keep with the program since I've been doing well sticking with it. This morning, I was just sore and exhausted, despite going to bed early and getting lots of rest. I made myself do dynamic stretches and roll as my shoulder has been bothering me. Week 2's run was very different from what I expected. I was getting used to and enjoying week 1's runs, and thought, okay, I'll get better and better at it. Since week 2 involves longer intervals, I brought my pace down to 3.6/3.8. I think the reason why I didn't enjoy this run as much because I didn't concentrate on the 180 step cadence. I believe I'm more "into it" when I'm putting my "all" into it, and bringing my heart rate up. I maintained 77% HR while running and 63% while walking. I tried "holding back" for fear of running out of gas and not finishing the run. My plan for tomorrow is to stick to a medium pace (3.8 mph), focus on steps, focus on breathing, and just enjoy the experience. I'm pleased that I've stuck with this program thus far and hope to continue! Thanks for reading!

Completed W1D3 this morning. I was SOOO sore before starting. I foam rolled to loosen up. When I started the intervals, I had to drop the pace down to 3.4 mph. After loosening up and realizing I couldn't reach my cadence, I gradually increased the pace on each interval until I was at 4.0 mph. I hit 91% of max HR and I believe a cadence of 200 for one interval. I think I look ridiculous picking up and putting my feet down that many times per minute, but I'm determined to do this the right way. I kind of look I am doing football drills while running. For the DOMS inflammation, I'm considering taking an Aleve on training days, but I'm concerned about the heart disease, stroke, stomach ulcers, kidney failure, high blood pressure, etc. etc. I don't have time to ice afterwards (I go to work) and ice packs only cover a small area (would take forever to ice my lower body). I'm thinking about compression tights for recovery, but that's not in my budget right now.

Welcome! Keep us updated with your progress.

My diet is what's killing my weight loss. While I prefer the taste/"lightness" of lean meats and veggies over fast, processed food, the struggle of convenience often wins. Munching at my work desk is a problem, too: all those extra calories/sugar/etc. I largely prefer cooked vegetables over raw ones. The problem is: the crunchiness of a snack not only helps to relieve boredom at my work desk, but also my anxiety. Lastly, I USED to use food as my escape and would use that over full feeling from food to shut down at night. It definitely ballooned my weight. Sometimes, if I'm having a bad day and feeling particularly hungry, I'll eat a large portion size. What would help me most is finding a vegetable that I could snack on at work and a vegetable side that I can throw in with whatever entree I'm eating that night for satiety and lowering the calorie content. I've been tracking my calorie intake since January of this year. Over the year, I went from eating WAAAY over to eating the amount needed for weight loss by making better food choices and reducing the portion gradually. It stopped my rapid weight gain to where I was maintaining for several months, but the scale numbers did not drop. This month, I had a lot of work and family crisis this month and am still fighting through them. That's why the increase on the scale upset me. Because I've worked hard, tracking intake and trying to lower my calorie intake for 8 months, without seeing any "real progress," and now, these crisis are undermining my efforts. Sorry, if this post sounded like a rant. I'm frustrated with food.

Thanks for the support, Trish! I was so pumped from yesterday, I was motivated to workout this morning AND complete my W1D2 sesson! (Since I'm out of town tomorrow and I didn't want to deal with bring my clothes and shoes with me, I decided to complete my sesson today.) Today, I continued to work on my breathing. I also really wanted to try out the 180 step cadence thing! I picked up and placed my feet down as fast as I could. I counted my right foot during the one minute run sessions, and guess what, I counted 90, meaning I made the goal! One interesting side effect that I didn't expect was my jump in heart rate. Previously, I chose 3.8 mph because it kept me at 70% max heart rate. At a 180 step cadence, my heart rate jumped to an 88% max HR (anerobic). I've always had a high HR at low speeds

Maybe you have a pinched nerve or tight hip joint? I haven't experienced this problem, but I had life-long shin/calf pain when running, which I was able to clear by foam rolling and then using other tools to dig deep into the muscle/fascia. If you can, I'd check out a sports therapist or a professional that can look at your issue in person.

Hi CatLover, I have noticed similar issues with my shin/calf in the past. I'd recommend having a professional look at it. It sounds like your gait is off (whether from your anatomy or the way you lean, etc.). Something that helped me was to foam roll my calves and shins to release the tightness. I've also used a ball similar to a lacrosse ball to loosen up before and after running to prevent the aches. I'd recommend looking into this issue before you continue to prevent damage. I know how frustrating calf/shin issues are; it's what kept me from running before. I hope you find a fix soon.