There are various versions of the C25K plan but the version I chose was on the NHS website, with free podcasts to download for each stage of the program. It's a brilliant program for anyone who wants to start running, starting off with easy intervals (60 seconds running alternated with 90 seconds of walking for twenty minutes) and building up over 9 weeks to running for half an hour. Although it is described as taking you from couch to 5km, the reality is that for many new runners that half hour of running isn't long enough to cover 5km but it is still a huge achievement and the distance and pace can come later.
You can read about the program and download the podcasts here: http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/c25k/Pages/couch-to-5k-plan.aspx
Because of my complete lack of confidence, I hid away in the gym for most of the first six weeks, plodding away on the treadmill. Every time I completed one of the podcasts, I felt a huge sense of achievement. Sometimes I'd even go back and do a bit extra just to see if I could. I also made a point of always running the last interval (or two) at a faster rate than the others. I didn't get bored on the treadmill while the sessions were short intervals of running and walking but as the time spent running got longer it became less interesting.
I completed the Week 5 Run 3 podcast on the treadmill - the first time I had run for a whole twenty minutes and I sped up for the last couple of minutes. I was buzzing and afterwards I just wanted to sing and dance in the showers at the gym. I don't think I stopped grinning all day, I think this was the run that gave me the greatest sense of achievement, even more so than actually graduating at the end of the nine weeks. Soon afterwards though, I started wondering if I dared to venture into the great outdoors. Would people just point and laugh at the unfit, chubby lady huffing and puffing along at little more than walking pace ?
We had a holiday booked in Northumberland, a week on a caravan park so I knew I would have no choice but to run outside. I tried a very early morning run from home beforehand, early so as few people as possible would see me. It was strange how much more there was to think about, kerbs seemed like an extra challenge and the hills, which are fairly unavoidable around here, they were killers, especially as I live on a hill which means all runs end with an uphill stretch. On the other hand, it was certainly more interesting and, difficult as it was to crawl out of bed so early in the morning, I loved it once I was outside.
On holiday, my first of the week seven runs, a whole 25 minutes of running, was fairly cautious as I had no idea where to head for or how far I would get. I got up bright and early and ran around the caravan park a couple of times. It felt like hard work but I suspected that was largely because it wasn't very interesting. For the next run, I was more adventurous and decided to explore an intriguing looking footpath through some nearby woodland. As soon as I set off, I found myself dodging tree-roots and stones, weaving around nettles and trotting through mud; I saw rabbits, squirrels and even a heron swooping down over the nearby river. Now, this was more like it. I think this was when I decided I loved running.
Another particularly memorable run was after a mini school reunion in Taunton. After a very enjoyable evening and late night and lots of wine, I was up incredibly early so I could fit in my scheduled run in a once-familiar area. The road layout had changed a bit and I wasn't completely confident about where I was going but places soon began to fall into place. I found a new nature reserve area behind my old secondary school. There was a particular joy in running here, in sight of the playing field where I had so used to hate sport. I laughed to myself as I wondered if the games teachers would believe that I was now running because I actually enjoyed it.
After completing the program, mainly running in the great outdoors early in the morning, I felt a bit lost. I didn't have a target to aim for any more and I needed something to motivate me. I didn't know anyone else in Telford who ran. Inspired by a couple of people on the Health Unlocked C25K forum, I started to wonder if I was brave enough to join a running club..............
Monday, 30 September 2013
Saturday, 28 September 2013
Energy bar recipe
I've been experimenting a bit recently with making my own energy bars. I've based them loosely on this recipe from Runners' World.
In today's version, I found that someone had pinched my old bananas so I peeled and grated four small apples instead then blended them with half a cup of coconut oil (instead of the vegetable oil) and added a cup of honey and dark brown sugar (instead of the cup of sugar). I started off using the recipe quantities of oats and flour but I think my apple mixture must have been a lot wetter so ended up adding lots of extra oats until the mixture was stiff rather than sloppy. I also added dessicated coconut, half a cup of omega seed mix, chopped crystallized ginger, chopped dates and sultanas, ground nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger and some caraway seeds. I greased and lined a shallow baking sheet using coconut oil, pressed the mixture into the tin and cooked on about 180 deg C for 20-25 minutes.
Once cooled, I've cut them into bite sized pieces so I can stick two or three in my bum bag for long runs and see how I get along with eating them on the hoof. I'll have to hide some as I've noticed that they disappear rather quickly when the teenogre is home alone !
In today's version, I found that someone had pinched my old bananas so I peeled and grated four small apples instead then blended them with half a cup of coconut oil (instead of the vegetable oil) and added a cup of honey and dark brown sugar (instead of the cup of sugar). I started off using the recipe quantities of oats and flour but I think my apple mixture must have been a lot wetter so ended up adding lots of extra oats until the mixture was stiff rather than sloppy. I also added dessicated coconut, half a cup of omega seed mix, chopped crystallized ginger, chopped dates and sultanas, ground nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger and some caraway seeds. I greased and lined a shallow baking sheet using coconut oil, pressed the mixture into the tin and cooked on about 180 deg C for 20-25 minutes.
Once cooled, I've cut them into bite sized pieces so I can stick two or three in my bum bag for long runs and see how I get along with eating them on the hoof. I'll have to hide some as I've noticed that they disappear rather quickly when the teenogre is home alone !
How did it come to this ?
My elusive father rang me the other day. We don't have much contact, which is a shame, because he no longer has an internet connection or even a telephone line at home so I have to rely on him remembering to ring me on his mobile. He's also very forgetful. During the course of the conversation, I mentioned that I've been running a bit and that I've recently completed my first half-marathon.
"I don't believe it !" he said "You haven't run since you were about three!"
I should also point out that he is not Victor Meldrew and he can be prone to exaggeration.
When I thought about it, I realized that I probably hadn't run since I was at school, which was a long time ago. If I had told my games teachers then that one day I would be contemplating running a marathon they would probably just stared in disbelief. I remember loving running and jumping when I was at primary school - we would set up hurdles in the back garden and practice long jump and high jump and running was just something you did without thinking when you wanted to get somewhere quickly. Secondary school really killed any joy I had in sports and I know I'm not alone in that. I can't catch to save my life and could rarely manage to make a bat make contact with a ball so I may as well have been completely useless. What was described as "cross-country" was seen by many as a form of punishment and was really just running around the school playing field in the cold.
After leaving school, I suppose I was fairly active in that I walked or cycled everywhere but I certainly didn't have any thoughts of going to a gym or exercise class. I think there was a brief period when I was about 20 when I went along to an aerobics class with my mum, then again a brief period of going to the gym with a friend from work when I was about 29 and newly single, but I don't think I worked very hard at it. A year later, I was in a new relationship and pregnant and feeling exhausted and big. After my son arrived, I worked hard at losing all the baby weight and used a resistance machine regularly at home to get back in shape but that was it until about two years ago.
I was overweight and feeling worn out. I'd had aches and pains in joints and limbs for months and months and little energy left after getting through the day at work. I'd been to the doctor several times, checking for things like arthritis and having blood tests and at last it was concluded that I had fibromyalgia. I was prescribed daily tramadol and citalopram. It was good to have an answer at last and I went home and did lots of research on the internet. I'd thought about going to the gym or running over the previous couple of years and just not got any further than that because of the aches and pains. Now I found several mentions that exercise could be good for fibromyalgia and that prompted me to join a gym and to start attending a yoga class and a weight loss/fitness class.
I was very nervous to start with but loved the classes and worked hard at the gym too. For a few months I carried on with this but kept vaguely wondering if I could run. I'd gone to a few Women in Motion running classes a year or so earlier and, after finding it very painful for my knees, had got as far as buying proper running shoes before the little group fizzled out. I kept looking at the NHS C25K plan and wondering if I could do it. I downloaded the podcasts but still wasn't sure how to start. I wasn't confident enough to venture outdoors and run where people could actually see me. The gym closed down for a while and a nice new one was built. Soon after the new gym appeared, I decided I would follow the C25K plan on the treadmill until I felt confident enough to venture into the great outdoors. I discovered a wonderfully warm and supportive community of new runners and C25K graduates on the Health Unlocked C25K forum. At the end of February 2013, aged 45, I got up early and headed for the gym, knowing that it would be almost empty and hardly anyone would see me huffing and puffing on the treadmill.
I was embarking on a new and exciting journey that would take me up to running a whole 5km without stopping. I was determined to stick with the program. I was confident that would be as far as I wanted to go with my running journey - I would run a regular 5km a couple or three times a week, just enough to keep me active. I couldn't imagine ever wanting to go further than that.
To be continued.....
"I don't believe it !" he said "You haven't run since you were about three!"
I should also point out that he is not Victor Meldrew and he can be prone to exaggeration.
When I thought about it, I realized that I probably hadn't run since I was at school, which was a long time ago. If I had told my games teachers then that one day I would be contemplating running a marathon they would probably just stared in disbelief. I remember loving running and jumping when I was at primary school - we would set up hurdles in the back garden and practice long jump and high jump and running was just something you did without thinking when you wanted to get somewhere quickly. Secondary school really killed any joy I had in sports and I know I'm not alone in that. I can't catch to save my life and could rarely manage to make a bat make contact with a ball so I may as well have been completely useless. What was described as "cross-country" was seen by many as a form of punishment and was really just running around the school playing field in the cold.
After leaving school, I suppose I was fairly active in that I walked or cycled everywhere but I certainly didn't have any thoughts of going to a gym or exercise class. I think there was a brief period when I was about 20 when I went along to an aerobics class with my mum, then again a brief period of going to the gym with a friend from work when I was about 29 and newly single, but I don't think I worked very hard at it. A year later, I was in a new relationship and pregnant and feeling exhausted and big. After my son arrived, I worked hard at losing all the baby weight and used a resistance machine regularly at home to get back in shape but that was it until about two years ago.
I was overweight and feeling worn out. I'd had aches and pains in joints and limbs for months and months and little energy left after getting through the day at work. I'd been to the doctor several times, checking for things like arthritis and having blood tests and at last it was concluded that I had fibromyalgia. I was prescribed daily tramadol and citalopram. It was good to have an answer at last and I went home and did lots of research on the internet. I'd thought about going to the gym or running over the previous couple of years and just not got any further than that because of the aches and pains. Now I found several mentions that exercise could be good for fibromyalgia and that prompted me to join a gym and to start attending a yoga class and a weight loss/fitness class.
I was very nervous to start with but loved the classes and worked hard at the gym too. For a few months I carried on with this but kept vaguely wondering if I could run. I'd gone to a few Women in Motion running classes a year or so earlier and, after finding it very painful for my knees, had got as far as buying proper running shoes before the little group fizzled out. I kept looking at the NHS C25K plan and wondering if I could do it. I downloaded the podcasts but still wasn't sure how to start. I wasn't confident enough to venture outdoors and run where people could actually see me. The gym closed down for a while and a nice new one was built. Soon after the new gym appeared, I decided I would follow the C25K plan on the treadmill until I felt confident enough to venture into the great outdoors. I discovered a wonderfully warm and supportive community of new runners and C25K graduates on the Health Unlocked C25K forum. At the end of February 2013, aged 45, I got up early and headed for the gym, knowing that it would be almost empty and hardly anyone would see me huffing and puffing on the treadmill.
I was embarking on a new and exciting journey that would take me up to running a whole 5km without stopping. I was determined to stick with the program. I was confident that would be as far as I wanted to go with my running journey - I would run a regular 5km a couple or three times a week, just enough to keep me active. I couldn't imagine ever wanting to go further than that.
To be continued.....
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