I have never been a runner, I mean actually I have never even been someone who even exercises let alone run for 30 seconds, but when I started this journey I fell in love with weight training and found my happy place.

After that I kind of just told myself I wasn’t a runner, and so I didn’t run. I just went along with my life convinced I would never be able to run a minute, let alone a mile or 5k. 

The thing with me, I get caught up and get ‘drunk’ on what everyone else is doing. If someone is raving about running and I seeing them smashing it, I wanna get involved too. If someone is raving about an app or a new exercise, I wanna try it for myself. 

When I set myself fitness goals and things I wanna say I can do, the list is never ending. 5k & 10k’s were always on my list, I kinda just assumed they were unachievable.

I cannot count how many times I have started and given up the Couch to 5K. I can’t say I failed as I have a tendency to give up before it gets hard and then I go back to what I know; weight training. So yeah, I gave up running quite a lot.

More recently though, I got obsessed again. I have been following the AMAZING @hannahtracks for years now, and she recently has been doing (and has now SMASHED & completed) the couch to 10k. Watching this girls stories proper inspired me, and of course I wanted to get involved. However, ya girl cannot run 5k, let alone 10k so I thought I would give it another go.

So what is the Couch to 5K?

Couch to 5K is one of the best known programmes out there for getting people running. Many people who now run on a regular basis probably started out with a couch to 5k programme.

It’s basically a training programme, made for beginners to get into running. There is LOADS of apps you can use to do the #C25K programme, I wanted one that gave me snazzy badges so I went with the BBC version on the google playstore. It’s completely free and it’s not the worst to use; pretty simple to navigate. I think the NHS do a programme too which is great! 

Couch to 5K is a nine week programme which is designed to get you from couch potato to runner. By the end of it you should be able to run for 30 minutes without stopping. It gradually builds you up at a pace that is easy to manage, but also big enough for you to be able to see noticeable improvements in your overall fitness and ability. By the end of the nine weeks you should be able to run for 30 minutes without stopping. For some people this will be 5km, for other people it won’t be. 

Now I was a bit naughty and threw myself in half way, as I was a bit big for my boots and thought it would be super easy to start at week 4 this time, as I had previously done weeks 1 & 2 numerous times before (when I gave up.)

Now I just want to say; don’t be like me and be an idiot. Start at week 1 and follow the programme as it literally killed me and I was 99% sure I was going to give up and cry.

So with the BBC app I picked a person to guide me through the running programme, It also gives you a timer for each run, telling you when to walk and when to run. It also lets you play your music in the background so I had my awesome Running playlist on (Spotify here) and having upbeat tunes really helped.

After you finish the 9 week program you should be able to run 30 minutes without stopping or a 5k if you are mega awesome! At the moment I am just shy of doing a 5k in 30 minutes but I have been running at a speed of about 7.2 on the treadmill as I didnt want to overdo it and give up again (plus I am a slow potato – My mother on the other hand runs at a speed of 10!)

Now I won’t lie, I did bawl my eyes out when I completed the last run, it all got a bit emotional for me. I have spent nearly all my life being the overweight girl, the fat friend. I use to be terrified of stepping foot into the gym, let alone being able to exercise on my own and have it part of my lifestyle. I started this program barely being able to run for a minute, and the thought of running for 30 minutes terrified me – but I bloody did it. 

After completing the programme, you should be alot fitter, you may have lost weight and if you haven’t that is still okay! Your mental health might have improved and you may feel more confident. At the end of the day you should also be mega bloody proud of yourself for completing it, as it is hard work, both physically and mentally.

I was hoping to see if my cardio score improved on my fitbit during the programme, but I think I need to run a 5k outside to see any improvements so I will keep you posted on that.

The hard parts

The hardest part of the Couch to 5K is the mental strength needed. It is so hard even to just get up and ready and put your trainers on to do the first run, let alone the whole program so even if you get that far, you are already winning.

I spent most of the time on the treadmill having a mental battle in my head between ‘holy shit this is easy’ & ‘omg this is the hardest thing I have ever done, stop right now and go back to bed’

Overall I am so happy I completed the #C25K programme, It gave me a lot more confidence and made improvements to my mental health. Completing the programme really gave me a boost in what I can achieve and actually made me want to continue running.

I am hoping that I can improve my speed so I can get that cheeky 5k in under 30 minutes and then next year I am contemplating training for a 10k so I can enter the Disney Fun Run in Disneyland Paris.

Have you ever done the Couch to 5K? What did you find the most challenging? Let me know in the comments!