I never heard of C25K till a few weeks ago when Roisin Ingle wrote a piece about keeping fit in the Irish Times magazine, but most people I’ve spoken to since seem to have either done it or intend doing it. C25K (Couch to 5 Kilometres), as the name suggests, is a program devised to take someone from a level of fitness that allows them to sit on a couch, to a level of fitness that allows them to jog/run 5k, all over a period of 9 weeks.
Ms Ingle recommended an app called Get Running, and after a little musing I decided to take the plunge and give it a go. I’m sticking to the program religiously – not skipping ahead when I feel enthusiastic, and not taking a day off when I don’t feel like it. And so far it seems to be working.
The first run was hellish and I pretty much collapsed over the threshold when I got home, but by the end of week 1, I could manage my 8 one minute runs ok. Now I’m 2 sessions into week 3, and both times I’ve managed to twice run for 3 minutes solid without dying – three times the duration that nearly laid me flat in week 1. Huzzah! I’ve decided to trust the program and believe the thousands who have used it before me, so expect to be able to run for 30 minutes at a time by July, unbelievable and all though that might sound right now.
So – what about the app? I’ve not tried any of the other C25K apps, so this isn’t a comparison, it’s purely my opinion of this one.
- Get Running is a paid app for iThings, but all the C25K apps seem to be. At just €1.59 it’s at the cheap end of the spectrum, though.
The cartoon-y interface shows a little winding road from a house with markers for each run in the 9 week period. You can select the section of path each run falls in to see details of what you can expect to be doing when you get to that stage.- Once you start the program, each marker along the path is flagged with either the date you did that session, or the forecast date you could be doing it if you stick to the program.
- To start a run, you select the appropriate bit of path and click Run Week X at the bottom of the screen. The coach prompts you to start off with a 5 min walk to warm up, then lets you know when to start and stop running/walking till you’re done running, have done a 5 min walk to cool down, and are ready to start stretching. If you’ve selected it in the preferences, she’ll also give encouraging prompts of how far through the particular run/walk and complete session you are. “Just 10 seconds more! Keep going!”
You can repeat a week or skip ahead by selecting the required portion of the path, which allows you to repeat sessions if you’re not progressing, or to skip ahead if the starting level is too easy.- You can listen to your iPod as you go, and ask the app to either fade what you’re listening to out and back in again when it’s time for a prompt (good for podcasts and audiobooks), or just lower the volume and talk over what you’re listening to.
- The coach is a chirpy Australian sounding lass. I was amused that in week 1 she kept saying “you will run …”, “you’ve just run …” etc., but once the feeble introductory one minute runs were over, from week 2 she started saying “we’re going to run …”, “we’ve just run …” etc. I wonder if that was deliberate during scripting? Will listen out for similar language changes in the coming weeks.
- One feature I really hoped for before downloading and was delighted to find the developers had included was a midpoint alert – “we’ve reached the halfway point – turn back now if you need to”.
Supplementary Apps
Two free apps I’m using in conjunction with Get Running are:
- Stretch&Run – Video tutorials of exercises and stretches to compliment running.
- RunKeeper – Available on platforms other than iThings, RunKeeper uses GPS to track your path, overall distance and speed (both in 1 minute intervals and averaged over the duration). Slightly worryingly, it tells me that my pace is 596523 minutes/kilometer for certain minutes – I’m presuming it actually lost GPS contact in those minutes and couldn’t tell how I was doing. I don’t think I can really have been quite that slow, though I’ll readily admit I’m not fast!
In Conclusion
I’ve never particularly enjoyed running before, but with the C25K program I’m starting to get it, and I can see that I’m making real progress each time I go out, which is encouraging me to keep going. Without the app, I’m not sure I’d be doing as well – I suspect I’d be stopping to look at my watch too often instead of keeping up the pace. If you’re considering trying C25K, this app is easily worth the €1.59 – spend another few bob on decent runners and get going!
