I'm in the same boat as you. I have been running since the summer and I recently finished a couch to 5km plan. My pace is similar at 35-38 minutes. Do you have any tips on going from 38 to 25 minutes? Thanks
My biggest thing was slowing the fuck down and consistency. I was an athlete in HS and had a huge ego around how fast I should be going. For reference I didn’t run faster than 12min/mi for the first 2 weeks. Also I run 5-6x a week now (1 long run the rest super easy recovery runs <5.5 mi)
Other things:
1. Foot/ankle strengthening. Lookup YouTube videos on how to strengthen feet and knees. 5-10 mins a day as you’re starting. If you’re going slow it’s low impact too.
2. Focus on form/don’t zone out. I used to run and try to “zone out” as quickly as possible to “ignore” the pain. Instead focus in and run a mental checklist of your form. Again, YouTube videos on good form (which often aren’t targeted/explained how to run that well when running so slowly, so be specific with your searches).
3. I moved to NRC which I liked a lot better than C25K. I like the mental coaching and found it very valuable especially in the beginning. Now I run without music because I like listening to my breathing, as if I lose focus on my breath that also hurts.
There’s a lot of other things that I now keep track of for funsies. But those will come naturally if you start to enjoy running for the sake of running. I’m not running for health, to lose weight, or to look better. I’m running because I really enjoy running. YMMV
Do more short high effort intervals. Find a track to run at if you can and alternate easy/hard laps. The visual cues of a track will really help you feel confident pushing hard because it’s easy to see how much distance remains.
Also, check out your local running clubs on Strava. I know social running isn’t for everyone, but it’s a really good way to push your speed up. Every club I’ve run with has been psyched to get a new person.
As a second opinion, everyone is different. This is quite literally the last advice I would give anyone starting out. Short high effort intervals and spiking HR for someone with poor cardiovascular strength (myself 12 weeks ago) feels like absolute horrid shit and I would never want to go to the track again.
Prioritize enjoying the run. Which you can’t do when your body thinks you might be having a heart attack.
