I’ve tried doing the Couch to 5k before and it didn’t suit me. However, I’ve obviously changed a bit as today, I started it again… and I actually quite liked it.
I was driving home from work, reflecting on my day and thinking about how much my (excess) weight is bothering me right now. I gained after losing all the baby weight pretty quickly after an operation and inability to move much. However, this is now two years ago, so it’s no longer a reason but a pretty pathetic excuse now.
So, I began to concoct a plan of action while behind the wheel. Having talked myself out of it on several occasions in the fifteen minute drive (I don’t know where to find my running shoes/sports bra/running top etc), I downloaded the NHS Couch to 5k app as soon as I walked through the front door. You type in a few details about yourself and then get to choose a celebrity motivator. I neglected Sarah Millican in favour of Jo Wiley – and actually, she sounded pretty convincing (more about that in a minute!).
I found the aforementioned items and got dressed quickly. My mind kept telling me that people would laugh at me – the overweight “runner” (jogger… plodder… whatever term they might choose!) – or that I wouldn’t be able to make it past the end of my driveway without collapsing. I told the negative committee to shut up and I set everything up and was ready to go.
The warm up consisted of a five-minute brisk walk. Previously, I would have started running immediately. I liked this little walk as it gave me chance to clear my head a little. I then had to do seven lots of 60 seconds running and 90 seconds brisk walking. Honestly, it was nowhere near as bad as I had envisaged. I smiled despite struggling with my breathing (this is something I forget how to do properly when I haven’t run for a while) and actually enjoyed some of it. I touched upon Jo Wiley’s believability… well, at times, it definitely felt as though she was genuinely congratulating me on my achievements.
I will never be a svelte runner who feels confident wearing short shorts and who looks like they’ve merely splashed a teeny bit of water on their face at the end of a run (that’s not my aim anyway!)… but that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the journey of learning to run again. And learning to love running again, too.
Watch this space… I’ll blog again to let you know how things are going, but for now, week 1 day 1 complete!