Don't get discouraged, I also really struggled when I first started in early May. I signed up for a BIG local 5K that was 3 weeks away, before I started C25K. I figured at the very least I was capable of walking 3 miles. I was really excited about this program because I was so out of shape. I was 216 pounds and REALLY on the couch. I thought the title C25K sounded so warm and fuzzy. Then I did day one and had a reality check. Stephen King could have written horror novels about the sounds coming out of my lungs. I was definitely panicked about my upcoming race. Right now I'm on week 5, I did my second 5k last weekend in 35 min and I can't believe I struggled so much with 60 second intervals a few weeks ago.

Luckily I read a "Beginning Runners" article that warned me about the extent to which you feel wiped out in the beginning. I was sore and exhausted for the first few weeks but the feeling went away. I'd recommend giving it 3-4 weeks before you make up your mind. Try and run as slow as you can and take the program at your own pace. I've had steps backward and weeks that took me a little longer to complete. It's all good, just keep at it.

Hi girls, I've been reading posts, and I'm really encouraged by your experiences! I just finished W1D3 today and I stepped on the scale to discover a gain of 2.5 pounds. Pretty depressing, but I'm gonna stick with it since I do feel better about myself for sticking with this even just for one week. I don't have a great track record when it comes to consistently going to the gym :/ I usually do the elliptical b/c when I run, my feet and knees end up in pain, but the short bursts are doable. I can't believe how out of breath and sweaty I get - worse than double the time on the elliptical.

Anyway, I'm just glad I found a community of people to talk about this with :>

Wow that's really great; I'm doing C25K right now and I can't wait until I can post a time like that. I think my best time for a 5K right now (run/walk) is about 45 minutes.

Hey ladies, I've been at the C25K for the past 4 weeks, just heading into week 5 (terrified of the 7 minutes), every once in a while i do my C25K as i'm meant to from the plan and follow it with whatever last weeks was, it seems to be helping increase my endurance.

Anyway I'm loving it so far & hope you'll all forgive me for not reading the 13 pages before i posted- i will try to get through them

Almostatty - When I started I didn't lose a pound for the first 3 weeks. I cleaned up my diet a bit but wasn't perfect. Though I could see the running progress as I was progressing though the weeks. Then the diet got a little better and the runs got a little longer and I started losing. Losing weight is almost 100% diet. Exercise helps with endorphins, cleaning up your hormonal profile, mood, sleep, fitness etc. Things that will help you stay on your diet, but in and of itself it won't help you all that much with losing weight. Someone around here has a sig quote that says "you can't out exercise poor eating habits" and that’s definitely the truth. Good Luck!

Darius - Thanks, My first one was done in 37 min and some change in late may, and then I did this one less than a month later in 35, I actually walked some of it. Your time will probably get a lot faster as you do the program; the progress you see in the beginning is so motivating. Good Luck!

Finished week 6 day 1 today. I actually found it more difficult than w5d3, but I completed it.

@AnonymouslyYours I agree! I think after running 20 minutes straight I underestimated this one. Seems so easy compared to W5D3. It's not!

i started running yesterday outside (around the lake near my house).
For some reasons, i had to go back to W1D1. It was so much different from running at home.
My speed is way too fast compare to running at home, therefore I'm out of breath much easier.
It's just so different when running outside.
But it feels much better.
I think i'm gonna restart myself as W1D1 yesterday, and will keep running outside. At least I was able to last myself 3 lake-rounds (around 4km), of 25 minutes (plus 5 minutes warm-up).

OK, I am back. After a few setbacks (day camp volunteer first week of June and a 9 day road trip last week), I am back on track. I finished week 6 before my trip and only ran 1x last week in 90+ degree heat with high humity and quit after 1 mile a dripping mess, so that doesn't count. So this 9-week plan is taking several months, but it WILL get done!

Today I did week 7 day 1 and ran my 2.5 miles in 30:11. Not bad, not bad at all. And you know what? I wasn't dying! My breathing was good and didn't start huffing until well into mile 2. I might actually be getting the hang of this running thing! Looking forward to doing it again on Thursday.

Good Luck everyone! It does get easier as it gets harder (if that makes any sense).

I attempted W5D3 today and got through 18 min of it. I'm actually very happy.

I planed on doing D2 again today but felt pretty good during the warm-up walk and decided to go for it. I was really hurting by min 13-14 then got a mini-second wind. I think I could have finished it, but I accidentally hit my timer with 2 min left turning it off. I was spent though.

I was also pleased that I was on pace for ~10 min mile. I've been doing this by time not by distance, but yesterday I mapquested my course to get an idea of how far I was going. The whole thing is 2.3 miles and I figure the .3 is my warm up walk. When I pooped out I was 1.5 blocks from the end.

I just did W6D2 today. It almost killed me but I completed the workout :-) I had sore legs and that didn't mix well. Anyways, W6D3 on Thursday!

I did w6d2 today, just like my fellow troop member Josey did yesterday! Congrats again, girl! w6d3 on Friday!

Awesome!

I did W3D1 today. I had bad shin pain during the 3 minute run. I could barely lift my legs by the end of the 3 minutes. Any tips on relieving the pain?

Ice and time, Isabella. Are you wearing proper running shoes, fitted to you by someone who knows what they're doing?