Friday, June 15, 2012

Couch to 5k

I have decided I am going to redo Couch to 5k to work on speed.  After not improving on my speed much this past year, it is something I have been really thinking about.  I have shaved about 5 minutes off my 5k time and about a half hour off my half marathon time since I started racing--which is great!  But I want more results!

A running friend told me her coach told her to redo C25k to improve her speed.  Something about the walk breaks making it easier for her to run faster during the run parts.  When I first heard this, my first thought was that is sounds a lot like the Jeff Galloway run/walk/run method, so I was instantly intrigued.  It makes a lot of sense to me--you run fast starting for a short period of time and you build on that slowly, increasing your endurance and stamina.

I started C25k at the beginning of the week.  It should fit nicely into my half marathon training plan, for a while anyway, because right now I am in the beginning of  Disneyland Half training.  All my "long" runs are still relatively short.  After my long runs actually get long, I plan to still do C25k during my weeknight runs and then do my long run on the weekend.  This program is nine weeks, so I will be finished a few weeks before the DL half.

Have you ever done Couch to 5k?  What did you think of it?  Did it make you faster?

A dream is a wish...

--Amy

6 comments:

  1. I think it is a great idea for speed. I am working some interval training for that - pretty much the same idea!

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  2. I think I am going to give it a try. I shaved 3 min off my time and that was pretty good considering the temperature differences and the fact that the last one was up a mountain. But I am hoping to shave at least 23 min off at Disneyland to be under 3hrs. Good luck. Hopefully this time I can meet you at Disneyland.

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    1. We have the same goal--DL is under 3 hours! See you there!

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  3. So does that mean you are changing/giving up your intervals? C25K has you build up to a 30min or 3mile run without the walk breaks, doesn't it?

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  4. I don't think I will ever completely give up on my intervals, especially for longer runs. I would like to be able to run for a longer amount of time without a walk break for shorter runs, like 5ks. I am hoping C25k will help me build up to running longer without a walk break.

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