Free Couch to 5K training plan

What Couch to 5K is

Josh Clark created Couch to 5K in the late 1990s. Run/walk sessions get a little harder each week until a complete non-runner can run 5 km without stopping.

The free NHS version is nine weeks of three runs a week. Run-R's plan follows the same pattern, from 8 × (1 min run, 1.5 min walk) to 2 × (10 min run, 3 min walk), and fits it to your race date.

Who it suits

• Anyone who has never run regularly, or is coming back after a long break.
• Walkers ready to add some running without overdoing it.
• Already running 30 minutes without stopping? The 5K training plan suits you better.

The four phases of a Run-R Couch to 5K plan

Each phase asks a little more, and the walks shrink as the runs grow. These are the weeks of the 8-week sample above.

1. Short runs

   Weeks 1 to 2

   Runs of 1 to 1.5 minutes, with 90 seconds to 2 minutes of walking between. Your body gets used to gentle impact.

2. Build the running

   Weeks 3 to 5

   Runs of 2, then 3, then 5 minutes, with shorter walks. Tendons and fitness start to adapt.

3. Longer blocks

   Weeks 6 to 7

   Runs of 8, then 10 minutes, two or three times a session. This is the hardest phase mentally.

4. First 5K

   Week 8

   A lighter week, then your first 5K. Walking a minute here and there is fine. On a longer plan, continuous running comes before race day.

When to move on, and when to repeat a week

The plan is a guide, not a contract. Move on to the next week if:

• You finished all three sessions.
• You could talk in short sentences during the runs.
• Any soreness was gone within a day or two.

Repeat the week if you had to cut a session short, were gasping even after slowing down, missed a session, or still have an ache at the start of the next run. Repeating a week is not failing. A nine-week plan can become eleven and you still get there.

Your first 5K: parkrun and race day

parkrun is a free, timed 5K every Saturday morning in parks across the UK and many other countries. Walkers are welcome, so it suits a first 5K well. Going along once during the plan, even to walk it, takes the nerves out of the real thing.

1. 1

   Eat what you know

   A light breakfast you have run on before, about two hours before the start.
2. 2

   Wear tried kit

   Race day is not the day for new shoes.
3. 3

   Start slower than feels right

   The crowd pulls you along. Run your training pace and walk if you need to.
4. 4

   Write down your time

   It is your first benchmark, and the number Run-R sets your next paces from.