30%

I'm not going to finish the C25K program this season. I was 8 runs in on a 27 run program. That's 30%.

However, it's dark when I get home and it's dark when I get up so that cancels out any outdoor exercising. I guess it's back to the dvds or Spartacus workouts!

I'll try to keep this updated when I complete workouts. 

C25K - Run 8

I tried really hard to run to the beat at least once today. I felt like I was running in slow motion. I did it for about 30 seconds or so before it frustrated me enough to go back to running how I usually do. I figured I could hit every beat on the same foot (basically double-time) but that felt too fast. That was more like a track run, not a jog. And this program is described as a jog speed. 

The distance 2.45 miles in 30 minutes. This is the same as Run 7. 

How did it feel? I didn't get side cramp at all, but 25 minutes in I did get acid bubbly rising in my throat. I have no idea what that was about. Felt like I was going to throw up so I stopped and walked for about 10 seconds and tilted my head up. Other than that, I had no issues to speak of. I did wear the heart rate monitor today to see how my heart was doing. I averaged 160 during the walking portions and 175-185 during the running portions.  

C25K - Run 7

Well, I'm about a week behind but I got back out there! Today was when I was *supposed* to start the Podcast track for week 3 (I accidentally ran to that track on Run 5). I think I might have psyched myself out a bit knowing what was in store for me. 

The bpm was raised 2 beats which meant a brisker walk and a theoretical faster jog. I still have trouble jogging slow enough to keep up with the bpm though so I just go with a speed I'm comfortable with.

The colors and smells are SO beautiful this time of year. There was one neighbor bagging his leaves the entire time I ran. I saw the progression of his lawn and he saw the progression of my exhaustion, LOL

The distance ended up being 2.45 miles in 30 minutes. I am just shy of 1/2 a mile from my goal of 3 miles and I'm only on week 3! 

How did it feel? It felt amazing. The warmup walk took a bit to get comfortable with because of the extra 2 beats per minute stride change.  I got a pretty intense side cramp during my second to last walking measure, about 20 minutes in, which lasted  until I started running again. I've never been so glad for running at the end! I finished running halfway around the block, at which point the Podcast track ended. I used the rest of the block home as my cool-down walk. Something strange happened internally but that's not a discussion for the Internet. 

C25K - Run 6

I'm still in the hotel so I used the treadmill again - this time with no issues! I feel like I run harder but according the the mileage completed that it reported to me when I stopped, I ran slower than when I run at home. Maybe it's the downhill portions that's making the difference. I don't know and it doesn't really matter since today's the last treadmill run.

The distance ended up being 2.12 miles in 25 minutes. I stuck with the 4mph walking and 6mph running - with the exception of a few times when I wasn't sure I could keep up any longer and bumped it down to 5mph runs. 

I also realized today that I used the wrong podcast track for Run 5! That would explain why I felt like I was running so much longer :-/

How did it feel? As I mentioned, I feel like I ran harder - and I definitely sweat more. Whether the sweat is a byproduct of the 75 degree closed room or an actual increase in activity, I don't know.  I had the incline at 2% for the beginning warm up walk, then left it at zero incline for the remainder.  I had side cramps about 15 minutes in which lasted throughout the entire run portion for 2 rounds. 

C25K - Run 5

Just a few days overdue but I got it done! I'm in a hotel this week and luckily they have a fitness center. I've never ran on a treadmill before, so today was a bit trial and error. I accidentally stopped it once so I lost all the previous data. Then it stopped on its own a second time because I miscalculated how long I'd be running. So I have no idea how far I ran, but I was running 6mph and "brisk walking" 4mph for the entire 25 minutes. I'm guessing it was 2.5 miles. 

How did it feel? I definitely feel like I ran harder. I tried hitting the "increase incline" a few times in an attempt to keep it the same as how I run at home but I had no idea how long to keep it there or how high. Plus I think when I run up hills at home, I'm actually  running slower because when I did it on the treadmill it definitely felt different. The treadmill was running at the same speed but I felt like I had to run faster to keep up. 

In the end, I had more sweat than I have before. I didn't have any side cramps or soreness after. 

The end result was (I'm guessing) 2.5 miles in 25 minutes.