Welcome, Mike! Sounds like you've made a lot of positive changes in your life! Good luck with everything! You may find that some runs are more difficult than others. I don't know why that is, but even now, approaching 2 years of running, I will have good days and bad. So hang in there if something feels tough. Repeat a week if necessary, but always remember that if you keep moving in the right direction you WILL make progress. modified to add: I think the program's easiest to follow if you stick to the three runs/week. If you feel the need to do something that second rest day, why not go for a half hour walk in a park or something fun like that?

Welcome, Mike! Sounds like you've made a lot of positive changes in your life! Good luck with everything! You may find that some runs are more difficult than others. I don't know why that is, but even now, approaching 2 years of running, I will have good days and bad. So hang in there if something feels tough. Repeat a week if necessary, but always remember that if you keep moving in the right direction you WILL make progress. modified to add: I think the program's easiest to follow if you stick to the three runs/week. If you feel the need to do something that second rest day, why not go for a half hour walk in a park or something fun like that?

Thanks for the words of encouragement Wingz. I have made a lot of changes, and though it seems like a lot all at once to other people, I've been trying to hold myself back and do things incrementally. I have a really bad habit of biting off more than I can chew, lol. I've also been exercising nearly every day by doing bodyweight exercises (i.e. squats, pushups, chinups and situps). I think I'm going to aim for 3x a week running and on the days I don't run, I'll workout. This way I won't get burnt out but I'll still be moving in the right direction. It seems like everybody else here has successfully graduated from the C25K program, yes?

Hi, Mike! Sounds like things are going well for you! Shin splints are not just something you "get used to." They're typically caused by wearing the wrong type of shoes or older shoes or by progressing too quickly in your running. Since it sounds like you're doing a good job of not running too hard ("no hyperventilating, wheezing, keeled-over-on-the-side-of-the-track-wanting-to-die moments") and you're following the C25K program, the best bet is it's related to the shoes... I certainly am no expert on shoes, but if yours are more than about 6 months old or if you just picked a random pair of running shoes without having someone from a running specialty store look at your gait, you may want to consider a visit to your local running specialty store (not someplace like Footlocker, but some place that specializes in running only...). Zoom-zoom's dealt with shin splints, though I've been lucky enough to avoid them. (I had other issues... )

Zoom-zoom's dealt with shin splints, though I've been lucky enough to avoid them. (I had other issues... )

I still get them from time to time--I think mostly because I have miserable overly tight calves, too--my entire lower leg is pretty troublesome. Make sure you're stretching your lower legs plenty before runs. I use a lot of these and these. It could be shoes, but it also could be just acclimating to running or tight lower leg issues. k

That's a controversial topic... and there seem to be as many answers as there are people. Most experts agree that warming up and cooling down is very important. Some people will say you don't need to stretch at all. Most will say that if you're going to stretch then you should stretch right after your cool-down while your muscles are still warm. Stretching while you're cold is out of favor in most circles. I don't know if stretching before runs for specific injury-types like shin-spllints is advised or not, but if you're tight in your lower legs certainly stretching them several times a day is a good idea. Tight calves can also lead to plantar facitis... which is bad. Been there, done that, don't want the t-shirt...

Yeah...that stretching thing. I always do before and after, but that's mostly because I have found that the better stretched I feel, the better my calves feel. But I do think it's a YMMV sort of thing. I usually have been up and around for a while before I head on a run, so I'm not a jump-outta-bed-and-go kind of girl. Most days I run after I take my son to school. k

Whoo hoo!!! Congrats on getting signed up for the race! You can totally do it!!!