Hi Sarah - Congrats on your progress through the first four weeks of the program. I'm a little confused by your post, though. You seem to have posted the week 5, day 1 (W5D1) workout, but the W5D2 and W5D3 workouts are quite a bit different:

W5D2: 5 minute warmup, 8 minute run, 5 minute walk, 8 minute run

W5D3: 5 minute warmup, 20 minute run (this is the workout that scares the tar out of most folks)

On to your question. You mentioned that you're running in San Francisco, with lots of hills. Are you trying to maintain a steady pace on your runs? You probably should run by perceived effort rather than by pace, particularly when you hit hills. It's okay to slow down when you hit hills, as long as you don't reduce your effort. In general, you should be trying to maintain an aerobic pace, which will let you speak (or sing, if that's your thing) in short sentences while you run (about 6-10 words is a good guideline).

What's causing you to cut short your runs? Is it fatigue? Pain? Do you just feel like not running any more? Are you using a podcast or smartphone app to help you track intervals (and give you something to listen to when you're running)?

If you're really struggling, I'd suggest going back to week four. Otherwise, maybe take an extra day off before trying the workout again. (You won't lose fitness with one extra day off, I promise.)

Are you experiencing stresses in your life? Eating differently? Sleeping enough/soundly? Are you adequately hydrated before you run? How are the temperatures?

As you can imagine, there are quite a few factors that might affect your run. Don't let it get you down. You'll get there. Stick with it!

Don

Hi Sarah,

What you are going through is exactly what happened to me.  I worked my way all the way up to week 5 day 3 and completed the 20 minute run, then when I tried week 6, it was like I hit a wall.  I had no energy and could not complete a run.  Now, this was back about 4 weeks ago when the weather was much hotter and more humid.  So what I did was back track to weeks 3 and 4 and just kept repeating them over and over again to strengthen myself.  I also added in some core training on the off days, with crunches and pushups.  I repeated week 5 day 1 and 2 several times over the past 2 weeks and now I'm getting ready to run the dreaded day 3 for 20 minutes tonight.  Although the weather is much better now, I'm going to run this on the treadmill so I can control my pace better.  I seem to run much slower on the treadmill than I do outside.  If all goes well, I'm going to repeat that 20 min run 3 times this week, and then move it outside.  I run either on the road or at our high school cross country course when I run outside and both are challenging.  The cross country course is very hilly and you have to watch your step due to the uneven ground and other obsticles.

So basically, I figured any running that I was able to do, was better than the couch potato that I had been all my life, so I just kept at it.  Don't give up, you have to just keep running and your body will become stronger and stronger every day. 

Good luck and keep running.

Lori