Personally, I can't say that I really have ever liked to run. I never have felt a runner's high, but felt the need to try and learn how to run. This is where the Couch to 5k App by Zen Labs came in, I forced myself to run to overcome my hatred of running. Three months later, I look forward to running and have found this app to be extremely helpful. As college students, many of us are looking for good ways to stay fit with late night pizza lurking everywhere. Here are some of the features I enjoyed.

1. Manageable runs.

I was not a serious runner in any capacity when I started running with this app, and the app does not expect you to be. It builds up very gradually until the eighth week where you realize that you just ran 3 miles in a row without stopping. The incorporation of walking breaks really helps with making it feel much more manageable, and sometimes even fun!

2. Acts as a timer.

It's nice to be able to plug my headphones in and jam out, while the app tells me when to start walking and running. Its very convenient and easy to follow. It takes the guesswork out of seeing how long to walk and run which is great for a beginner.

3. Warm up and cool down.

Every run starts with a five-minute warm up and ends up with a five-minute cool down. You could choose to skip them, but I like that they are built in to keep me in the habit of warming up and cooling down with every run.

4. Encouragement.

There is something very satisfying about checking off a long run.

5. Schedule.

It's nice to have a routine set of doing three runs a week. I liked it because I ran enough that I became a better runner, but not enough that I got sore.

Overall, I have very much enjoyed my journey from Couch to 5k. Now I am training for a 10k (maybe a half marathon next?), and give this app a lot of credit for helping me learn to love running. So if you ever want to switch up your gym routine, or find a new hobby check it out. The App is Couch to 5k by Zen Labs and is available on the App Store. Get ready to run like the wind!