Not Exactly BORN to Run, but…
By Emily
Having finally gotten a handle on my eating (it only took how long?), it’s time to refocus on exercise.
In January of this year I downloaded the Couch to 5k app for my iphone. I completed about six weeks. Then I got bronchitis, allowed it to get me ENTIRELY off track and never picked it back up. I did “run” in a 5k. I ran and walked. Now I want to do it for real. I’m planning to start Couch to 5k again next week and run another 5k before the end of the year.
Running is not really my forte, if you. I actually kind of despise it, until I actually finish a run. When I was doing C25k earlier this year I felt really proud of myself. I was doing something I would normally only do under duress. Plus, I was improving, which made me hate it less. Just like any other workout, I never wished I hadn’t run after finishing a run. I have visions of myself running and enjoying it (and having a runner’s body while we are imagining things).
Last time I did the program using minutes of running and walking. I think this time I’d like to do it based on distance, so when it is over I’m actually running three miles (instead of just 30 minutes—I am a sloooooow runner). The problem is that I don’t want to run on a track (or have a track to run on for that matter). I am curious as to what would be the easiest way to run based on distance without having to track it out in some time-consuming manner using my car. Also, while I’d love a Garmin watch or something, I’d like to keep my costs on this project minimal. Is there an App for this?
September 2nd, 2010 at 10:57 am
Mapmyrun.com is a great tool to use!
September 2nd, 2010 at 11:41 am
Agree w/ Mapmyrun.com. Also, what kind of phone do you have? I use a free app called cardiotracker on mine and it tracks your distance while you run w/ GPS.
September 2nd, 2010 at 11:44 am
I have an iPhone. Do mapmyrun and/or cardiotracker let you listen to music while the app is running?
September 2nd, 2010 at 12:22 pm
I have an iPhone 3GS, and it has the Nike + app. You have to buy the chip, which is something like $25 and you can get a holder for the chip on Amazon for something like $7. I just use good ole’ duct tape. It works mostly okay, although I do notice that it gets ‘off’ alot with distances. I didn’t mind this much at first, since it was mostly reliable. (I think I noticed it was like 1/16th of a mile off).
Also, you can always just use Map My Run to find a run that is the correct distance, and then follow the directions – as opposed to letting it do the tracking for you – if you want to be able to listen to your ipod. You just search for a certain mileage in your area.
September 2nd, 2010 at 3:40 pm
I use Google Pedometer – http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/. What’s nice about it, and maybe you can do this with mapmyrun too, is that you can use the regular google Satellite view and plot out intricate trails in parks (in my case, in Central Park). I just map the run, and then run it – not track as I go.
September 2nd, 2010 at 6:18 pm
Runkeeper! It’s a fantastic app and it’s free. (The Pro version is well worth the upgrade, though.) It allows you to play music from iTunes or other apps, save training routes, save training intervals, get audio cues, track progress, etc. Great support and they keep updating the app with new features. You can also add treadmill runs manually so that you can track those distances as well towards your totals, pacing, and personal records.
http://runkeeper.com/home
It has been very motivating for me. I had a NIke + chip as well and found it to be a pain to calibrate properly.
Good luck!
September 2nd, 2010 at 10:33 pm
I use runstar on my droid – I think they have an iphone app too. Its pretty basic, but gives you total distance, time & mile splits. For computer rather than phone based programs, I prefer gmap to mapmyrun – the latter has too much going on, in my opinion.
September 3rd, 2010 at 2:55 pm
I love the title of your blog!
And I’ve done the Couch to 5K program before and loved it!!!
January 4th, 2011 at 5:45 am
Very Nice website. I recently built mine and i was looking for some ideas and your website gave me some. The website was developed by you?
Thanks