What To Do Before Starting C25K

Before D and I started C25K, we did a few different things.

First, we talked to our doctors.  Before starting something strenuous like this, especially when you are overweight, it is always a good idea to make sure there are not any concerns that may impact you.  Both of us got the green light so we were onto our next To Do, good shoes.

Since I have been working on the "run only when chased" model of running for the last 10 years, I went to my local running store to get fitted for new shoes that would work best for my gait and weight.  I didn't want to start off with bad shoes that would result in injuries later.  If you aren't a runner but would like to start, I would suggest getting professionally fitted.  The guy who helped me looked at my shoes, had me walk and then jog a bit in the different shoes he suggested.  It was amazing how different they felt.

Another confession here, I was a little worried about the shoes since I didn't want anything crazy colored.  Have you been in a sports store lately?  The display looks like rainbow blew up.

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Thankfully the pair that worked best for me is much more bland.  I mean, no one wants to see size 10 wide hot pink shoes coming at them.

Here are my new skips.  They are the Brooks Ghost 7.  I love them.  They are light and have a lot of support.  Perfect for someone just getting back into running.

So shoes in hand, it was onto my next To Do.  Good bras.  I had been getting by with so called high impact ones from Target. But now that I was going to be running, they just weren't going to cut it.  Even with doubling up, there was still a lot of locomotion, if you know what I mean.

I got a bunch of recommendations from various community boards and ordered 3 different sports bras for large breasted women that had good reviews from both the community boards and Amazon.  The Enelle, which looks a bit like a breast plate and two from Glamorise, the No Bounce and the Sport Double Layer.  The Galmorise both worked out best.  So they are keepers.  I took the Sport Double Layer out for a test run for Week 1, Day 2 yesterday and it was glorious how little movement there was.

So now I have the shoes and the bras so there is no more excuse for not getting out there.

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There was one final To Do - downloading the free C25K app onto my phone.  It is available on both Android and Apple.  This is a great tool and keeps track of your time so you don't have to.  It notifies you with both a vibrate and a voice alert when your transitions are.  This is very helpful on the last running minute, which feels like a whole lot longer.  :)  It also works with your music apps.  Start your music first and then start the app, the voice alerts come on over the music so you don't miss them. 

Week 1 is now done, though I did repeat Week 1/Day 3 since my knee was quite sore and I couldn't do all the runs the first go round.  But tomorrow begins week 2.  Each session is 5 minute brisk walk to warm up, 90 seconds followed by 2 minutes walking (for 20 minutes), followed by 5 minutes of cool down walking.  It will be interesting how that extra 30 seconds will go. 

If anyone else has done C25K, I would love to hear from you about your experiences, successes, trials and tribulations.