Did the 5-minute intervals today and, frankly, I couldn't believe how great I felt! I know there's a long way to go, but today felt like some kind of turning point. Maybe it's just these new treadmills at my gym -- perhaps they're extra bouncy. Whatever the reason, today gave me a renewed energy for this program. Maybe your Laura will indeed get us there!

My eating schedule was a little different than it has been. I worked out between breakfast and lunch, so I did the treadmill and then had, within 30 minutes, a packet of IP BBQ soy nuts and then a little salad. That was actually my lunch. So, I did not have an "extra" packet or protein per se today. Never felt faint or dizzy, etc. Does this seem like it's a really bad idea bc of what it may do to muscle mass? Or is it not that big of a deal because this was not strength training, it was just a little cardio? Would love any advice.

Originally Posted by Mimi47:
Did the 5-minute intervals today and, frankly, I couldn't believe how great I felt! I know there's a long way to go, but today felt like some kind of turning point. Maybe it's just these new treadmills at my gym -- perhaps they're extra bouncy. Whatever the reason, today gave me a renewed energy for this program. Maybe your Laura will indeed get us there!

My eating schedule was a little different than it has been. I worked out between breakfast and lunch, so I did the treadmill and then had, within 30 minutes, a packet of IP BBQ soy nuts and then a little salad. That was actually my lunch. So, I did not have an "extra" packet or protein per se today. Never felt faint or dizzy, etc. Does this seem like it's a really bad idea bc of what it may do to muscle mass? Or is it not that big of a deal because this was not strength training, it was just a little cardio? Would love any advice.

You've got it, exactly, a turning point. Starting to understand that it IS possible to run for longer than we think. Great way of putting it. :)

All exercise breaks down muscle, but we are having far more protein than the average person does so it should repair and the running will build endurance with the increased intervals. Personally, I am more concerned about the lowering of Basal Metabolic Rate from reduced caloric intake than the muscle loss (as I seem to be gaining muscle just fine with running and 2 or 3 days strength training) so I do tend to refuel now, in comparison to when I first started. I always carry something in case of emergency (never know how you're going to fare on Day 1 of a new week) and I tend to take a half packet equivalent portion of a ChocoLite protein that I love. I didn't used to be able to take in water after exercise but I now make myself chug 24 oz before I leave the gym. Honestly, you can only be led by your body and the results at the end of the week. Generally, we are on such low calories already that I prefer to have a little extra just to tide me over as I run around 9:30am and don't have lunch until nearly 2, and by then I'd eat the cats if I hadn't put something else in! :)

What hours do you keep when you run? Are you a late riser and have breakfast soon after? I know that I am peeing out a ton of ketones first thing, so if we run in the morning we may still have pretty high ketone levels in addition to which we add breakfast protein in there, too.

As we're supposed to be "light" jogging rather than all out running, I don't think it's going to be as damaging to muscles as gung-ho cardio or lifting heavy weights repetitively. I could be wrong, but I've had no adverse effects to C25K yet, and my pre and post refueling have been pretty hit and miss in terms of timing.

Sorry I can't give you more advice than that at present. I'll certainly do some research on the keto running sites and let you know what I discover, though.

Amanda -- you are an unbelievable wealth of information. Thank you for taking the time to advise…me and everyone else:)

I'm up early on weekdays, then after my mug of warm water with lemon, I dive into a couple of cups of coffee with IP vanilla RTD. If I have time, I like to sip those slowly -- over an hour or more. That's what happened today, and then I went to work out. I was still full when I started and then had lunch right after. I hear what you're saying about the calories though. I did get hungrier than normal later in the evening, but I thought that might have been because of the early and light dinner we had (will post questions about that tomorrow). Now, I'm realizing it was probably a combination of that plus just needing more calories over the course of the day. Thanks for your input. I'll be more mindful tomorrow -- it's a tennis day, so I'll try to also fit in some core stuff here at home.

Mimi47, yay for the 5 minute milestone :) I've been missing the program and am looking forward to starting at it again tomorrow. I believe I've recovered enough from my cabin experience :)

And Amanda, I agree with Mimi47, I appreciate reading your informative posts, even when I wasn't asking the questions, I learn things I didn't even know I needed to know.

Keep going everyone :)

Thanks guys, but I'm really just sharing my personal experience and tidbits that I read on the daily link-clicking fest that is my afternoon! :)

Raging temperature and strep throat this morning and I seriously debated putting off W4D2 today, but I felt well in myself (chest and legs). Once I got everything packed up, arrived at the gym and started unpacking I realised that I hadn't put on the Garmin. Doh. So, manual count of laps and clock watching (both of which I hate to do as I run out of fingers for one and forget to look for the other!). Of course, where I was more focused on the running intervals than checking my garmin every few minutes for pace, heartrate and timing ... I ran more evenly and it felt more natural. Go figure.

I simply added a cup of hot raspberry and hibiscus tea this morning to soothe the burning and hoped it would see me through. Oh, and I discovered that Skinny Girl do stevia drops - find it on the shelves with their water additives. Unlike many of the stevia packets it doesn't have that bitter aftertaste that I detest. Now I can enjoy the less sweet tea varieties again. Of course, tastebuds are affected, so probably going to be pulling in more sweetener than is good for me, but .. oh well. :)

Mimi - it definitely sounds like you need that extra packet somewhere in the day. If you're anything like us mealtimes move around all over the place during the week.

I'm currently watching all the information from Lisa and wylothar on the daily threads, and prospective IPers threads. I'm a bit of a sponge when it comes to information (at least in the short term) and I love the sciency bits behind why IP works. I just think information shared is knowledge gained, and if it helps me, it's probably going to help at least one or two others. :)

Interesting link today:-

What to eat before, during and after your workouts and races

Read the article but be prepared to scroll down until it gets to the ketogenic section. It covers all sorts of fueling from high carb, low carb/high fat, keto, protein only and junk food. I found it interesting as it quotes direct amounts from experience.

The most comprehensive and relevant quote of the article:-

Originally Posted by :
The Post Workout Fueling Myth
You may have noticed that I haven’t talked too much about what to eat after your workout – and there’s a reason for that.

It’s likely that you’ve seen somewhere the legend of a mystical, magical fueling window. From exercise books, magazine articles and websites to nearly every resource that exists on sports nutrition, you’ll commonly read that “after you finish a workout, you have 20-60 minutes to replace precious energy by consuming a mix carbohydrates and proteins”.

Here’s what they don’t tell you:

In every study or experiment that has investigated the benefit of immediate post-workout nutrition replacement, subjects were fed after completing an exercise session that they had performed in a fasted or semi-starves state.

In other words, of course you’re going to benefit if you eat a meal after a workout in which you were completely depleted of energy. But how many of us actually roll out of bed in the morning, hop on a bicycle, and ride hard for 90 minutes to 2 hours with absolutely no fuel?

So here’s the deal: if you’ve actually had a pre-workout meal, or any other recent meal, there’s no crucial, do-or-die need to eat after your workout – especially if you’re still “burping up” that meal you ate before your exercise session. This is especially true if you have no other workouts planned for the day, since your body is able to totally replenish energy levels within just 8 hours of normal hunger-driven, real-food eating. When combined with what you learned about the health, recovery and longevity benefits of fasting from the chapter 26 Top Ways To Recover From Workouts and Injuries with Lightning Speed, it simply makes sense to fret much less about post-workout nutrition than most of us do.

But it does make sense to fuel within that 20-60 minute window if you:

A) Haven’t had anything to eat before your workout and you’re in a totally energy depleted state (such as an early morning hard session before breakfast) and/or

B) You’re going to be working out again within the next 8 hours.

C) You’re trying to pack on muscle as fast as possible (AKA eat every piece of real food in sight and lift heavy stuff).

In any of these cases, after your workout simply eat a big meal real food in the form of a smoothie or any of the quick and easy-to-digest meals from Chapter 11 and you’ll be set. Contrary to popular belief, the fat content in these meals does not slow down amino acid or glucose absorption. Ideally, you can combine any of those meals with my comprehensive recovery tips in Chapter 8.

Finally, if you really want to geek out on the nitty-gritty, scientific details of this post-workout nutrition discussion, then you should check out the free Rock Star Triathlete Academy article “Putting the Pre & Post Workout Nutrition Debate Into The Grave” and also listen to my guest recording of the Podcast Episode #73 at David Warden’s Tri-Talk.

The only proviso would be that we are on very low caloric intake already and, in order to preserve our metabolic rate, we need to replace the calories expended. If you can calculate these accurately I would certainly aim for 100% replenishment within the 24 hour food cycle.

The best reference I can find to the "bulletproof coffee" they quote is a cup of high-grade black coffee with coconut oil and butter. All the reading I've done suggests that caffeine is a stimulant that is designed for burst activity like weight lifting, not for endurance sports like long distance running or semi-burst activity like intervals in C25K training, as it both leads to both an elevated heart rate (and OMG doesn't it go up enough as it is???) and *can* stimulate insulin production (who wants that when you're trying to get your body to USE the few carbs, rather than store them?).

I finally started today! Did day one on my treadmill due to ice storm LOL...I feel ok. I actually did not even break a sweat today. Guess I am in better shape than I thought!

I will keep you posted on my progress!

Originally Posted by Sgrealtor1:
I finally started today! Did day one on my treadmill due to ice storm LOL...I feel ok. I actually did not even break a sweat today. Guess I am in better shape than I thought!

I will keep you posted on my progress!

Great Job! You are inspiring me to start. I've been thinking about it, and I keep putting it off, but maybe...

I am glad to hear it was so easy for you. I've been walking 3 miles a day. Maybe I am ready to add some running in.

Keep up the good work!:carrot:

Terrific, Sue -- welcome! LosetoWin -- would love to have you on board as well! If you've already been walking 3 miles a day, this will not be difficult for you to start at all. Remember -- the first week, your longest jogs are just one minute long, and they then go up very gradually (to 90 seconds, 3 minutes, 5 etc.) over several weeks. That being said, of course, I'm nervous about the week ahead for myself (more below)!

Amanda -- thank you for that article. I've read it (most of it a couple of times) and am just processing all the info, along with info in some of the other current threads. The only thing I know for sure is that there ain't no way I'm having that saturated-fat-laden Bulletproof Coffee!

Week 4 has been going swimmingly, but this next week is where it has fallen apart for me in the past. From 8-minutes stretches to a 20-minute one -- wow. I think my pace is much slower than it perhaps "should" be, because the app I use seems to think I'm jogging 10-minute miles (6.0 on treadmill). Not even close so far. But this is more about endurance than speed, so if this program can get me to run 20-minute+ stretches, I'll take it!

I think Amanda already has registered for a spring 5k, right? Going to look around for one myself….

Keep running all!

By the way, still figuring out the new treadmills at my gym. When I was in the middle of my jogging session yesterday, I noticed that I had been at it for 20 minutes with the incline at 2.5, instead of 0. And I'd been blaming my more labored breathing on my Saturday night!

Originally Posted by Sgrealtor1:
I finally started today! Did day one on my treadmill due to ice storm LOL...I feel ok. I actually did not even break a sweat today. Guess I am in better shape than I thought!

I will keep you posted on my progress!

Awesome, you won't regret it :)

Originally Posted by Mimi47:
Terrific, Sue -- welcome! LosetoWin -- would love to have you on board as well! If you've already been walking 3 miles a day, this will not be difficult for you to start at all. Remember -- the first week, your longest jogs are just one minute long, and they then go up very gradually (to 90 seconds, 3 minutes, 5 etc.) over several weeks. That being said, of course, I'm nervous about the week ahead for myself (more below)!

Amanda -- thank you for that article. I've read it (most of it a couple of times) and am just processing all the info, along with info in some of the other current threads. The only thing I know for sure is that there ain't no way I'm having that saturated-fat-laden Bulletproof Coffee!

Week 4 has been going swimmingly, but this next week is where it has fallen apart for me in the past. From 8-minutes stretches to a 20-minute one -- wow. I think my pace is much slower than it perhaps "should" be, because the app I use seems to think I'm jogging 10-minute miles (6.0 on treadmill). Not even close so far. But this is more about endurance than speed, so if this program can get me to run 20-minute+ stretches, I'll take it!

I think Amanda already has registered for a spring 5k, right? Going to look around for one myself….

Keep running all!

For sure don't worry about your speed for now, you can work on that later. Hopefully you will find next week easier than you have in the past.

Originally Posted by Lose2Win2014:
Great Job! You are inspiring me to start. I've been thinking about it, and I keep putting it off, but maybe...

I am glad to hear it was so easy for you. I've been walking 3 miles a day. Maybe I am ready to add some running in.

Keep up the good work!:carrot:

If you are already walking 3 miles a day you are ready to run :)

I started week three today, felt good. I'm looking forward to running for longer periods of time.

Keep it up everyone :)

Originally Posted by Sgrealtor1:
I finally started today! Did day one on my treadmill due to ice storm LOL...I feel ok. I actually did not even break a sweat today. Guess I am in better shape than I thought!

I will keep you posted on my progress!

Welcome aboard, Sue! Glad you found it so easy, that will really help as the intervals ramp up! :)

LosetoWin Always happy to have another new person to compare C25K notes with! :)

Originally Posted by Mimi47:

Week 4 has been going swimmingly, but this next week is where it has fallen apart for me in the past. From 8-minutes stretches to a 20-minute one -- wow. I think my pace is much slower than it perhaps "should" be, because the app I use seems to think I'm jogging 10-minute miles (6.0 on treadmill). Not even close so far. But this is more about endurance than speed, so if this program can get me to run 20-minute+ stretches, I'll take it!

I think Amanda already has registered for a spring 5k, right? Going to look around for one myself….

Keep running all!

Treadmill speeds are notoriously inaccurate. Ever check the post-workout summary that appears on screen against the stated speed you set? I've normally seen 2.8mph when the setting was at 3.0mph and it only gets worse the faster you go. Take it all with a pinch of salt, but as long as you're doing a running motion any speed is fine. :)

Amanda has indeed registered for a spring 5k ... Run for the Fallen here at Fort Bliss.

I suspect that I'll be coming away from my "well woman" doctors appointment on Thursday with some antibiotics as I'm rattling, croaky voiced and hacking up yucky green ick. Managed my Week 5 Day 1 (on the outdoor track), but just can't imagine doing 20 mins straight on Friday with this. Amazingly, I don't cough or choke or have difficulty when I'm moving. I firmly believe that I'll be doing the Day 2 on both days 2 and 3, and then doing them again next week on 1 and 2, with the 20 min run on the Day 3. Better to be safe than sorry and I should be well enough by then to cope with it.

The outdoor track was both easier and harder, in different ways. More interesting to look at the mountains, feel the breeze and not know exactly how many laps it would take me to run 5 minutes ... but a harder surface, bright sunshine and 72F definitely made it a higher heart rate event for me. My poor garmin was very upset with me. It said my average heart rate was 242 (I think 33 mins of that heartrate would kill most humans off, so I'm sure it's not quite right) and I burned 51 calories. Yeah, yeah garmin, I'm going with the 300 for that, thank you very much.

Outdoor track has its own motivation, too. Fit and healthy soldiers playing soccer on the pitch in the middle of the track. Win-win indoor or out. :)

Run pace seems to have settled around the 11:30 per mile rate for me. It varies a little either side but averages out. My pace is more even and despite feeling tired in bouts, I can keep going. I suspected my pace would drop outdoors with the unforeseen variables but the track elevation was around 73ft variance so I was actually going up and down hills, albeit small ones. Fun. :)

Originally Posted by Mimi47:
By the way, still figuring out the new treadmills at my gym. When I was in the middle of my jogging session yesterday, I noticed that I had been at it for 20 minutes with the incline at 2.5, instead of 0. And I'd been blaming my more labored breathing on my Saturday night!

Awesome, Mimi. You should be proud that you didn't think anything of it until you finished. That's a big hurdle for transitioning to outdoors later. :)

Week 1 workout 1 is finished! It went great! I am glad to be on board here. Thanks for leading the way, ladies!

Amanda -- feel better soon! And your plan to extend W5 makes perfect sense to me. Good idea. (Maybe I should keep you company :)) Friday (the 13th) is currently scheduled to be my first "20-minute day" as well. Ugh!

And thank you and DeterminedDieter for reassurance re the speed. I just keep thinking about the peeking through then hedges visual, and that's a lot slower that 6.0 for someone as short as me!

Originally Posted by Lose2Win2014:
Week 1 workout 1 is finished! It went great! I am glad to be on board here. Thanks for leading the way, ladies!

Yay, congrats! The sense of accomplishment grows each day you do this program. I know I couldn't have run for 5 minutes straight when I started, and now it has its moments when I feel a bit weary, but I can do it. You will, too. Welcome aboard. :)

Originally Posted by DeterminedDieter:

I started week three today, felt good. I'm looking forward to running for longer periods of time.

Keep it up everyone :)

Nice going, sounds like you're ready for Week 4 already! :)

I really enjoyed Week 3, and it brought some valuable lessons like how much stronger the body is than we think. :)

Originally Posted by Mimi47:
Amanda -- feel better soon! And your plan to extend W5 makes perfect sense to me. Good idea. (Maybe I should keep you company :)) Friday (the 13th) is currently scheduled to be my first "20-minute day" as well. Ugh!

And thank you and DeterminedDieter for reassurance re the speed. I just keep thinking about the peeking through then hedges visual, and that's a lot slower that 6.0 for someone as short as me!

I always see how I feel on the day, but I have enough headroom between the end of C25K and the first 5k run to slow it down if I need. :) If Week 5 Day 3 was your stumbling point before it might not be a bad idea to repeat the 5/8/5/8/5 a couple of times to build up.

I was quite shocked today .. after finishing the last 5 min run I walked for about 60 seconds and then almost sprinted to catch up to hubby (who was walking round the track slightly ahead of me). I was amazed that I had the energy reserves to do it, because when you finish that last one don't you just feel like "oh, thank goodness that's over!" LOL Just goes to show how much more we can pull out if the motivation is there!

I agree with DD, Mimi. Run at a pace that allows you to keep putting a foot in front of the other. That's all that matters. If your natural pace is fast then that's the way you'll run once you get into your rhythm. It took me 4-ish weeks to find it, but I'm almost on the nail with every interval now. Hopefully it's muscle memory and it will just expand to the longer distances. :)

Yes, this is the problem with running on a treadmill though -- it's not really muscle memory but more of a manufactured pace (because I just pick some speed, say 4.5, and then stick with it. Looking forward to getting outside and seeing what my pace really is. You're right though -- if I was running to catch up to DH or DS or, say, some soldier :), perhaps I'd pick up my pace!

I got derailed but I am back on track! Did week 1, Day 1 last night. I am committed to doing this!

Way to get back at it Kelly :)

Originally Posted by Kellyc14:
I got derailed but I am back on track! Did week 1, Day 1 last night. I am committed to doing this!

Yay, good job Kelly. :)

Hi everyone, I'm a new maintainer doing the C25k too! On week 5 so Briael I should be doing the 20 min stretch on Friday 13 th too! Don't know if I'm ready for it. Initially I felt a little stronger so moved a little faster than the schedule. I love the high I get from even the short 5 min stretches. I use the treadmill, run at 5.2 and walk at 4.0.

Originally Posted by saharag:
Hi everyone, I'm a new maintainer doing the C25k too! On week 5 so Briael I should be doing the 20 min stretch on Friday 13 th too! Don't know if I'm ready for it. Initially I felt a little stronger so moved a little faster than the schedule. I love the high I get from even the short 5 min stretches. I use the treadmill, run at 5.2 and walk at 4.0.

Woot! Three of us supposed to be doing the 20 min run this Friday. I am still wanting to at least attempt it ... but if I have to repeat it because of this chest infection then I will accept that. Dreading the big step up, but I have confidence that the program works, as so many before us have succeeded with it. :)

Sounds like it's going well for you, Saharag. :)

This is a good article by the same people who wrote The Art and Science of
Low Carbohydrate Performance. Instead of being about elite athletes, it is a study about us! I bought the book on my Kindle. This article was one of the references.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC371554/

Reading this book and article make me stop to re-think what I would want maintenance to look like. I feel so much better low carb. Do I want my maintenance to still be some version of low carb? The book makes the case for low carb (about 50 g), moderate protein and high fat being key to successful endurance. I am just so tired of carbs making me tired. I don't know if I want to jump on that train again.

Thanks ladies! I was looking forward to my walk/run last night, but didn't get to do it because we are being audited at work and I didn't get home until late. That's OK though, I will do it tonight!!

Hacking up icky green stuff and don't feel brilliant, but the sun is shining and it's warm here so I'm determined to at least try Day 2 today. Taking hubby with me to make sure I don't have any repercussions. Body feels good, head feels great, sore throat has gone so it's really just the rattling chest. Don't even feel "heaviness". I believe it's doable.

Good luck for W5 D2 Mimi and Sahara. :)

Good luck with the big runs this week, Week 5'ers! Hope you feel well, Amanda.

I have done my first couple of runs on the treadmill. I am trying to run slowly, but I am feeling like I am doing the C23K program, not 5K. The first day I ran at 4 mph, and today, I upped it to 4.2. Anybody else start slowly? Does it get easier to run faster as the program goes on? I am trying to keep this pretty low intensity, so I am not exhausted after running at 4.2 mph.

I'm keeping it slow, about 4.5- 4.7 mph for the "runs" and 3.5 mph for the "walks". I only get about 3.5km in each session, but the point is to work up to running 5k, so I wouldn't worry about it. You start to run more than walk as you go on which will also increase the distance you go with each day. Once you've completed it you can work on increasing your pace if you want. We don't want to over do it in especially in P1.

I was lazy this morning so I opted to stay in bed instead of run, but I'm ready to do it as soon as I get home from work :)

Keep going everyone :)
Just keep at it and you will get there :)

Originally Posted by Lose2Win2014:
I have done my first couple of runs on the treadmill. I am trying to run slowly, but I am feeling like I am doing the C23K program, not 5K. The first day I ran at 4 mph, and today, I upped it to 4.2. Anybody else start slowly? Does it get easier to run faster as the program goes on? I am trying to keep this pretty low intensity, so I am not exhausted after running at 4.2 mph.

My tracking says that run speed is variable. I notice that during the run segments I sometimes feel like I have bursts of energy and pick up speed, then have to consciously bring it back down again. The range of speeds is getting smaller though. You may not notice such a variance on a treadmill as the moving band should be consistent on a motor.

Managed the two 8 mins segments this morning. It wasn't easy, but I felt I could've continued for longer on both (thank goodness as 20 mins is a massive step up).

On a sad note, my heartrate monitor band has chosen this week to crap out. Luckily I can transfer the sensor off mine to hubby's band as he's not using it, and order a new one. I knew my heart wouldn't be at 248 for 30 mins and me live to tell the tale. ;)

Going to put Week 3 onto the shuffle, but keep Week 2, and at least attempt the 20 min bash.

How did it go for you this week, everyone? :)

Good for you for getting through those 8-minute stretches, Amanda! Though, if you're sick and coughing, take it easy. And I'm glad it's your Garmin and not your heart :)

I have just spent the last two days with car issues and then baking/shopping for DD's Valentine's care package that I shipped off tonight, so I hate to say it, but I did not get to the gym. Now I will have to wait til Friday since I have other exercise planned for tomorrow. This is a long weekend for us coming up, so I imagine I will get to the end of W5 early next week.

On speed, I have been jogging on the treadmill at 4.2-4.5 and walk at 3.8. Pre-c25k, when I would jog on the treadmill, I would typically go at 5.5, but I would not do such long stretches. For now, I think slower is better for me.

Meanwhile, my weight seems to be standing still, at least based on my home scale. Am hoping at least some BFP is being replaced by muscle mass….

Originally Posted by Mimi47:

On speed, I have been jogging on the treadmill at 4.2-4.5 and walk at 3.8. Pre-c25k, when I would jog on the treadmill, I would typically go at 5.5, but I would not do such long stretches. For now, I think slower is better for me.

Meanwhile, my weight seems to be standing still, at least based on my home scale. Am hoping at least some BFP is being replaced by muscle mass….

Any speed which allows you to get through the intervals is good. I'm less concerned about pace and more worried about building endurance for the 20 min stretch.

I had the slow down in loss, then the gain with more muscle gained than fat lost and then two weeks of very good loss. I think it balances itself out in the end.

I did notice that in the three slow weeks I lost more inches than I have lost in any individual week before - and off the pearshaped parts that stubbornly resist losing quickly. So, it may not have been good for the scales, but the tape measure was my BFF. :)

Amanda great that you could do those 8 min stretches and that overall the running is not negatively affecting your losses. I didn't look at the weekly schedule and by mistake did the 5 min runs again yesterday so will not attempt moving to 20 mins tomorrow.

Originally Posted by Briael:
I did notice that in the three slow weeks I lost more inches than I have lost in any individual week before - and off the pearshaped parts that stubbornly resist losing quickly. So, it may not have been good for the scales, but the tape measure was my BFF. :)

I guess it's one or the other -- we can't have both! My results seem to be the opposite: Had my WI today and was down 4 lbs. from the last one two weeks ago :) Got just a little past my official goal, though I am going to continue P1 for a bit longer and try to shave off another 5. Anyway, my inches have been coming down nicely all along, but get this… today my thighs measured two inches bigger than they were 3 weeks ago…when I was 5 lbs. heavier! Is this the running and tennis and leg machine exercises?? I guess it could be. My body fat has gone down and muscle mass up a bit, but still…. I'm thinking it's mostly measuring error, right?! Definitely do not need bigger thighs….

Hoping to be back on the treadmill tomorrow or Saturday. Happy jogging all!

Originally Posted by Mimi47:
I guess it's one or the other -- we can't have both! My results seem to be the opposite: Had my WI today and was down 4 lbs. from the last one two weeks ago :) Got just a little past my official goal, though I am going to continue P1 for a bit longer and try to shave off another 5. Anyway, my inches have been coming down nicely all along, but get this… today my thighs measured two inches bigger than they were 3 weeks ago…when I was 5 lbs. heavier! Is this the running and tennis and leg machine exercises?? I guess it could be. My body fat has gone down and muscle mass up a bit, but still…. I'm thinking it's mostly measuring error, right?! Definitely do not need bigger thighs….

Hoping to be back on the treadmill tomorrow or Saturday. Happy jogging all!

Muscle is smaller in mass, so I would suspect you are retaining water in newly developed muscle or your tape measure (or wielder) is faulty. :)

Either way, it'll work out in the wash.

I finished week 3 this morning, I had soccer last night, so my upper leg was bothering me a bit at first, but after the warm up it was good. The three min intervals felt good too, so I'm thinking next week should go well and I am looking forward to it. I think I like running in the morning best, and it was a bit easier to get up this morning because out of the blue DH decided to get up with me and use the home gym/weight thing we have. I hope he keeps it up just so I have the extra motivation to get out of bed early on run days :)

Mimi, congrats on reaching goal, as I get closer I am debating losing a few more lbs than my currant goal, for a bit of a cushion. But I also think that I will probably decide to lose a bit more after I've maintained a bit, but I will probably do this off IP and at a slower rate.

I hope everyone is having a great week, and keep running! :)

Oooh Mimi ... my brain's fried this week and I didn't notice that you made goal. Congrats! How does it feel to be at that weight? :)

Nice going on completing Week 3, DD, sounds like you're more than ready for Week 4. :)

Going to try for Day 3 today - can't say my brain is ready for 20 minutes of solid jog, but the program says it's possible so .... gonna give it a go. :)

Briael, good luck with your run today, you can totally do it! Let us know how it goes :)

Holy cow. I did it. I ran (well, let's be honest, slow jogged) for 20 minutes. It was easier than I expected. All that energy wasted dreading it. :)

"Laura" told me at the start "You're ready for this. It might seem like a big step but if you've managed all your previous runs then have faith in yourself and the plan". At the ten minutes in mark she encouraged with "You've already done the hard work. By now you're fit enough to keep going, you're just training your mind to cope with the idea of running for a longer period of time. So stay positive and keep pushing on".

Boy, was she ever right! It really is a mental game, not a physical one. There were times that I wanted to slow down, but I kept doing a quick assessment - lungs and breathing, fine; legs, fine - and told myself I could do it, just keep putting one foot in front of the other. The call out markers were at 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 18 minutes and I was surprised by each of them. Talk about feel elated when I had done it.

Hubby came to the track with me - determined not to be left out. He claims he can't run as slow as I do or he'll end up quitting, so there he is zooming around the track. He maintains that I was doing 2 laps for every 3 of his - that I ran for over 17 laps at a pretty steady pace.

Of course, wouldn't you know it .. just as I replace the faulty strap on the heartrate monitor and get an accurate reading (average moving HR 162-163 with a max of 170) I forget to turn the blinking garmin off at the end of the run so it screws up my distance! Grrrr.

And, believe it or not, I had enough energy in minute 4 of the 5 min cooldown to sprint the last segment back to my water bottle nook. Who knew?

Next week should be interesting - going back to intervals again on Mon and Weds, 23 mins run on Friday (which I'm no longer dreading).

Hope the day went well for everyone, keep us updated on how you do, how you feel and what you notice improving during the course of the week.

Found another interesting article today:-

http://www.running-world.net/want_speed_slow_down_1.php

About improving aerobic fitness and increasing speed using heart rate monitoring and slowing down.

Originally Posted by Briael:
Found another interesting article today:-

http://www.running-world.net/want_speed_slow_down_1.php

About improving aerobic fitness and increasing speed using heart rate monitoring and slowing down.

That was a great article! It answered my question about if I am running too slow. Now I just need to put on the heart rate monitor when I run and adjust my speed according to my max rate. Over time, I should run faster and faster. The article makes perfect sense! Thanks for sharing and congrats on the 20 minute run.

I finished week one!:carrot:

Yay, grats on Week 1 completion, L2W. :)

DD, Amanda, and L2W -- yay yay yay for running!!! So impressed that you ran when your leg was hurting, DD. Amanda -- WOOHOOO!!!!!! on the let run of W5! Wow! Such an accomplishment! One that I'm totally afraid of trying to tackle (can you tell?). Am thinking about hiring your Laura to motivate me. Might try that out this weekend…

And thank you ladies for the congrats -- it feels good to be adding in this bit of training along with the weight loss. Love feeling stronger, lighter and more healthy. Thank you for all the support and camaraderie :)

Happy Valentine's Day!!!