WW H&F do post-C25K?

BelieveInStephens

I'm about to finish C25K.  I've actually finished a 5K already, so the final runs are sort of a moot point, but I plan to finish nonetheless.

So, if you could do it all over again and were a rookie runner, what would be your next step?

I could tell you about my goals or things I see on the horizon as interesting, but I'd rather not taint your opinions with my extraneous info.

For the purpose of answering this question just know: 1) I've run through C25K basically twice, repeating weeks twice before moving on until I got to week 5, so I've been at this C25K journey since late October. 2) The farthest I've ever run and the longest I've ever run were both yesterday at my 5K in 37:50 minutes. 3) My average "long" run pace is 12:30-13:30.  4) I'm 60 pounds overweight.

gncorman

I kept running for 3 days a week for about 3 miles each run.  I then looked into a half marathon training schedule.  I just really like a schedule to help me increase my mileage.  There is a Bridge to 10K Program you can check out that I have heard is good.  I continue to do a run/walk method with the half marathon training.  Our pace is similar.  I focus on seeing if I like distance versus speed right now.  For me, it seems unbelievable that I have gone from not believing I could run for 60 seconds to completing a 9 mile run a couple of weeks ago (I have lost overt 40lbs since doing the C25K program (WW)).  Great job!!!  Whatever you chose to do next, you will be great!!

BelieveInStephens

gncorman:

I kept running for 3 days a week for about 3 miles each run.  I then looked into a half marathon training schedule.  I just really like a schedule to help me increase my mileage.  There is a Bridge to 10K Program you can check out that I have heard is good.  I continue to do a run/walk method with the half marathon training.  Our pace is similar.  I focus on seeing if I like distance versus speed right now.  For me, it seems unbelievable that I have gone from not believing I could run for 60 seconds to completing a 9 mile run a couple of weeks ago (I have lost overt 40lbs since doing the C25K program (WW)).  Great job!!!  Whatever you chose to do next, you will be great!!

 

I think the schedule helps keep me honest and helps maintain my consistent weight loss by constantly increasing my intensity or duration.  Which half program are you using?  I looked at a few.  I'd like to use one that had just 3 runs a week, as that's what I've managed to carve out for C25K training for the last few months.

I'm worried about the approaching Texas summer and it getting too hot.  I suppose this is just something I'm going to have to judge along the way, and when school's out, I can run pretty early in the morning.

If you, or others, are a southern runner, how have you dealt with the heat?

DandelionMom

I finished c25k a couple of years ago and still only run about 3-4 miles once a week.  I get bored running 3 times a week so joined a gym and vary my workouts. 

erincassidy06

Congratulation on almost finishing c25K, and on your 5k.

I finish c25k in January and started to focus on lifting weights. I'm following the "new rules of lifting for women" I'm really enjoying it and I'm seeing my body changing faster with the combo of lifting and running, fyi i have about 80lbs to lose. I'm also following Hal Higdon's novice 8k running plan, http://halhigdon.com/training/51096/8K-Novice-Training-Program. I've modified it a little to fit in the weight lifting. I'm signed up for a 5mile race at the end of April.

There are a ton of plans out there so good luck finding one that works well for you!

kat.in.the.hat

I was where you are when I finished c25K.  I went on and moved to bridge to 10K because I needed to be able to run further than 5K at a time.  Once I finished bridge to 10K and knew I had a stronger running base, I picked a 5K about three months old and trained for that race with the goal of getting my first sub 30 minute 5K.  My 5K training was one day a week of intervals, a sort of tempo run, and a long run.  By the 5K came, I was doing 5 miles with no walking as my long run.

I continued to lose weight and got a 29:27 5K time.

And for a timeline reference, I had Eliza September 22nd, started running at the end of October with c25K and my goal race was mid June.

kat.in.the.hat

As for the heat, I moved my interval workouts to the treadmill so I could do those indoors.  I still ran just three days a week and had begun 10K training.  I didn't follow a specific training plan for it, but still ran three days a week.  I had a mid week run of about 3-5 miles a week. Then in July, I moved my long run up to 6 miles a week and in August, 7 miles a week.  So I didn't make drastic improvements in distance over the summer, but every week, my time was an improvement on the week before.  It was pretty boring since I was basically doing the same thing every week, but it kept me running and wasn't too extreme for the summer.  And I think it made me a much stronger runner when the cool weather hit.

moandjo

I took a bit of a break over the winter and then started training in spring for a half.  The half was a year after my 5k.  The following year I did a full.  I like having races to keep me motivated and to keep my milage up.