OK! I completed the first workout of C25K. I'm really glad my friend is doing it with me, bc I'm the type to slack off and start walking when I get winded (and BOY did I get winded). It was kind of shocking to me, I can't even jog for a minute without puffing like a bellows! Survived though, stretched, and downed 24 ounces of water. Thought "Hey, I can totally have some ice cream thats in the freezer!"...bc my brain is made of counterproductive cells, apparently. Then remembered I had GoGurt in there too. Just as frozen, just as good.

Stronger4me Looks like we got started on the same day! Are you planning to use an app (or something) to track speed/distance? I didn't today, but I think I will next time. I'm not fussed about it really, bc I'm just trying to build my endurance...but knowledge is power, right?

tinneranne, I'm starting out at the gym. Then will move to the gym's indoor track before going outdoors. I'm not keeping track of speed because I vary it throughout my run. I'm using 'C25K Free' app on my android phone, which has each day's run/walk built in and tracks each day of the training for me. I need to find an app that tracks distance for me, but haven't done that yet. I don't have an IPhone, that will be a gift to myself once I complete a race in September.

Tinnerane are you sure you don't go too fast? When I tried running with a friend, he went faster than me and I subconsciously tried to keep up with him, ending up really out of breathe. When I go on my own, I go slowly, and I complete what I should complete. It sounds as if you maybe should slow down. I read somewhere that answer to a question "How fast should I go when I am a beginner in running?" is "Slow. If you can run any slower, you are not running slow enough". Keeping up with that advice allowed me to get this fast

I competed W6D1 today. Was a struggle, but I did what I should do, and I am properly proud Already looking forward to a longer run in D3. 2.25 miles! That will be a great accomplishment.

Ronja I don't know if I'm trying to keep up with him...but I certainly wasn't able to finish the workout today. I did six of the minute running sessions and walked the rest. I feel a bit pathetic, but I'm just going to try W1D2 again on Friday. I've never really worked out or pushed myself before. When it feels uncomfortable...I stop. No more!

Hello

Tuesday I competed the first day of week 2. And very surprisingly it was not bad. Based on the first week I had some doubts if I could do even the 90 mins without stopping but as it turns out I could. Even if it included some games in my head like: lets see if I can reach that tree over there next to the track before the guy on the podcast tells me to slow down again. For the first time I also found myself looking around and not just at the ground in front of me, I think that also helps with giving a bit better posture and that feeling of: Hey, I am actually jogging. That is is pretty awesome! Great feeling!

Happy C25K for all!

Liz well done on enjoying your sun! I remember I felt SO WORRIED when I was going to run for 3 minutes straight for the first time. I did not believe I can run that long - now I am running around 25 minutes!

Tinneranne try to take it really slow, and see what happens. Though to be honest with you, if I stopped when it gets uncomfortable, I would never run as long as I do now. Sometimes I start feeling tired, but I push forward and in couple of minutes the feeling passes and I feel just fine again. The worst thing that can happen is being out of breathe, that is very uncomfortable and ruins a run. Going slow helps me with that.

I need to take Ronja's advice as well. I've been pushing myself to go faster and I think I'd do better going a bit slower. Keep going Tinner! We can do this together.

I completed W1D2 yesterday, 1.64mi @ 25 min. This may seem like a silly question, but during this first week how many total minutes should it be? 20 min. or 30 min?

To everyone on week 1 or 2, I agree with the advice to go slow! It helped me. When I did day 1 of week 1, I was so unfit that I had to pause the podcast and lean against the lamp post to catch my breath and I walked through the last run interval! Now I'm on week 5 and I can run 8 minutes straight.

Rainbow welcome on the board. I love your enthusiasm and honestly, I think the most difficult on all this is to START. I NEVER believed I could be a runner, but people on here inspired me, especially seeing that even an overweight person can start running and love it. So I did and I am so very, very proud. It's pretty much the only sport I have ever taken up and it makes me feel so cool to be a "runner" and buy runner clothes and all that, yes it is superficial but it's me, I love the feeling of being a part of the "fit (or getting fit)" group of people, not the fat one sitting aside thinking she could never do this.

Today I run 2 miles (W6D2) with a break in between them. First mile should have taken me 10 minutes, but it took me 13. Then 3 minutes break, and another mile, this time completed in 12 minutes. Yes, it was SLOW, but I finished the distance and run longer than I was supposed to, which in some way is good too. W6D3 will be 2.25 miles (3,6 km) without any break, and longer runs without breaks from there on. I am excited!

Take two of W1D2 was a success! I'm thinking it may take me more like 10 weeks to finish this thing...but if I ever run 5k it'll be a miracle. Finishing is the goal, not finishing in 8 weeks.

Despite the concern that running with someone could make me try to keep up...I can say its really helpful to have a running partner. Not only for the practicality (he drives us to the track) but also for the accountability factor. We set a time and hey, I can't just blow it off. Also, even though he's 300lbs, Andy is used to working out. He knows how to push himself and he's a good cheerleader for me. I am decidedly cranky about the whole "sweating and panting" thing.

Question: What other workouts/exercise are you ladies doing while you do the C25K? I'm not currently doing anything, my thinking is I've never really exercised before and I don't want to have any excuse not to do my 3X a week run....I may start doing yoga on my days off though, stretch out those sore muscles!

lizz Congrats on the first day of the second week! I'm apprehensive about the 90 second run too, but you totally nailed it!

Ronja I'm working on pushing through the discomfort. Controlling my breathing so I don't pant awfully seems to help a little.

stronger4me we most certainly can do it. more than that, we will do it. The app I'm using ranges from 25 to 40 minutes depending on the day (I confess I peeked at the later weeks).

So, I did W3D3 on tuesday and again on thursday (part of my plan to take it slow). Today I did W4D1 - and finished it! The 5 minute segments were a little long - during the last one I heard the voice prompt start and I thought "thank god I'm done running", and she said "1 minute to go". I thought "you teasing B*%^H!!!" But I made it through the last minute. I went 2.17 miles in 33 minutes - I walked a little while after the cool down ended.

I'm really pleased with my progress so far. At this point I don't care how slow I am, I just want to run. I want to sign up for a race, but I'm not sure how far out I should schedule it. There's one nearby Labor Day weekend - if I continue to progress on schedule it would be fine, but I'm a little concerned about weeks 5 and 6. I figure there's always the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving, but I'd like to run a race before that.

ETA - Tinnerane, I do yoga the other days of the week. I started that at the beginning of the year, and like it a lot. I have the Namaste Yoga DVDs - it was the series on FitTV. Each episode is 22 minutes, and the focus is on linking the poses together with the breath. Got it on Amazon - a little pricey ($50 for 13 episodes), but I like it, so price per use is low. I also have The Biggest Loser yoga DVD - now that s*&t is HARD! I end that one arms trembling and sweaty. The Namaste yoga I can do in my pajamas and go straight to bed - it's very relaxing.

Tinneranne don't get me wrong, I think having a running partner is awesome and I sometimes wish I had one! The mutual support and accountability can be awesome. It's just when you mentioned running out of breath, I realized that was my problem when I had a running partner once. It was the only day when I didn't finish the run, so exhausted it left me. But it's just me being silly and always thinking I need to keep up with someone, grrr!

Rainbow what an amazing progress! I'm sorry but I don't really feel in a position to give any advices, but I would say if you're very overweight, or don't feel too fit, just stick with the time the program recommends (e.g. running one minute, walking 1,5 minutes) for now, because you can add the speed (and therefore distance) later. I started off that way, as I had no means to measure my distance. I got an iPhone around week 5, started to measure the distance and I felt fit enough to push harder and achieve the distance as well, not just the time. In fact, my time is still quite longer than recommended, because I run so slow. But I'm happy!

Today I finished week 6. I run 2,25 miles in total, without a break. It took me 25 minutes. I loved it, but longer runs to me impose a danger of getting bored. I think I'm getting an audiobook to listen to next time...or just new and cool music!

Hello,

I completed week 2 today and am so happy! I am really starting to enjoy the jogging parts and being outside and "one of the joggers" on the track, well at least during those couple minutes that I actually spend jogging. But this is much more fun than I had expected. I timed myself for the first time today: completed 5.3 km is 50 minutes so there is probably lots of room left for improvement in the coming weeks but I am starting to believe now that gradual approach is really worth it and does bring results that I can already notice myself in small steps.

rainbowsmiles - very happy that you are along and going about your running program in a gradual way too. I am only a couple days ahead of you and can say that even after a couple occasions there is notable improvement and I am really starting to believe that this gradual approach will bring very good results. The enjoyment factor is one I never really expected but is already starting to captivate me and I wish you the same. :-)

tinneranne2 - I go to a zumba class once a week and enjoy some light boxing-like home workout DVDs on the days off C25K and occasionally play table tennis, actually thinking about it, those offer some nice variety to the jogging. My goals is to exercise on most days of the week, which for now means about 5 days a week and take the other 2 for rest and recovery. That leaves me pretty tired though in the evenings and physical exhaustion is a wonderful sleeping pill but I look very much forward to when my body gets fitter and learns to handle that exercise regime without feeling knocked out as soon as my head hits the pillow. :-)

Ronja - Congratulations on completing your week 6! 25 minutes without stopping sounds amazing and I am very happy that your efforts have made this possible. I listen to audiobooks too sometimes on my way home from the runner's track and mix up the music weekly to help avoid it becoming too predictable. It is also fun to experiment that way with what tracks motivate me most in practice and to pack more and more of those onto my player. I found this list fun to browse too for some new ideas: http://www.dailyspark.com/blog.asp?p...gs_of_all_time

Happy C25K to all!

Week 1 is complete! I'm averaging 2.45 miles each time out (including the 10 minute warm up/cool down time) which I feel is pretty decent. Trying not to get intimidated by the longer run times next week offers. Bring it!

A bit disappointed that I don't seem to have lost any weight this week, though I did have a couple days that I was massively beyond my calorie limit. Rest of the week was on plan, so I still should have (mathematically speaking) lost about a pound. oh well. I'll eat cleaner next week.

Hope everyone had an awesome weekend, keep running ladies!

Week 4, day 3 DONE! And it's already 80 degrees out, so I was kinda slow, but I don't care how slow I am. I just want to keep going! My plan is to do this workout 1 more time before moving on to week 5.

Rainbowsmiles, I walked for a couple months before I started the couch to 5K. I wanted to start slow because of my knees and feet, and I also needed new sneakers and a real sports bra. I've read other posts who said it took longer than 8 weeks, so I'm repeating workouts on purpose. I've been repeating the last workout of each week so far. It's taken me 5 1/2 weeks to get to where I am. I really don't care if it takes me 10, 12 or even 16 weeks - I just want to finish the program and run that 5K!

Off to Target today to buy some more of the amazing socks. I'll save the package this time so I remember what they are.