Couch to 5K plan

The Couch to 5K plan is a plan that will allow you to run 5K (3.1 miles) in a minimum of 9 weeks!  Just Google it, and you will find all sorts of information. 

If you would like to do the Couck to 5K plan, and would like support, post here.  We are all here to support each other and hold each other accountable.  Together, we can do it!

Here is the plan:

Week 1
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk.
-Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

Week 2
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk.
-Then alternate 90 seconds of jogging and two minutes of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

Week 3
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then do two repetitions of the following:
-Jog 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
-Walk 200 yards (or 90 seconds)
-Jog 400 yards (or 3 minutes)
-Walk 400 yards (or 3 minutes)

Week 4
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
-Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 2-1/2 minutes)
-Jog 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Walk 1/8 mile (or 90 seconds)
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

Week 5
Workout 1:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

Workout 2:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
-Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)
-Walk 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
-Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)

Workout 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog two miles (or 20 minutes) with no walking.

Week 6
Workout 1:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Jog 3/4 mile (or 8 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Jog 1/2 mile (or 5 minutes)

Workout 2:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then:
-Jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes)
-Walk 1/4 mile (or 3 minutes)
-Jog 1 mile (or 10 minutes)

Workout 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2-1/4 miles (or 25 minutes) with no walking.

Week 7
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.5 miles (or 25 minutes).
Week 8
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 2.75 miles (or 28 minutes).

Week 9
Workout 1, 2 & 3:
-Brisk five-minute warmup walk, then jog 3 miles (or 30 minutes). 

I always add a 5-minute cool down at the end.

Happy running! 

Hey everyone! I am mid week 2 of the program and am feeling the burn! I can notice such a difference in just a little less than two weeks. My energy is up, I'm walking faster in general, and my stamina has improved. I'm worried about the upcoming Week 4 looming ahead. Next week should be doable. But 3 minutes and then 5 minutes? Will I be able to get there in just two weeks??

themachine, don't feel like you have to do week 4 according to the plan.  Space it out until you feel comfortable moving forward.  For example, I did Week 3 for about 2 weeks before I felt comfortable to move on to week 4.  I know that I will be on Week 4 for at least 3 weeks, because I know that I do not have enough stamina to run for 20 minutes (end of week 5) yet.

3 workouts a week are just not enough for some people, it is definitely not enough for me!  So, I have been doing what I can, at my own pace, and I am definitely seeing results.  If I had done every week the way that the plan is designed, I would have quit a long time ago because it would have been to difficult.  So, pace yourself, and I promise that you will be able to do it.  I hope this helps.

Keep up the great work everyone!

Oh I totally understand. I'm just about to start Week 3 tonight. I'm feeling okay with the jump to 3 minutes. Depending on how I feel, I'll see where I go from there. 

Well I am finally checking in this week.  I have been sick with the flu and have taken the week off.   I woke up in the middle of the night Sunday/Monday with chills and fever.  I will be back on track next week doing week 3 again.

Hope to see more posting soon.  How are you all doing?

Hey Everyone!! I have been looking for something like this and I just found this post today.  My gym workout usually consists of the elliptical and stairmaster...i need to change it up some and i think this might be it....I have not tried jogging in like 4 or 5 yrs at least....I could never breathe before, but I think I have gotten better with that since I am up to a level 12 on the elliptical, which is exciting in and of itself, at one point I never thought that id get past level 8. lol...

 anyway.. since today is friday...I am going to start on Sun and continue with Tues and Thurs...I did try the treadmill last night and i was able to jog for 2 mins, but I am still starting with week 1.  I noticed last night that my shins started to hurt after the two mins...could I be doing something wrong?

Question about this podcast?  So is it like just music or what?

Welcome ridergrad! 

Shin pain is common if you have not run in a long time.  Go here to learn about shin splints and how to keep from getting them.  I hope this helps.

Hey ridergrad! One of the reasons I started this specific program was because in the past I have always had really bad shin splints when starting to run. I found that the key to not getting them is to take it VERY slow, which is what following Couch to 5k does! I love it. I'm almost done with week 7 and have hardly had any pain in my shins. Good luck!

Thanks guys!! Yea i did a shorter version yesterday to try and prepare and i started today....the pain was not as bas as thursday...so i guess thats a good sign...i also was able to breathe the whole time, which was a problem when i have always tried to run in the past, and my ankles didn't which i have also had problems with in the past....so all good signs...it makes me happy...i almost want to jump ahead to week two but i know that i have to take it slow so i don't hurt myself...

chelsaw...wow week 7, i pretty sure that I'll get there but its hard to imagine at moment...so congrats!! 

I finished my first session of week four! I can't believe how fast this goes! I had trouble running 1.5 minutes three weeks ago and now I'm finishing 5 minutes without getting out of breath or feeling sore.

I had sore shins as well for the first week but since then I've felt great.

I started off strong (completing four weeks without delay), but then school got stressful and I inadvertently took a 3 week break.

Tonight, I'm going to try workout one of week three tonight and see how I feel...

My goal: Do the 5k in my area in December 2007

Thanks to everyone for being such great motivation!

I started off strong (completing four weeks without delay), but then school got stressful and I inadvertently took a 3 week break.

Tonight, I'm going to try workout one of week three tonight and see how I feel...

My goal: Do the 5k in my area in December 2007

Thanks to everyone for being such great motivation!

My shins are feeling much better as I am nearing the end of week 2.  Still going strong...my old ankle injury starts to hurt sometimes while running. I am thinking of starting to wear my ankle brace when im at the gym...Would this be a good thing to try? 

Another good thing, I think that it has helped me get the weight off that I gained back, which was only 5 lbs, but for me that is a lot since it has always been hard for me to lose weight. 

 Thanks to every before who gave me some insight on my shins, it was much appreciated.

 

Hey everyone. I'm soooo frustrated. I inadvertantly took a week off because I got so busy and now i'm totally off track. I completed week 7 a couple of weeks ago, but now I don't even know where I am. Tonight I just ran in like 5 minute increments and did some sprinting. I'm thinking i'll try 20 minutes and then build up from there again. Ahhhh, I need to make sure i'm going to the gym religiously like I was for those 7 weeks. I hope you're all doing better than I am and have a good weekend!!

Hang in there Chelsaw, you are doing great!  I just finished week 2, but I think I am going to do it again because I do not think I am ready to run for 3 minutes...I have been getting stomach cramps this week and I am not sure why...anyone had this problem?  

I just finished my first run of week 5 and it kicked my ass. However, I finished it and I'm so proud of myself. I might do it again before I attempt the second part of week 5. Or tone it down and only do one 8 min jog and two 5 min jogs.

As far as stomach cramps-- I get them too sometimes. It's usually if I've eaten a meal prior to jogging so I usually eat just something small or make sure I wait a while after a meal. I never want to go on an empty stomach because that can really burn me out. I wonder if stomach cramps have anything to do with dehydration? I try to drink a lot of water before I go but I usually come back feeling a bit dehydrated and sometimes I get cramps for no reason as well.

Okay, I have been on Week 4 for about 3 weeks, and I have been slowly increasing my speed and had gotten up to 5.0 on the running sections.  Then, on what should have been my last day before moving on to Week 5, I couldn't do it!

I did the first 3 minutes just fine, but when I got to the 5 minute part, my legs just stopped working, I felt like they were about to give out.  So, I stopped running for that day.  I figured that it may have been because I did not drink enough water that day.  So, yesterday I drank a lot of water, and tried it again.  I couldn't even do 3 minutes! 

I don't know what's going on, I was fine, and then all of a sudden I couldn't run anymore.  Has this happened to anyone else?  Does anyone have any suggestions for me?  Please help because I am getting discouraged!

Jazzy, maybe you should try slowing it down a little. First work on getting through the five minutes at a nice and easy pace, then work on quickening it. I find that if I start getting tired, I slow down a bit to get back on track, and I am able to continue on. And sometimes it's all about my attitude rather than my actual ability to finish the interval. I have to either distract myself from running and enjoy the scenery (or tv if it's on a treadmill or something) or I'll switch up my music on my ipod.

I just finished the second run of week 6 and I wanted to stop so many times but I just made sure to stay at an easy pace and not try to overdo it and I distracted myself from the running by paying attention to the leaves changing or interesting houses. I somehow got through it. 

I also find that some days are harder than others for no apparent reason. Maybe I didn't wait long enough between jogs? Or maybe not enough water? Food intake?

Are you eating enough during the day? This is another thing to consider. Carbohydrates are what keep your muscles working and if you haven't had enough, they can just stop working right. 

Hey ladies, I don't know what advice to give except keep up the great work... Trying is better than nothing.

I was going strong on this program and then took a giant break.

Tonight, I redid workout one of week three in order to play catch up. It felt so good to be out there again.

I am curious about what to eat before and after a run. I have heard many things on this site. I am supposed to see a registered dietition soon (my doctor recommended it and said that insurance would cover it so we'll see) - I will ask this question and report back.

Well I started week 4 yesterday and I kind of skipped week 3, but i did good...I went with the time instead of distance, which i think i will try tomorrow.  It was very exciting for me to be able to jog even a quarter mile since i couldn't even do that in high school, which was about 5 years ago.  I feel so much healthier now even though i probably only have about a 5 lb weight difference then 5 years ago cause of gaining during college. anywho...it feels good to eat good, and be active since i hardly ever was before...

So back to the jogging thing, yea i was slightly winded by 5 mins, but nothing i couldn't handle...Back to my stomach cramps problem that i mentioned before. I try not to eat anything big before the gym...I usually have some fruit or a granola bar around 3 or 330 and i am usually at the gym by 5...am i allowing enough time between my snack and working out?  I do the elliptical first and I have no stomach cramps on there, it is just on the treadmill...I did notice that they are bare-a-bull if i eat around 3 or 330 but if it is after 330 the cramps are really bad and i cannot run, which i understand since my body is trying to digest food.  oh and is it worse or better to drink water while jogging? Will that cause worse cramps?  sometimes i drink a lot while i am on the elliptical...could this be my prob?  maybe i should try the treadmill first and see what happens?  any ideas?

I'm trudging through week 7. Never in my entire life have I jogged more than one mile at a time and now I'm averaging just around 2.5. This is crazy. The last ten minutes are always really trying. I'm just hoping it'll get easier.