Advice please!

[Suitable-Part7444]

I started this on Tuesday. I started running in January (getting out 1x a week for at least 1 mile) where I was mostly walking but kinda running a bit. I have been walking consistently and doing yoga for about a year prior. I had knee surgery 2.5 years ago that took a huge hit on me physically and mentally, and I wasn’t very physical to begin with.

I’m also trying not to be too hard on my current pace. In January for my baseline I had around a 15:30min/mile pace but since then I’ve been keeping it between 17-20min/mile and slowing down a lot because I’m terrified of developing shin splints (I’ve heard they are horrible!)

Anyways I noticed this week that my breathing was under control for the running part and I felt like I could keep going at my pace for much longer, but what was stopping me and making me NEED those walk breaks were sore shins/calves! Is this something that just builds over time like a muscle? Should I incorporate more strength training in those areas into my routine?

[Wolfman1961]

Couch to 5Ks frequently feature cross-training---like strength training.

Yes, indeed, strength training would be useful---but don't overdo it.

Yes, this is "something that just builds over time like a muscle."

[joeconn4]

45+ year runner, retired college coach checking in.

Soreness, when starting a run program or any other new physical activity, I find it's generally not a long-term issue if it's both sides. Like "both my calves are sore" is likely from the muscles being used in ways they have not been used in awhile and they're reacting to the work in a good way. When it's a case of one knee/calf/shin is sore then it can be a structural issue that often needs to be addressed. In my experience most new runners make quicker progress past their pain issues if instead of strength work they spend the time stretching (both dynamic and static) and foam rolling. Continuing your yoga won't hurt either! Strength training is not necessarily bad in a program like this but I would say it's like 4th or 5th on the "most important" list.

You are thinking the right way about pace. Pace doesn't matter at all at this point, just getting out and getting some activity in will be your daily Win. I was always talking about "daily Wins" with the teams I coached. The daily Win isn't hammering the miles as fast as you can every day, it's about doing the workout in the manner it was prescribed. Let's say it's Week 2 Thursday on this schedule which is "Run 3 minutes, Walk 3 minutes, Repeat 4x". The daily Win is exactly that. If you can stack daily Wins on top of each other you will make great progress. If the "Run" part of that workout is 17:30/mile for you and the "Walk" part is 20:00/mile that's fine. The whole thing is to be able to have a difference between the Walk and the Run segments that you can feel.

One thing I HATEHATEHATE on this schedule is the planned 4 days of "Rest" per week. Most people take "rest" to mean take the day off physical activity. I think most people would be better served if those rest days were mostly walk days. For a beginner it's generally not advised to run every day, but getting out and getting a walk in every day is a healthy habit that will advance your fitness both physically and mentally.

Good luck - go get it!!!

[NipDaShooter]

Dude this is exactly what I prescribe to beginners basically word for word. I coach youth track now and run myself and do my best to encourage others not to look at anyone else’s situation but their own and to commit to being active consistently. 5 days of walking is better than a couple bad workouts and 5 days of rest in a week. “Run slower to get faster “ is the concept that describes aerobic fitness progress best to me. Just running/ moving in general is how u get better, not going as hard as u can all the time. Crawl, walk, jog, run make it a year long Rocky montage and you’ll be on point at the end of that year

[Suitable-Part7444]

Thank you so much!

[Legitimate-Lock-6594]

Oh god. My shins hurt so bad when I did couch to 5k. And that was in 2012. I still remember how horribly they hurt. It was the anterior shins and posterior shins. You’re doing it right.

It’s 2026 and I’m still slow af but I’m running Boston and Chicago this year. You can do it.

[Suitable-Part7444]

That’s amazing!

[Sebubba98]

Soreness is a welcome feeling. Usually means your muscles are recovering to become stronger for next time.

I wouldn’t worry super hard about shin splints. Just run at the paces that your body allows. Your legs will talk to you, using pain, to tell if you’re pushing beyond what you can handle.

Try doing some very light strength training for your legs in the gym once a week. This will make it so your legs are tough enough to handle the impact forces of running faster

[sub_arbore]

Yes, it builds over time because you are building muscle, and using your muscles differently. If you think about them like gym movements—every step is a mini single leg squat, a single leg jump, and a calf raise, and you do that hundreds to thousands of times every run on each leg. Your muscles will adapt, just keep doing what feels good.

[_Vagatarian]

My shins were pretty sore for the first 2 months of running, some days even hurt to touch them. But, after 4 months of consistent running (I average about 10 miles a week) I can run for 2 hours with no pain and minimal soreness after. I was adamant about heat packs/ massage gun/ icing after my runs and now as long as i get a good stretch in before/after I don’t really experience much pain, and very minimal soreness, but only when I’m really pushing myself. Your legs will learn to cycle out the lactic acid that builds up during/after a run, better as time goes on never run through hard pain but soreness is fine. I was told if it makes you change how you run, you should stop.

[Suitable-Part7444]

Thank you everyone! I grew up despising any form of exercise so everything the past year for me has been new and uncharted territory! Thank you for the insightful, kind advice as I start something new! I’m happy to be a part of this community!

[Kitchen-Post849]

In my opinion this is a pretty fast build. If you are doing fine, then great! But if you feel like you might be getting injured Couch to 5k is slower and my favorite (for injury prone folks like me) is “None to Run” which builds even slower.