C25K.. I learned how to run
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am not a runner. Not at all, not even a tiny bit. Mid April 2012, I probably couldn't run longer than a minute without feeling like I needed to take a break.
About a week after I started MyFitnessPal I decided it was time to give C25K a try. C25K stands for "Couch to 5 km." C25K is a program that takes people who do not run, to being able to run in and around 5km by the end of the program. Week by week the amount you run increases and week by week you get a little bit better. I decided to give it a try.
It was hard but, I completed the program with the help of the iPhone app made by Zen Labs. You can run your iTunes through the app and listen to music and the app times your run. A nice voice comes on and tells you when to walk and when to run and when your warm up is over and when you've begun your cool down. It is incredibly helpful to not have to time myself, the app takes care of that for you.
After 9 weeks, I didn't quite make it to 5k within the 30 minute time constraint it gave me, I blame it on my short legs! That said, I could run for 30 minutes at the end of the program which was quite something. I couldn't believe that only 9 weeks earlier I couldn't run farther than a minute without hurting.
I can't say that I love running or that I look forward to going on runs but I can say that it proved to me that I can be a runner if I want to be. I'm never going to run marathons but I do hope to run a 5k in the spring so I keep up with it, keep my heart healthy. The extra calories I get to eat from burning the calories running don't hurt either - I'm known to run for food and treats.
I just downloaded the Couch to 10km (C210K) by Zen Labs. Once the weather starts to cool down I plan on getting back out there and who knows, maybe by the end of the fall I will be able to run close to 10km!
All of this is to say that you can do it too. Runner or not, you can get off the couch and you can motivate yourself to do it. The program works, the goals are attainable and there is no better feeling than finishing a run you thought was impossible when you started!
About a week after I started MyFitnessPal I decided it was time to give C25K a try. C25K stands for "Couch to 5 km." C25K is a program that takes people who do not run, to being able to run in and around 5km by the end of the program. Week by week the amount you run increases and week by week you get a little bit better. I decided to give it a try.
It was hard but, I completed the program with the help of the iPhone app made by Zen Labs. You can run your iTunes through the app and listen to music and the app times your run. A nice voice comes on and tells you when to walk and when to run and when your warm up is over and when you've begun your cool down. It is incredibly helpful to not have to time myself, the app takes care of that for you.
After 9 weeks, I didn't quite make it to 5k within the 30 minute time constraint it gave me, I blame it on my short legs! That said, I could run for 30 minutes at the end of the program which was quite something. I couldn't believe that only 9 weeks earlier I couldn't run farther than a minute without hurting.
I can't say that I love running or that I look forward to going on runs but I can say that it proved to me that I can be a runner if I want to be. I'm never going to run marathons but I do hope to run a 5k in the spring so I keep up with it, keep my heart healthy. The extra calories I get to eat from burning the calories running don't hurt either - I'm known to run for food and treats.
I just downloaded the Couch to 10km (C210K) by Zen Labs. Once the weather starts to cool down I plan on getting back out there and who knows, maybe by the end of the fall I will be able to run close to 10km!
All of this is to say that you can do it too. Runner or not, you can get off the couch and you can motivate yourself to do it. The program works, the goals are attainable and there is no better feeling than finishing a run you thought was impossible when you started!
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