Are you thinking about running your first 5K race? Or, perhaps you are thinking of getting a little healthier.
We advise you to look into the Couch to 5K plan. It is so quick and easy to follow, and within weeks after your initial attempt, it will start to produce effects.
In this article, we will tell you the basics of what this program is about, including how long it takes to complete.
What Is The ‘Couch To 5K’ Program?
The Couch to 5K program is an eight/nine-step program that, when followed, coaches a person to run a 5K race.
Josh Clark of CoolRunning created and published the first ‘Couch to 5K’ training program back in 1996. Since then, the program has grown to be among the most well-known fitness regimens worldwide, inspiring millions of individuals to start jogging on a daily basis.
The formula has been modified and updated over the years, since it has subsequently been tweaked and adjusted by numerous other active blogs.
However, the general structure of the ‘Couch to 5K’ program hasn’t changed much, despite the numerous adjustments.
How Does The ‘Couch To 5K’ Program Work?
The Couch to 5K program outlines explicitly what to do each day for around 8-9 weeks after commencing, and makes use of the wildly popular idea of interval training, which involves running at various speeds.
By changing your pace, you push your body to adjust to varied speeds and degrees of intense activity, which results in your cardiovascular system becoming stronger and healthier over time.
In contrast to training at a steady velocity, you burn more calories and increase your metabolism at the same time.
All aspects combined helps a person to become more prepared for their upcoming 5K race, or to simply help them improve their health and stamina.
The Couch to 5K approach gradually increases the quantity of time a person spends running, and decreases the amount of time they spend walking, or slowly jogging.
This process takes place over the course of the weeks until they are able to complete a 5K continuously, without coming to a halt.
Why Is The ‘Couch To 5K’ Program So Popular?
As we previously mentioned, millions of people, both previously fit and unfit, have benefited from this method to gradually develop into regular runners.
Obviously, this is not the only running improvement program ever developed, but for some reason, it is one of the most popular, if not the most popular.
Why is this? Well, there are many reasons that the Couch to 5K method is so popular, and has remained so popular almost three decades since its initial release.
First of all, using this application couldn’t be simpler. The guidelines for this program are really simple to follow, whether you are printing them out, writing them down, or you’ve downloaded an app.
Whether it’s because of our demanding jobs, our family at home, or other time-consuming activities, we all lead busy lives. As a result, we want to do the things we want to do when we are finally free!
Strenuous exercise is something we don’t want to ‘waste’ our free time doing, especially if we don’t have a strategy in place.
With the Couch to 5K program, each step is clearly outlined for you. All you have to do is follow each step, and then you have the rest of the day to focus on what you want to do.
Additionally, it is a free, easily accessible program that anyone can use. Couch to 5K is designed for the ‘every man’ in mind, making it incredibly easy and simple for anybody to access and utilize.
Lastly, it is our natural instinct as human beings to want to strive towards something. Whereas the end goal for most exercise programs is to lose weight, or become fitter – both fairly vague goals to strive towards – the Couch to 5K program has a clear goal to strive towards: to be able to run a 5K race.
When a person knows that a goal is achievable, and won’t take much time to reach, it is easier to gain motivation to reach that goal.
How Long Is The ‘Couch To 5K’ Program?
So, how long does the Couch to 5K program actually last? This answer varies depending on which version of the program you decide to follow.
The duration that the course follows varies depending on which edition you follow since, as we briefly mentioned earlier, the original formula developed in the 1990s has been changed throughout time.
The course typically lasts 8 to 9 weeks. We shall outline the general details of the plan for each week of the program below.
Week 1
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 2-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 5-minute walk.
- 2-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 5-minute walk.
- 3-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 2
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 3-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 5-minute walk.
- 4-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 5-minute walk.
- 5-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 3
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 6-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 4-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
- 4-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 5-minute walk.
- 7-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 4
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 7-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 5-minute walk.
- 8-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 5-minute walk.
- 9-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 5
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 9-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 6-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
- 6-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 5-minute walk.
- 10-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- 5-minute walk.
- 11-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Week 6
Day One
- 5-minute walk.
- 11-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 13-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 15-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 7
Day One
- 15-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 8-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
- 8-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 16-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- 17-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Week 8
Day One
- 17-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 18-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 20-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- Rest.
Week 9
Day One
- 20-minute jog.
Day Two
- Rest.
Day Three
- 12-minute jog.
- 5-minute walk.
- 12-minute jog.
Day Four
- Rest.
Day Five
- 24-minute jog.
Day Six
- Rest.
Day Seven
- 25-minute jog.
You should notice that you are substantially more fit after the ninth week. When compared to what you could have done at the beginning of the program, you will notice that you can now run farther distances in less time.
Final Thoughts
If you are unsure about trying the Couch to 5K program, we definitely recommend that you give it a try. This is a process that works you in slowly, starting with as little as a 2-minute job on your first day.
When you consider the fact that you could be making a lot of progress within only a couple of weeks, you need to ask yourself: why shouldn’t you try this challenge? You can do it!
We hope you found this article helpful.
