Over the past holiday, my wife and I both felt the Spirit though we ate a little bit too much and exercised a little bit to little.
So we decided something had to be done.
Together we talked about doing the couch to 5K running plan. Which is a “get up and go” start running plan for new runners. I always read good things about it, so maybe now would be a good time to give it a try.
Both my wife and I are in pretty good shape already. We’ve walked consistently – three or more times a week for years. And normally eat an above average diet in terms of vegetables, etc. But this past Thanksgiving and Christmas, we got into trouble.
Couch to 5k week 1
Our first day out was mostly fun, but cold. Like most of the United States we are in one of the coldest winters we’ve had in a long time. So getting out in jogging is extra pain during this time.
The one of the advantages of running is you warm up rather quickly – and burn more calories – or so I’m told. 
The first week was very simple. You warm up for five minutes run for one minute take a break for a minute and a half. Do this for 8 intervals then you’re done with the day. You then do this 3 days the first week, being sure to skip at least 1 day in between in order to rest.
You gotta love that it’s only 25 minutes including the warm up. Some of our past walking took up to an hour, which is hard to fit into a busy schedule.
We found this to be very easy on the first week. On the third day of week one, however, my wife had some issues with pain in her ankles so we decided to extend the first week activities into week 2.
Couch to 5k Week 2
We are currently on week two. So far so good.
At the end of this project we are wanting to run a 5K marathon. Whether we win or lose, the goal is to run a 5K. I think we’ll get there pretty easily based on the first few days. So why don’t you follow our progress – I will be posting as we go through it. Subscribe to our RSS feed so that you can see if this plan is right for you!
Now it’s your turn. What are your thoughts on the couch to 5k plan? If you have experience with the couch to 5k running plan, please post your experiences below.
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Hey, nice, well done!!
I started running 1 year ago with this program, and now i’m preparing to run half-marathon. So, that’s a good start.
Cool, I hadn’t heard of this before. I’ve linked some of my other runner friends here. I’d be interested to read updates about your status with it. Also, slightly difficult to find how to follow you on twitter–found it but a link at the top might be helpful.
Thanks for the tip Nathan. I’ll see if I can get that link in place soon.
I did this program a few months back even though I could run a 5K. This program helps you to slowly tone up your muscles and stamina. Very important are the few stretches mentioned http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_1/126.shtml
Everybody wants to run, but failing to make a plan or a game out of it will cause you to loose steam.
This program gives you a plan and lot of tasks to do while running, I had a stop watch and used to time according to the program. Doing so distracts you from the actual discomfort of running.
When you can run 5k, you can also run the 10k (I did). When you can run the 10k, you can run the 21k (I was told).
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