Starting small is often seen as the easy way to go when it comes to working out. But, it doesn’t always have to be “Go big or go home”. Long-term success is usually slow and steady. What we don’t realize is that all of us started small at one point, we didn’t all of a sudden go from amateur to professional overnight. Successful people will tell you that success is built on little achievements that eventually become big achievements. The “Couch to 5K” app teaches you this very lesson.
The app prefaces the workout with a pop-up of a motivational quote, for example, today mine said, “The miracle isn’t that I finished. The miracle is that I had the courage to start.” These quotes help to put you in the right frame of mind to complete your workout. Especially if you are working out by yourself and you need pumping up. Below the motivational quote is an exercise tip, like this one: “Cotton socks will only lead to blisters; invest in socks designed for running.” When you are ready to start your workout, C25K starts you off with a 5-minute warm-up, followed by alternating periods of running and walking, and later, a five-minute cool-down. The app will take you from sitting on your couch to running a 5k in 8 weeks. There are 3 workouts per week, and ideally there are rest days in between. I like this app because you are creating a solid foundation of walking and running that allows you to build yourself into a runner, day-by-day and week-by-week. This app turns you into a legitimate runner in just 8 short weeks. If you start to get burnt out or discouraged, just remember, you can always repeat training days in the app. Also, if you are driven by results, you can take your body measurements before you start using the app and throughout the course of your journey, you can take more measurements and compare those numbers to when you first started.
What to expect from the Couch to 5k App:
Day One will have a “Brisk five-minute warm-up walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.” There is a little message that displays on top of the screen that tells you what the workout will be and how long you will be running and walking. This will allow you to gauge how you’re feeling that day and whether or not you think you can handle that or if you need a repeat of last time’s workout. Just remember that you are starting small and building on the progress you made from last workout. This app is designed for newcomers to running or for people who have gotten out of shape during the cold winter months.
One of my favorite features of the app is when the guided coach tells you that you are halfway done with your workout. Not only does that tell you that you’re almost done, but it also lets you know when it’s time to do an about-face and run back to your car or house.
The best feature on this app is the ability to share your workout with Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Myfitnesspal all at once with the same customizable message.
There is a free version of this app called ‘C25k free’, there is also a paid app simply called C25K that costs $1.99 in the Apple App Store and Google Play. We’d love to her your feed back on this app, so please leave a comment below!
Christina
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