Running Program

I’ve been running on-and-off for more than a year now. I first started sometime last summer when I wanted to try something new and I found this running program from CoolRunning.com . I wasn’t in horrible shape, but I had never been in excellent shape either. On the random occasion when I would try running a long distance, I didn’t enjoy it much. The reason the CoolRunning.com running program works for me is that it doesn’t force you to run 5k right away. They show you how to “get off the couch and onto the roads, running 3 miles in just two months.”

When you start the program, you’ll notice that it is broken up into week-long increments. During the first week you “alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.” - I know when I first started, I was pretty winded after the 60sec/90sec circuits but you’ve got to start somewhere.

If you want to get the full effect out of the running program, you should run 3 times each week and you are supposed to follow the weeks in rapid succession. Myself, I often knew after a given week that I wasn’t ready to move up - or I just didn’t want to push myself harder - so I repeated many weeks. It’s really up to you how you do it and I think it’s more important that you get out there 3 times per week and hack away at it, rather than trying to burn through the program as fast as you can.

As I said, I’ve been doing this running program on-and-off for a year now. I’ve gone through periods where I would run 3 days per week for a few weeks, and then I would just stop. I’ve restarted the program several times, and taken steps backwards due to a lapse in my schedule. I’ve now made it to the point where I am running 25 minutes non-stop, with the goal being to run 30 minutes non-stop. When you encounter a lapse in your program, the most important thing is to force yourself back out there as soon as possible otherwise you will lose more motivation and it will be harder to get back on track.

Taking the first step is always the hardest, but once you’re moving you will feel great.