It seems most appropriate to start where I started, and that was with the C25k programme (www.c25k.com or search c25k).
I’ve never been a sporty person. I hated P.E. at school and since I left the closest I’ve been to sport is the occasional visit to bums, tums and thighs (the emphasis there being on occasional). I’m short (5ft 2), I’m heavy but I was fed up and wanted a change. My boyfriend brought up c25k so I looked into it. Seemed easy enough so I thought I’d give it a go. This was early October 2010.
I downloaded the C25k iPhone app (http://c25kapp.com/) which I would thoroughly recommend and started on my journey.
Under the C25k programme you run three times a week. When I use the word “run”, I really mean more like a very slow jog, but I got into the habit of calling it a run and it’s stuck so you’ll have to put up with it I’m afraid. Each work out starts with a five minute warm up- meaning 5 minutes’ brisk walking, and a five munite cool down- again five minutes’ brisk walking. The first week sounds easy. If you’re anywhere near as unfit as I was, it isn’t. After the warm up you alternate running for sixty seconds and walking for ninety seconds, for a total of twenty minutes. So you end up with eight of each.
In all honesty, this was probably my hardest week. I remember my first run. I walked most of it, I felt sick, I was sweaty and smelly and felt really ugly and fat. BUT I did it and I felt GREAT afterwards. Honestly, I felt like I’d just run a marathon- nauseous, knackered, but incredibly like I’d achieved something massive. So I carried on.
As I said, you’re supposed to do three runs a week. In all honesty, most weeks I repeated a day. If I didn’t feel I’d done as well as I could have or that I wanted to do it one more time before I moved on then I just tried the last day again. That worked really well for me and the iPhone app is flexible enough to allow you to do that.
For the first four weeks you simply follow the same routine each day. These are:
Week one – five minute warm up, alternate 1 minute running and 1.5 minutes walking for a total of 20 minutes, five minute cool down.
Week two – five minute warm up, alternate 1.5 minutes running and 2 minutes walking for a total of 20 mintes, five minute cool down.
Week three- five minute warm up, then run 1.5 mins, walk 1.5 mins, jog 3 mins, walk 3 mins, 1.5 mins, walk 1.5 mins, jog 3 mins, walk 3 mins, five minute cool down.
Week four- five minute warm up, then run 3 mins, walk 1.5 mins, run 5 mins, walk 2.5 mins, run 3 mins, walk 1.5 mins, run 5 mins, five minute cool down.
I got through them ok. I remember having trouble with week three, only really getting through it on my fourth attempt. Week four I was nervous about because the running parts are suddenly longer than the walking parts but I was fine. Whenever I found myself struggling I just had to force myself to slow down. This was my main problem- I seemed to have a speed which I naturally ran at, but because of my weight and lack of fitness I couldn’t physically maintain that speed. So I spent a lot of time consciously telling myself to slow down. Don’t be afraid of going slow. Don’t worry if you feel like a snail could overtake you without trying. That’s how I felt but it meant I could get through each week.
Please understand, if you’re a complete beginner like I was then NONE of these weeks are easy. Not even the third or fourth day of each week. You will feel sick, you will be exhausted, you will be achey. They aren’t designed to be easy. But they are possible. They’re bearable. And at the end you feel as if you’ve really made progress and you’ve really moved forward and achieved something. At the end of each session I did ache terribly, but I never ached the next day. I think that’s because it’s broken down so much you’re not putting too much stress on your body.
At the same time, when you’re doing well it can be tempting to skip one of your rest days and run for two in a row. Maybe that’d be fine for someone fitter, but if you’re out of shape just don’t. You may not feel achey, you may feel desperate to move forward and carry on going, but running too soon before your body is rested and ready WILL give you the aches and WILL lead to injuries. I tried it in my second week I think, regretted it after about 5 minutes and ended up limping miserably most of the way round.
Week five includes the first BIG RUN. This is terrifying. You’re moving from running 5 minutes to suddenly doing 20 without stopping. The first two days are gentle: run 5 mins, walk 3 mins, run 5 mins, walk 3 mins for day one and then run 8 mins, walk 5 mins, run 8 mins on day two. Day three just involves your normal warm up and then running for twenty minutes. I got through days one and two easily. Day three was a real killer though. I had to try three times. But once I finally got it, I was SO proud. I even cried on the cool down (out of happiness, not pain!). If you’re trying it remember- go slow, find a flat route, and listen to your body. If its saying you can’t do it yet then have a small walk, start running again when you’re ready, have a couple of days to let your body recover and then try again.
It’s when you start doing the longer runs that I found you start getting the aches the next day. I’ve never had them too bad but being 25 maybe older runners would get them worse. My boyfriend definitely gets them worse than I do.
Week six is similar to week five- two days which are split up with walking and then a long 25 minute run at the end. Once you’ve done the 20 minuter then 25 minutes goes easily. It’s about this time when I found I’d stopped struggling and could finally start working on my speed and distance.
After week six you move away from the broken down runs and just do full 25 minute (week 7), 28 minute (week 8) and finally 30 minute (week 9) runs. At this stage I moved away from the c25k and started my own programme, finding courses based on distance rather than time.
I found the c25k a fantastic starting point. It is meant to last nine weeks but I always seemed to be a week or so behind and then moved away after week six, so it probably lasted me 7-8 weeks. The app I used was also fantastic. You upload your music from your iPhone onto the app and then when you set out it plays the music automatically and either says out loud or vibrates when you need to change from walking to running. If your phone’s on silent it automatically sets the app to silent, which caught me out a few times, not feeling the vibrating and expecting to be told when to start running, so just be aware of that.
If someone had said to me I’d be able to run for over half an hour without stopping and without feeling too much out of breath, which I now can, within six months I’d never have believed them. But here I am, living proof. And I’ve lost about a stone in weight. I feel happier in my life, healthier, and just generally thrilled with how the c25k has worked out for me. I’d recommend it for anyone who wants a running programme which is doable, and which will give you a daily sense of achievement.
I’m so proud of how far I’ve come.
Good websites for more information:
http://www.c25k.com (c25k website)
http://c25k.cze.dk/ (c25k forums)
http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml (good overview)
http://c25kapp.com/ (c25k iPhone app)
Hey,
You know who I am, coffee partner, just wanted to say: You’re INSPIRING!
I keep making excuses for why I can’t start – when I *really* should know better. So after reading this: enough excuses. I start tonight. I meant it with the inspiring.
Good luck with this – you’re keeping two of us going.
xxxxx
Go for it! No coffee until you do
I’d say you won’t regret it, but you will at first. You won’t after a few weeks tho
x
Well done keep up the good work
Well done FGR. In case you’ve not found it already, there’s a Couch to 5k forum on NHS Choices for people in the UK starting the Couch to 5k programme. It’s already pretty active & your experiences would be great in helping the newbie start off. I’ll add a link there back to here so people can read your story.
John, NHS Choices
Thank you! That’d be great
I couldn’t recommend the Couch to 5k programme highly enough. It’s really changed my life. I didn’t know it had the support of the NHS until I started my blog and started searching for other advice forums, so I’d be really pleased to share my experiences further.
FGR.
FGR – Great site and what a fantastic quote by John Bingham! I’m currently in the middle of Week 5 of the C25K and never believed that I could be a runner, nor that I would make it this far. I’ve been blogging about my experiences too, and am really excited that there are so many other people getting the same satisfaction and freedom from just….running!
If you get a chance, check out my blog:
the-resolution-revolution.blogspot.com
Thanks for the inspiration – and keep up the great work!
I just wanted to say that you are DEFINITELY an inspiration!! I am a Fat Girl and I what you’ve said here was EXACTLY what I was looking for…honest, real talk about starting a process that can be scary and intimidating. It’s not easy for someone my size to just go into the gym and start running…so the C25K program may look easy to some folks but to me it is HUGE! Nice to know that you are out there and have tried this and been successful.
THANK YOU FGR!!! And I’m PROUD of you too!
Tesia– San Francisco Bay Area, USA
Thank you starchile, C25k is never easy for a fat girl, but it’s a start and it’s a means to an end… I could never go into a gym the size I am, I remember finding it intimidating when I was slim so there’s no way I could do it now, so my running’s always on the road.
It is huge to us girls, but it’s also possible and achievable and you can do it! I’m proud of you for having a look and giving it a go. Every day you run it gets a little bit easier. You won’t realise it at first, but it does. Good luck and thank you so much for the lovely comment
-FGR x
thanks for the honest recap about your journey. I started last week and it was not easy, I even threw up in the middle of my job (which I never thought would happen)…but I kept going. I am hoping to be able to run with my Dad when he comes out for Christmas!!
*Hugs*
Must say.I was just starting out running and it is so hard.If I am not running every day the after 2 or 3 days i can run smaller miles the before.Crazy.I think with running it is the same thing like playing piano.If you do not play every day then you have to work harder to get in the good form.
I’m so inspired by your blog – it’s honest, and exactly what I need to hear to start running. I know it will not be easy and I think that’s what scares me to start but reading what you wrote about it not being easy but how you stuck with it anyways and how great it was afterwards is SOOO inspiring. Thank you so much and I am so proud of you!!! You ROCK!!!
Hi! I just discovered this blog and it is sooo true! Thanks all for being so inspiring, I started the couch to 5 K 4 weeks ago and I feel so fantastic, my confidence has grown ten fold and I have more energy. I would definately say to anyone GO FOR IT, It’s not easy but the way you feel at the end of each run is worth all the puffing, panting, Embarrassment and pain, Good luck everyone and thanks FGR, You are awesome!xxx
I have to agree with everything that has been said here… You really ARE an inspiration!! I am desparate to start this too & have just downloaded it… I am SO scared!! Not only am I fat but I will also be 40 this year!! How the hell did that happen?!! Can I ask you what size you were (if it’s not too personal) when you started? Just to get an idea if I can do it… People’s idea of fat can be different… I am a size 20-22… More on tge 22 end at the moment but I had lost around 2.5 stone & then got pregnant & miscarried… I am just getting over that which is why I will start this programme next week I hope!! Best of luck to you & thanks again for this wonderful blog!!
I was a similar size to you when I started. I don’t consider myself a runner mainly because I still walk/run, but I have increased the distance that I run. When I first started, just running the distance between lamppost to another left me fighting for breath I was that unfit, and thought I would never be able to do this, it would kill me. But I kept on with it, breaking it down into small steps, once I could run between two lampposts, making the distance between three and so on. Listen to your body, you will feel sick and dizzy when you start but don’t give up. In a short time you find that you can run further distances without feeling as though you are going to collapse in a heap:)
I was probably a similar size to you… definitely a size 20 and pushing a 22 but not quite ready to admit it
I know what you mean when you say “how did that happen?” there isn’t a day goes by when I don’t look in the mirror at my size, even now, and think that exact thing! I’m glad you’re starting to heal inside after such an awful experience. Look after yourself and use your experience to allow you to push yourself harder and further, you will feel sick and you will want to stop but YOU can do this! Thank you for all your lovely comments, hearing such nice things keeps me going just like I hope I keep you guys going too
xx
Wow, very inspiring. I just yesterday committed myself to working the C25K. Being a big girl doesn’t mean we can’t do it right?? I am so tired of telling myself I can’t do this or that becasue I’m fat. No more excuses…time to get started. Keep it up, you are in inspiration to all fat girls
Dixie, Illinois – US
This was very helpful and inspirational. I actually promised myself I would lose weight this year. I have gone from 225 to 213 in two months with good diet and moderate exercise. I actually started the C25K this evening and although it was very difficult I completed it. Thanks for the information about the app, I have already downloaded it and can’t wait to use it in my next workout!
Hi im on my second week of c25k and i do think its fab, but ….. my knees are sore when i finish. i am heavy but i think doing this is great i just wish i could sort my knees out. any tips
I started c25k last year and got about half way through week 3 and totally gave up! I wasnt doing any other excercise at the time and thought i was going to have a heart attack whilst jogging round “dog poo field” (no one would see me)!
However I have now been doing 2/3 aerobics sessions a week and after reading what you have written I intend to start again tomorrow! I am hoping the cardio work I have been doing will give me the extra stamina I lacked before. Your experience of c25k is inspiring and makes me feel like I should get off my arse! THANK YOU!!!!
Lisa x
Did you lose weight during this time?
Hiya
I want to leave a quick note to thank you for your blog. A friend of mine is doing a marathon trail run in June and it looked like fun but I said I’d never last more than 10 minutes. He said neither did he when he started to which I replied, ‘show me a fat female trail runner’ and I’ll think about it.
He didn’t find you, I found you all by myself, but I’m so glad I did. I read this yesterday and right away got the iPhone app you mentioned and yesterday after work I did week 1, day 1. The 60 second run was a killer! But despite that, I’m excited to go out again on Monday.
So thank you for your inspiration (and for your archives!) I’m reading forward from here.
Love El x
Hi I live in Cov too and started this 3 week’s ago, I was fine on my first week 3 run struggled with the 2nd and had to stop 30 seconds shy of finishing the 3rd one I got progressively worse this week! Think I am getting poorly though did anyone find they repeated a week due to illness? I starts size 16-18 after a nasty drawn out miscarriage it kicked me into being determined to get properly fit so I started this and I am loving it apart from w3r3 I do love doing it! I’ve been using memorial park and suspect the hills are what’s done me in thus week so will have to plan my route better but I wondered where you ran? Good luck everyone, I started with some friends who no longer did it and they really couldn’t do week one my advice which helped them was run one miss one so you only do 4 runs the first time, then build up slowly! I’ve lost about 5lbs since starting but I have been eating 1500 calories a day which means you are a bit more knackered (start weight 13st1 but healthy ate alone no exercise for first 2-3 weeks as I was healing) oh and does anyone have any tips for shin pain my husband keeps telling me to stop but it’s ok while running its the after running that gets me!
Karen, I used to suffer with shin pains really badly after running and have found just a few simple leg stretches before going out has completely taken the pain away!
Congratulations. Thanks for sharing. I’m really interested in running… starting tonight. Thanks again and goodluck.
Hi FGR, brilliant piece! I am the very same, although I should have shares in WW the amount of times i’ve joined and really was too lazy to do anything… secretly hoping someone else could lose my weight for me, im 28 in 4 weeks and it is going to take a while to lose the weight, i have been a fat girl all my twenties, i don’t intend on spending my 30s depressed and sitting at home because i am ashamed of how i look, im a size 18-20, all out of proportion, narrow little shoulders, MASSIVE tummy and ass… ur story has really inspired me, im off to download this app and get off my big butt and do this! I will let u know how it goes!! Thank you for ur story!
I love your attitude and found your c25k review very inspiring!
I’ve started the program myself and did just today week 5 run 2/3 and it feels absolutely great. I just realized that I’ve lost 4 cm from my waist
and I feel so proud of myself.
I used to run earlier but after 20 years, 2 kids and 30 kg’s I finally decided one has to do something. So I started the c25k. Best thing that has happened to me since my hubby & children <3
Hey thanks for writing this. I am not overweight, but old (42) and so unfit. Very unfit. I need to do something, I have 3 children, the youngest 2, and I need to be able to play with him. I have been trying to figure out what on earth to do, how to start, & your post has helped me think it’s possible. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you for your inspiration. I am a 39-year-old quite overweight woman who just started the C25K program about 4 weeks ago. I lost 26 pounds doing P90X this spring and thought I was in pretty good shape. Running is so different, something I have never been able to do, but something I have been wanting to do for a long time. When I got to week 2 I suddenly found that I wasn’t in such good shape. It took me 3 weeks to get to where I could do the full week 2. I just started week 3 yesterday and I made it 2 minutes into the first 3 minute run and only 1.5 minutes into the second 3 minute run. Your blog has said exactly what I needed to hear….that’s it’s okay to take my time and get comfortable with each week’s program before moving on. I was really disgusted after my run yesterday, feeling maybe I wasn’t going to be able to do this. Thank you for your inspiration. My goal is to be running my first 5K by spring 2013.
Jen…just curious how long it took to to conquer WK3??? I’m repeating WK3 for the second time and still struggling. So hoping I conquer it soon!
Hey!
You are so inspiring with this! Just completed day 2 of week one, and it was tough! BUT I know it will get easier, and reading your own story makes me feel better!
I hope I can do as well as you have! I am hoping to lose a stone by Christmas (lost just over 1 stone so far, and have another 2.5 stone to lose until I am at my target), so hearing that this helped you lose weight too is great!
Hope you enjoy your runs, and let us know how you are doing, I hope to be a “runner” one day!
x
I googled running for fat girls today, and I found you! And the timing couldn’t be better. I downloaded the c25k app last night with the intention of starting the program, and you’ve given me the extra push that I needed to know that I CAN do this. So I’ll be stalking you for a while…
Thank you for posting your review of C25K!!! It really helped me to keep it going. I’ve been doing the program for about 5-weeks and have really been struggling with Week 3. I’m in the midst of repeating WK3 and I still can only complete (1) of the full 3-min intervals. I’ve been feeling a little like I will never reach the end.
Reading your review has really inspired me! Knowing that I am not the only that has struggled keeps the program in perspective, and re-enforces my will.
Thanks so much…Brenda!
hi fgr, i too started with the c25k and found it brilliant.i started jogging with a group but found i couldn’t keep up so i started from scratch to build it up gently. the one thing i found best about the program is it fixed my head ,the mentality of,, ‘i can’t do it’. like after week 5 by doing the 20 min run non stop showed me that going for 8 or 0 min was easy. Its a lot to do with your mental thoughts ..I’m currently 2 stone overweight but still ran a 10 milerun for charity in 1.48.. Also i find that to run long distance or over 45 minutes is the way to looseweight in running. so my advice is to follow the program and you will succeed.
Your blog is amazing, so witty and unique! I can’t believe you’ve written about running “on the blob”! Talk about ground-breaking!
I’m trying to get back into running; I used to run quite regularly until I had my kids, but I think I’ve hidden behind that excuse long enough.
I’ve put an article on my blog announcing to the world my intention to run a 10k this summer. Now I’ll have to do it to avoid public humiliation!
Thanks for the awesome read.
Ella x
I have tried and failed the C25K about 3 times now, I am not sure what speed I should be aiming for but by week 5 I was nowhere able to complete 0.75miles in 8min. I get tired so quickly and even if I can run 2min on treadmill I can’t run for 1min outside. I can’t imagine ever being fit.
Thanks so much for this. I started the c25k recently, I’m on week 2 – did Day 2 today and found it more challenging than the last few days. You have inspired me to continue – I know it won’t be easy but reading your blog I know it is possible to come out smiling the other side
great to read your story, I started jogging last year and never made it as far as you. got up to 8 mins total jogging ( 2 mins most at one time). I had to have surgery on my ankle and now am ready to start again but am I stone heavier and have lost all confidence. I really enjoyed in last time and loved that I was making progress, when I first started I could run for about 20 seconds!!! hoping to find the inspiration again and that’s how I can across this.
Hope your still doing well and thanks for sharing
Thank you so much I just tried the first day and couldn’t get through the second minute of jogging. It’s nice to not feel so alone that there are other people struggling with this program. I think I’m going to try wed with shorter intervals. I can’t believe I need an introduction to my introduction to running. Just…Thank you again for sharing!