Couch to 5K Training Program: Week Three

I can't believe it, but I'm still here. If you missed week two, check it out here, or start at the beginning of my 5k training program.

This week's 5K training schedule features a 5-minute warm-up, followed by 3-minute running intervals and 2-minute walking intervals, alternating for a total of five running intervals. As usual, we finish up with a 5-minute cool-down.

Day 1: Well, I slacked off on the tail end of our family vacation so it’s been a week since my last run. In years past, that week would have turned into two weeks, then four, then eight, until my running program was just a distant and bitter memory. But I vowed that things would be different this time around, and so, with a dual sense of apprehension and excitement, I set out on my run, wondering exactly how I’d make it through the five 3-minute intervals required of me. I pushed through the first two intervals, finding them not quite as challenging as I’d expected but the thought that I still had to get through three more was daunting. Still, I managed to get through them. I can’t say that I drew on my “inner strength” or used any other particular strategies; quite simply, I just did it (Thanks, Nike). Maybe that’s the secret: stop waiting for motivation, enthusiasm or a sense of mightiness to hit you over the head and just do what you’re supposed to do. Let’s see if I can remember that when week five arrives and I have to run 8-minutes (!) without stopping :)

Day 2: Since it’s the weekend, my husband came along with me on this run and it made me realize just how ridiculously slow I’ve been jogging. My handsome hubby was a college football player just a few years ago so my 3-minute intervals are kind of a joke to him (not that he’d ever say so); while he makes every effort to encourage me, I could tell our pace seemed painfully slow to him. I admit, it's a bit discouraging, but I'll try to use it as motivation to push myself just a little bit harder during my future running workouts. Having said that, speed isn't meant to be the focus during the running intervals, so I figure that as long as I'm getting through them, I'm doing just fine.

Day 3: Today's workout was pretty uneventful, and as far as I'm concerned, that's a good thing. Again, it wasn't exactly a walk in the park, but the 3-minute running intervals definitely felt more manageable today than they did a few days ago. I'm proud to say I made it through another week, and I'm looking ahead to week four of the 5k training program with anticipation and anxiety - I somehow have to manage 4-minute running intervals with just one minute of walking in between!

Keep running with me! Check out week four of my 5K training program.