So, I started my Couch to 5K program this morning.
It was hard.
To be fair, it's probably beneficial to start a running regimen when one isn't coughing up large clots of buttermilk, but I said I was going to start this weekend, so I did. I'm just telling myself that suffering from the cold of the century is going to make running seem suddenly easier once I recover.
I didn't stretch, since I started to look up some stretches online before I went out the door and found myself wasting time on Facebook. I'll look into that before I run on Tuesday, but it looks like a couple of sun salutations and a few other yoga poses before and after should be all I need.
The program I'm using is here, if you want to take a look at it. There may be others, but it seems like this is the basic gist. It's pretty simple, so it's extra amusing that I managed to screw it up. I was supposed to jog for 60 seconds and then walk for 90, but I jogged for two minutes and walked for 90 seconds. Damn, I remember thinking, this second minute is WAY harder than the first.
*facepalm*
Also, my immediate impression the moment I stopped my brisk 5 minute warm-up walk and began actually running was that I felt like I was swimming. Swimming is something I do rarely and enjoy even less, so I'm sure that's why, but it was the most bizarre sensation.
So I ran, then I walked, and I ran, then I walked, and I listened to a Stuff You Should Know podcast all about bartering. The weather is glorious today, and the birds were singing, and once I got home and stopped coughing so hard I thought I might puke, I began enjoying a pleasant rubbery sensation in my limbs.
It really wasn't half bad, and I bet it's even better with 100% lung capacity.
5 comments:
Geez, that kind of cold would've been enough to keep me on the couch, so props to you for getting out there.
I know there are different schools of thought regarding stretching, but the latest research I've read says you're more likely to hurt yourself stretching cold muscles, so your warm up walk should be sufficient. But definitely do some stretches when you're finished.
I know you're blogging about 'em here, but have you thought about joing DailyMile to record your runs? You should--I don't have many friends there and it's lonely! DM has a nice interface and it's pleasing to see your distances counted cumulatively.
Skillet, I'd never heard of that until you mentioned it, but I signed up w/ my FB account. Bar graphs are the bomb! Friend me, though, because I couldn't find you!
I did C25K last summer and there's (of course) an app for that. I loved the app - you may want to look into it. It notifies you when you should run or walk and you pull from your own playlists for what you listen to when it's not notifying you.
Good luck!
I managed to make the weeks-long program take months. I still never got past week 6 on the program but ran a 5k last weekend.
You'll do great!
Hey there, Shannon! Unfortunately, my cell phone is the technological equivalent of a tin can with a string, so I can't use the app-- but thanks for the encouragement!
I have to admit, I'm intrigued. I hate running, but needless to say I could use the fitness boost. I'm interested to watch your progress...
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