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WEEK 4 OF 9

Couch to 5K Week 4: Workouts and What to Expect

3 / 5 / 3 / 5 with short walks. All three sessions are identical this week.

Run Walk Warm-up / cool-down
  1. Day 1

    Step up

    3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run / 2 min 30s walk / 3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run

    Total workout
    31.5 min
    Time running
    16 min
    Intervals
    9
    Full interval breakdown
    1. Warm-up walk5 min
    2. Run3 min
    3. Walk90s
    4. Run5 min
    5. Walk2 min 30s
    6. Run3 min
    7. Walk90s
    8. Run5 min
    9. Cool-down walk5 min
  2. Day 2

    Find the long run

    3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run / 2 min 30s walk / 3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run

    Total workout
    31.5 min
    Time running
    16 min
    Intervals
    9
    Full interval breakdown
    1. Warm-up walk5 min
    2. Run3 min
    3. Walk90s
    4. Run5 min
    5. Walk2 min 30s
    6. Run3 min
    7. Walk90s
    8. Run5 min
    9. Cool-down walk5 min
  3. Day 3

    Close week 4

    3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run / 2 min 30s walk / 3 min run / 90s walk / 5 min run

    Total workout
    31.5 min
    Time running
    16 min
    Intervals
    9
    Full interval breakdown
    1. Warm-up walk5 min
    2. Run3 min
    3. Walk90s
    4. Run5 min
    5. Walk2 min 30s
    6. Run3 min
    7. Walk90s
    8. Run5 min
    9. Cool-down walk5 min

What to expect in week 4

This is the biggest jump in the plan so far. Three minutes running, 90 seconds walking, five minutes running, two and a half minutes walking, then that pattern again. Total running goes from nine minutes to sixteen, while walking barely changes, dropping from six minutes to five and a half. For the first time you're running roughly three times as long as you're walking.

The second five-minute run, right at the end, is the hard part of the session. Slowing the whole workout down is a completely legitimate way to get through it: a five-minute run at an embarrassingly gentle pace is still a five-minute run.