Big day today! I completed my first Coventry Park Run this morning, at the young age of 64. Here is my account of how I got to this point.
The programme starts very gently (six separate minutes of running at my own pace, interspersed with blocks of 90 seconds walking), and works up from there. C25k is insistent that one takes at least one rest day between each running day, which is a big help. There were occasional shocks: for example week 5 shoved me into a single 20 minute run at the end of the week, a big jump from the 5 minute blocks at the start of the week. However I was physically ready for the up-tick after 5 weeks of running.
I used the C25k smartphone app to guide me through the C25k runs - in fact I delayed my start till I had replaced my old and venerable iPhone with a newer version on which the app could run! It was very helpful to have a smartphone guide, supplying prompts and encouragements at halfway points and the concluding minute, etc. I chose Sarah Millican as narrator - of course - somehow she seemed the obvious choice. By the end of the program I had bought myself some bluetooth earphones and was listening to accompanying music as I ran.
There's also a podcast version, so I guess one could do C25k just as well with a simple MP3 player.
Even getting halfway through C25k made a noticeable difference to my stamina. Catherine had been doing C25k on her own, and we went off on a walking weekend at Bradwell. It was a very pleasant shock to notice how much faster we completed the Ridge walk. And the sheer fact, that I could do this running without suddenly expiring, made an emphatically positive difference to my physical confidence.
I had to intermit the C25k programme once the first time round, because I pulled a muscle and had to rest for ten days. (No big deal: I just re-did a week of the programme so that the re-start wasn't too much of a shock.) More seriously, on completion I then foolishly did a run in my ordinary walking shoes, which damaged the soles of my feet. Consequently I had to stop running for rather a long time. I resolved not to start again till I had spent some serious cash buying purpose-built running shoes. It took a considerable while to get round to this (work being very busy), but about six months ago Catherine and I went to Coventry Runner to see what there was. Amusingly, the guy in charge was the father of a girl who had been at primary school with Edward - in Coventry one is never very far away from one's past. They did gait analysis for me (examining a video of me running on a treadmill for 30 seconds), and offered two or three options. Inevitably I ended up choosing for quality and expense - actually it didn't seem to make sense to economize, having previously experienced damaged soles.
So then I had to re-start C25k, after a year's gap. I began in September of this year, and of course it all seemed much easier the second time. I chose Jo Whiley as my mentor this time: a rather more staid choice. I took to running early in the morning before breakfast, and started experimenting with listening to the Today programme, and blogs. I also noticed that if I ran every other day, instead of just three times a week, then I would be able to finish before I turned 64.
Autumn is an ideal time to undertake C25k. My route leads through Coventry Memorial Park, which delivers glorious and extravagant autumn colours, so every run is a visual treat.
I'd wondered whether I would be able to cope with running first thing, even before breakfast. In fact it worked out really well, with a very particular benefit in dealing with some rather difficult work conditions: after a 25 minute early-morning run I found that I could simply opt of feeling any work-stress during the rest of the day.
As it happened, I didn't quite manage to complete C25k before turning 64: a nasty cold went to my chest and forced me to take a week off. Consequently I completed C25k (second time round) exactly on the morning of my 64th birthday. Well, that was still very appropriate and gratifying.
So, after a rather restless night, full of anxiety dreams, I walked down to Memorial Park this morning to have a go. I wasn't at all sure how I'd cope: C25k had been a very private matter, while one does the Park Run in the midst of a crowd. Fortunately I had not been aware just how big was the crowd. I arrived at the start quarter of an hour early, to find a group of about a hundred people. By the start time there must have been around 700, of all ages and very varied physical fitness. There were the lean and athletic young men and women - I was a bit taken aback to notice that one of those was one of our PhD students, who waved at me cheerfully. And then there were the older, but still lean and athletic, runners such as my friend Jon. And then there was everyone else, much more like me.
Even though the organizers arranged a staggered start, based on expected run-times, nonetheless the start was a massive scrum. I had deliberately started right at the back, which meant that even at my slow starting pace I found I had to pick my way carefully through the throng for a while. The run spaced out after about a quarter of the way through, and the reduced congestion made things easier. Just as well, as I was beginning to feel the pace!
In order to create a 5km long route, the run was organized as two laps of a 2.5km circuit. I was a bit nervous about this, worrying that my body might unilaterally refuse to go a second time round. However I managed to push through the symbolic barrier of running past the finishing segment and worked steadily on.
The variety of runners was immense and inspiring. There were the ace runners, one of whom stormed up to the finish just as I was completing my first lap. There were several people running with babies in push-chairs! Others ran with their dogs on short leads. Halfway through the second lap, I passed three women who (judging by their overheard conversation) were in their seventies.
And then there were the marshals, all volunteers, who clapped and cheered us on. I thought about that famous passage in Hebrews 12:1, about persevering in the race amongst a cloud of witnesses. I was needing that encouragement at three quarters of the second lap! But I pushed on, because the C25k programme emphasized that the important thing was simply to keep running, that it was easier to keep running than to stop and start again. And I even managed a sprint in the last minute, opening up my stride so I could feel I looked good at the end.
In conclusion, my time was approximately 30 minutes give or take (email just came in, saying "Your time was 00:32:49", though I think the staggered start took a couple of minutes), so it went pretty well. (Details here.) I'm hopeful that I could improve on that time with practice: I suspect a lot depends on building up the stamina to develop and sustain a longer stride. But bottom line is, it doesn't matter nearly as much as simply being able to do the run!
1: Couch to 5k
Preparation for this has taken around three years, beginning with working through the Couch to 5k programme. I was very nervous when I started C25k, wondering if I would keel over with a heart attack from unaccustomed running. However Catherine had started C25k a few weeks earlier, and encouraged me to have a go.The programme starts very gently (six separate minutes of running at my own pace, interspersed with blocks of 90 seconds walking), and works up from there. C25k is insistent that one takes at least one rest day between each running day, which is a big help. There were occasional shocks: for example week 5 shoved me into a single 20 minute run at the end of the week, a big jump from the 5 minute blocks at the start of the week. However I was physically ready for the up-tick after 5 weeks of running.
I used the C25k smartphone app to guide me through the C25k runs - in fact I delayed my start till I had replaced my old and venerable iPhone with a newer version on which the app could run! It was very helpful to have a smartphone guide, supplying prompts and encouragements at halfway points and the concluding minute, etc. I chose Sarah Millican as narrator - of course - somehow she seemed the obvious choice. By the end of the program I had bought myself some bluetooth earphones and was listening to accompanying music as I ran.
There's also a podcast version, so I guess one could do C25k just as well with a simple MP3 player.
Even getting halfway through C25k made a noticeable difference to my stamina. Catherine had been doing C25k on her own, and we went off on a walking weekend at Bradwell. It was a very pleasant shock to notice how much faster we completed the Ridge walk. And the sheer fact, that I could do this running without suddenly expiring, made an emphatically positive difference to my physical confidence.
I had to intermit the C25k programme once the first time round, because I pulled a muscle and had to rest for ten days. (No big deal: I just re-did a week of the programme so that the re-start wasn't too much of a shock.) More seriously, on completion I then foolishly did a run in my ordinary walking shoes, which damaged the soles of my feet. Consequently I had to stop running for rather a long time. I resolved not to start again till I had spent some serious cash buying purpose-built running shoes. It took a considerable while to get round to this (work being very busy), but about six months ago Catherine and I went to Coventry Runner to see what there was. Amusingly, the guy in charge was the father of a girl who had been at primary school with Edward - in Coventry one is never very far away from one's past. They did gait analysis for me (examining a video of me running on a treadmill for 30 seconds), and offered two or three options. Inevitably I ended up choosing for quality and expense - actually it didn't seem to make sense to economize, having previously experienced damaged soles.
So then I had to re-start C25k, after a year's gap. I began in September of this year, and of course it all seemed much easier the second time. I chose Jo Whiley as my mentor this time: a rather more staid choice. I took to running early in the morning before breakfast, and started experimenting with listening to the Today programme, and blogs. I also noticed that if I ran every other day, instead of just three times a week, then I would be able to finish before I turned 64.
Autumn is an ideal time to undertake C25k. My route leads through Coventry Memorial Park, which delivers glorious and extravagant autumn colours, so every run is a visual treat.
I'd wondered whether I would be able to cope with running first thing, even before breakfast. In fact it worked out really well, with a very particular benefit in dealing with some rather difficult work conditions: after a 25 minute early-morning run I found that I could simply opt of feeling any work-stress during the rest of the day.
As it happened, I didn't quite manage to complete C25k before turning 64: a nasty cold went to my chest and forced me to take a week off. Consequently I completed C25k (second time round) exactly on the morning of my 64th birthday. Well, that was still very appropriate and gratifying.
2: Coventry Park Run
Despite its name, C25k doesn't necessarily get one to 5km. Final runs last 30 minutes, and at my lumbering speed that corresponds to 4.7km. So I decided I would do a few more runs and then take part in Coventry Park Run, encouraged by a number of friends who told me that it is a rather special event. The run itself really is 5km long, but I figured that the experience of running with other people would probably be enough to push me the extra 0.3km. The run takes place every Saturday at 0900, and today was the day I set for myself. To make sure I wouldn't chicken out, I told my friend and work colleague Jon Warren that I would be there.So, after a rather restless night, full of anxiety dreams, I walked down to Memorial Park this morning to have a go. I wasn't at all sure how I'd cope: C25k had been a very private matter, while one does the Park Run in the midst of a crowd. Fortunately I had not been aware just how big was the crowd. I arrived at the start quarter of an hour early, to find a group of about a hundred people. By the start time there must have been around 700, of all ages and very varied physical fitness. There were the lean and athletic young men and women - I was a bit taken aback to notice that one of those was one of our PhD students, who waved at me cheerfully. And then there were the older, but still lean and athletic, runners such as my friend Jon. And then there was everyone else, much more like me.
Even though the organizers arranged a staggered start, based on expected run-times, nonetheless the start was a massive scrum. I had deliberately started right at the back, which meant that even at my slow starting pace I found I had to pick my way carefully through the throng for a while. The run spaced out after about a quarter of the way through, and the reduced congestion made things easier. Just as well, as I was beginning to feel the pace!
In order to create a 5km long route, the run was organized as two laps of a 2.5km circuit. I was a bit nervous about this, worrying that my body might unilaterally refuse to go a second time round. However I managed to push through the symbolic barrier of running past the finishing segment and worked steadily on.
The variety of runners was immense and inspiring. There were the ace runners, one of whom stormed up to the finish just as I was completing my first lap. There were several people running with babies in push-chairs! Others ran with their dogs on short leads. Halfway through the second lap, I passed three women who (judging by their overheard conversation) were in their seventies.
And then there were the marshals, all volunteers, who clapped and cheered us on. I thought about that famous passage in Hebrews 12:1, about persevering in the race amongst a cloud of witnesses. I was needing that encouragement at three quarters of the second lap! But I pushed on, because the C25k programme emphasized that the important thing was simply to keep running, that it was easier to keep running than to stop and start again. And I even managed a sprint in the last minute, opening up my stride so I could feel I looked good at the end.
In conclusion, my time was approximately 30 minutes give or take (email just came in, saying "Your time was 00:32:49", though I think the staggered start took a couple of minutes), so it went pretty well. (Details here.) I'm hopeful that I could improve on that time with practice: I suspect a lot depends on building up the stamina to develop and sustain a longer stride. But bottom line is, it doesn't matter nearly as much as simply being able to do the run!
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