Hey everyone!

I'm stuck on week 3 of the couch to 5K program and need some help.

Week 3 = 5 min brisk walk to warm up then 2 sets of the following sequence: 90 sec jog/ 90 sec walk then 3 minute jog/3 minute walk. - 5 minute walk to cool down.

I'm having difficulty breathing the 3 minute jog. I seem to be ok for the first 2 minutes or so but then my breathing becomes very labored and erratic. Anyone have any suggestions on how to improve this so I can jog the entire 3 minute with controlled breating?

I'd like to move on to week 4 (3 min jog/walk then 5 min jog/walk)

Thanks in advance for your help!!!

Hey Julie,
I'm not sure what pace you're jogging your 3 minutes at, but you may consider reducing that pace to a very slow jog so that you can finish. It's getting through the time (the 3 minutes) that you need to focus on before you can move on. Your pace will come evenutally. Good luck.

LOL - my pace is so slow already that if I slowed down I'd be walking I'd never run before about 4 weeks ago and I'm 5'11" at 258#'s - VERY out of shape but getting better! I'll take a gander tomorrow morning at the pace I'm going and see if I can alter that at all. Thank you so much for the advice!

i am about to enter that week....i am sure i will encounter some difficulty too
i personally would just stick with what you CAN do and keep pushin...

what if you walked for just a few seconds and then began again?
run for 2 minutes walk for 10 to 15 seconds and then pick up the pace again

stick with the "hard" week until you CAN do it and then move on...
so what if you arent actually doing the 5K in 12 weeks? so what if it takes you 15 or 20? you are running more than you ever have and are increasing your health and fitness level each time you step out there....if it takes 20 weeks to do the 12 week program...hey...in the end the results will be the same: accomplishment, pride and health

that is MY opinion...

I just ran my first 5K a few weekends ago. When I feel like my breathing is getting erratic, I take in one breath for each step, two breaths in and two breaths out. So...one step breath in, two steps breath in, third step breath out, fourth step breath out. So it would be breath in, breath in, breath out, breath out with each step....see if that helps. Go at a slow but steady pace and whatever you do....DO NOT STOP. Slow down, but do not stop completely. YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

AWESOME advice! You know - I'm scheduled to do a REAL 5K at the end of October and I've surrendered to the fact that I may not jog the entire thing. I'm going to be happy where I am - happy to just participate in something that I've never done before - that I never dreamed I'd do.

I am participating in a 10K next month with a girlfriend who has run triatholans and biathalons and I feel they same way. If I don't run the entire time, I could care less....I am going to finish regardless!!!
I have never been a runner either.....and I have absolutely fallen in LOVE with it!!!!!

I'm not sure if you are already, but I would suggest wearing a heart monitor and seeing where you heart rate is during the jog segments. Make sure you are not going above 80% of your max heart rate. I too am just training for my first 5k and by wearing the heart monitor and trying to keep my heart rate around 160 beats a minute during the running I have been able to slowly increase the speed of my jog and keep the heart rate the same or lower.
Each session you do will make you stronger for the next - Keep the faith and train smart, Paul.

I just ran 8.2 miles the other day...in training for a marathon....never have ran one before. I know this sounds crazy, but kind of like Sandy, when I feel like I am getting short on breath, I do the breathing that was taught in Lamaze class...the "hee,hee (2 shorts in) hoo (1 long out). It gets me refocused and then I go on to doing long deep breathing in and long deep breating out. In 2 weeks, Maybe, I'm hoping to bump it up to 10 miles, so I know all the breathing advise will come in handy!!!! Mona

P.S. The other thing you can do, that helps me in my training, is I do quick cardio workouts that make my heartrate excel to help me later with long distance. For instance, in between weight lifting sets, I may do 30 quick jumping jacks, or 30 squats, or 30 knee raises...anything to get the heartrate up and cardio going...that helps alot to get your lungs in shape!!!!

Yes, most imporatly do not stop! You can do this no matter what you weigh. Sure, it might take you longer, but I have a feeling in that time allowed, you WILL be able to run 3.1 miles by the end of October. Just keep going. I am running a 5K October 11th. Signing up for a run is great motivation. A date is set, now you just have to work to get there. I'm cheering for you!

The breathing is probably the hardest thing to get past but if you can push past that part where it becomes labored I bet you will find that you can go even a little farther than what you thought! Try to keep it as rhythmic and easy as possible, as mom2six recommends. If you get and can keep a pattern going it really helps to take the focus off any difficulties you might be having. I often count backwards to myself as well when I start getting to a point where I have to stop. I'll tell myself I can stop if I hold it..another min or 2 min or 5 min. However long I feel like I have left. Quite often by the time I've hit the end of my count down I've relaxed and settled into that pace and can go for another min or 2 or 5. hehe I've been known to do almost whole hours like this when I really felt like I didn't have it in me. Hold on for as long as you possibly can and when it gets to a point where you honestly have to stop, the slow it to a walk and maybe next time you'll go a little further.

OH, and one more thing....I used to always run on my treadmill. Once I got outside, I realized how much easier and how much further I could run. I'm not sure if it's just the fresh air, the surroudings or what, but I much prefer running outside, even though I don't always get that option.

YOU GUYS ROCK MY SOCKS OFF! Thank you all for all of your great suggestions! I see a LOT in here that I know will help me push through the 3 minutes and help me move on to my week 4 goal! *HUGS*

When I was a in grade school - they made us run a mile. I got such a huge stitch in my side while running that I created a belief that I couldn't do this - that I just couldn't run. So, for my entire life I've lived with this lie. The truth was I probably jogged shortly after eating and this is what caused the stitch. Now, I am doing almost 1 3/4 miles every other day. (I'll post my running route so you all can see).

This is my current PODCAST training run: Link: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/il/crystal-lake/1030701030

This is my actual 5K training route (haven't done this yet): Link: http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/united-states/il/crystal-lake/286869260421

Julie, usually when you get a stitch in your side, you are not blowing off enough carbon dioxide and it's starting to build up too much. You didn't say it's happened since then but just keep in mind if it does (it happens to me, but infrequently) that all you need to do is blow out three steps instead of two steps. You just need to blow out a few times MORE than what you are breathing in. So.....breath in two times or steps and breath out three times or steps, after just performing that a few times....the stitch goes away!

Sandy, I totally did not know that! Thank you so much! It's really sad to me that all this time I limited myself with the believe that I can't...I really enjoy my runs (although I still have to fight with myself to get out of bed at 5am) when I'm done I really feel like I've accomplished something...something positive.

Yes, the stitch in your side is from your breathing. It happens to me too, rarely, but that certainly doesn't mean you can't run! Good for you for overcoming this "lie" and believing in yourself. That is an accomplishment in itself!

Hi

I have just started running, four weeks ago as I started the T-Challenge. I have a 5.3km route that I do at least once a week. I also have a 2.2km route that I do at least twice a week. I have a few strategies:

1. I have been doing Coach brand's Commando workout on all other days - this hypes by heartrate to a 10 most of the time.

2. I jog a little then walk a little. When I started it was like 1 minute walk, 30 seconds jog. Now I am up to about 2 minutes walk and 3 minutes jog. Although on Saturday I ran just about 85% of the route.

3. I check my time. On day one it took me 52 minutes to do 5km (mostly walking), on saturday it took me 45 mins and 56 seconds.

4. Don't get too hung up on each day, rather see progression over a period of time. Some days I have are naf days where i do not reach my potential. Others are awesome days, where I go way beyond.

5. I also like Mona's suggestion of lamaze breathing

6. And the final one - silly but it works. Do you remember Doreen the fish in Finding Nemo - she sings, just keep swimming swimming swimming - well I do the same for jogging!

7. I also only jog outside as I do not have a treadmill. - remember that it can be harder outside so when practicing for a run - do at least some outside (wind direction, hills, uneven ground etc)

All the best. Sara

Quote:

Originally Posted by floorance It's really sad to me that all this time I limited myself with the believe that I can't...

we are lead to believe a lot of things that are simply not true....unfortunately, it takes time and effort to change these ways of thinking. The good thing is now that we KNOW the truth, we CAN do something about it!!!!!!

Girl...you are going to do this....never sale yourself short and don't stop believing. Remember it's not how many steps taken along the journey, but how far the journey takes you. You are going to go places within yourself that you have never gone before and it is awesome. Another thing, you can do is find local running events to sign up for....that helps so much. You set a goal, now you have a time frame to do it in.....for instance...my big day is February 8th.....26.2 miles...wow, that seems so unimaginable. But 2 weeks ago I said...okay on August 16th, I'm running 8.2 miles. Up to this point, the furtherest I've ever ran and holy moly did it feel great!!!! I really didn't worry about time, just the completion part of the process. You are doing so awesome and your greatness is yet to come. I'm 5'9" and if you are 5'11, girl I know you have some long legs that can stretch out....get to stretching. That's another thing, sometimes, I find when I am getting short on breath, I start tensing up...only for a little, because I start self-talking and remind myself to relax and stretch my legs out more..it helps with the breathing. You are on your way and I can't wait to see you reach your goals!!!

That's it! You guys have inspired me to sign up for a 5K sometime in September. I'm going to amend the goals on my profile page to reflect this. I recently started running again and really do love it. BTW, what the heck is the couch to 5K program?