I never thought of myself as a runner, let alone someone who would actually go out of their way to sign up for a race with hundreds of other people involved.

As I read more about it, I realized that just getting some cardio on a few days a week is very good for you.

I downloaded the Couch to 5k app.

The app structure starts you out with mostly walking, focusing on the time that you spend moving rather than the distance that you go. As you progress through the days, you run more and walk less until you eventually run the full 25-30 minutes.

Day One

My first "run" was mostly walking. I walked at a fast pase and jogged as slow as I could. I ended up going about 1.27 miles, half of what I would need to run to complete a 3.1 mile/ 5k race.

I continued to run two days on, then taking one day as an active rest day.

Active Rest Days

On days that I wasn't running, I walked for 30 minutes. This ensured that I was still moving my body on days that weren't training for the 5k.

This allowed my body to rest and to recover from the intensive running.

30 Days Until Race Day

With just a month to go until race day, I was making good pace, running about 2.8 miles during a session on the app. I focused on maintaining a steady speed during my running intervals and taking deep breaths during my walking intervals.

With all being said, I still needed to increase my running intervals and decrease the amount of time walking.

Race Day

A full 97 days passed. Out of those days, I ran approximately 64 of them. With a final 5k training, I was up to 3.1 miles in 34 minutes.

This was not near any world breaking time. I decided one day before the race that I was going to be proud and happy with whatever time I did manage to get.

The Aftermath

Below is a table of all of my times if you are curious like me. I like to crunch the numbers and see visually my progress. Remember, don't compare yourself to me in any way! This was a personal experiment, and this is meant for entertainment purposes only.

Pace is measured in Minutes as a single tick and seconds as a double tick. Ex. Day 1, the calculated time it would have taken me to run a mile would be 15 minutes and 30 seconds.

Day	Time	Miles	Pace
1	25 min	1.27	15'30"
7	25 min	1.27	12'30"
14	25 min	1.27	15'30"

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Everything seems to matter. From the decision to go to college, to what you post on Instagram for the world to judge. What you do now feels like it will define who you will be for the rest of your life.

The many if-I-was-your-age comments drag you down into deeper anxiety. I can be anything, but it feels like I should be everything.

I am a 20-something, mostly broke college student. I am trying to learn as much as I can about life, find a balance, and still come out the other side okay. I like to read a bit, focus on finances, create things, and work on my fitness.

So, why am I starting a blog?

I want to share my human experience of living in my twenties. I want to share what I learn every day as a programmer and as a student.

There is an elephant in the room. I am not an expert, in anything. I am the opposite of an expert. There are many things that I still need to learn in my career and my life in general.

I hope to document my failures and my achievements here. Thank you for reading.