Hello girls! Today I graduated from C25K - I ran my first ever 5k together with my boyfriend. It feels wonderful and empowering to know you can achieve so much within just 9 weeks (11 for me, actually) - you can actually see and feel the change in your body - your endurance and resolve are so much stronger. Now I plan on doing some speed work and building up more distance.

Congrats basementcat!!! Couch to 5k is seriously a life changer. That fact that I've seen so much improvement in just 5 weeks (probably something like 7 in real time) keeps me going. I'm heading out when the sun goes down to try W5D3 again. Been hydrating all day so I can hopefully make it through.

I DID IT!!!! W5D3 complete! I walked a total of about 3 minutes interspersed throughout the 20 minutes. It hurt like **** but I did it!!!

Congrats everyone!!!! I'm going to do w8d1 tomorrow and am actually excited about it.

One of the biggest incentives to do c25k was to help with my endurance for roller derby. We do timed laps as part of our minimum skills and I used to average 25-26/5 minutes. This week I finnnnnally got 30 laps!!! Also, yesterday I played a game and feel so much better -I actually got fielded 3 jams in a row and still felt good (normally every other would be hard). It's so nice to see running help outside of the program itself.

Lotra91 - congrats! From this point on the runs get longer but SO satisfying.
dehtripper - WOW, you do roller derby?! I am so jelly!

Great job, Lotra91! Isn't it amazing what you can do when you put your mind (and body) to it? I recently restarted C25K and after reading people's encouragement and tips for you on the previous page, I did W5D3 today as well - whoo-hoo! It IS scary to go from 8 minute intervals to a whole 20 minutes, no doubt about it - but now that we have, we can do it again, right?

And grats, basementcat! You got all the way through, yay! Did you run an official 5K or on your own? I've been thinking of signing up for one in the fall; sounds like a real blast.

Hello Cattails and congrats on running w5d3! Its a huge milestone and there are many more to come!
To answer your question - i ran on my own, but i am looking forward our virtual 5k next month!

Cattails - congrats!!!
basementcat - indeed i do, this is my third season now and i love it so much. i'd really suggest anyone who's vaguely interested find a local league and at least try it. i couldn't skate at all when i started.

Yeah, I'm not sure what I'll do in the winter either. I love to run outside but I really hate the cold. And I can only run at 8ish PM once the kids are in bed and it'll be too dark out at this time in the winter. The plan right now is to either buy a treadmill or join a gym to use theirs.

Woohoo! Congrats!!!! I wish my boyfriend ran but he has no interest in it. He'd probably be too fast for me anyways.

Congrats to you both!!!!

I ran W9D2 this morning. Today is a holiday here so my boyfriend could watch the kids while I ran. I'm so glad I did it in the morning, it was already really hot and humid out. Only one more run and I'll be a graduate!!!

W6D1 in the bag! It was pretty much a breeze compared to W5D3. It was still difficult. I had a lot of pain probably from shin splints that was lingering from my last run so I didn't have a great pace. Oh well. Got it done!

I never hear of Couch to 5k. I Love to run, but I'm so out of shape i didn't know where to start. This looks like a great place to start. Now I just need to make time and do it! Thanks for sharing and good luck!!

I haven't popped in this thread in a while and wow did a ton happen. Congrats everyone who graduated and is making progress.

Gah I'm so jealous because everyone is so much further along than I am. I can't wait to be on week 5 and further. But I guess I have to trust the process and keep up my progress. I can't wait to get my next run in.

Week 3 day 3 is in the bag. I had to go a little slower than I usually do because the humidity was killing my lungs over the weekend- they were on fire in the warm up and walking so I decided to play it safe and do my walks at 3.5 and runs at 5.5. Looking forward to my run when the gym opens later this morning. Week 4 here I come!

W6D1 done - trying to keep up with you, Lotra91! Do you stretch before and after? I do the ones suggested by the coolrunning C25K; don't know if they help prevent shinsplints, but yikes, those do not sound like fun at all.

Thanks dehtripper. Roller derby, how cool! Wish I had a rink nearby. Do you use roller blades or skates?

TraumaNurse, good going. Go at your own pace - when I started C25K, I repeated the first three weeks for nearly 2 months!