The 12-Week Commute-Slot Base Block

This is a short placeholder story generated for the design demo. Replace it with a real interview.

Use it when

Your schedule suddenly opens up: a layoff, a career break, a long gap between jobs. The free time feels like a chance to get fit fast. Most people waste it on a burst of hard runs, get sore, and quit by week three. The fix is a fixed slot and a slow build.

Step 1: Claim the old commute slot

Kenji was laid off after nineteen years. For two weeks his runs happened whenever he felt like it, which meant twice. Then he put running in the slot his train used to fill: out the door at 7:40, back by 8:30, Monday to Friday. He ran the commute route on foot. The fixed time removed the daily decision.

Step 2: Run easy enough to talk

He started at 10 km a week, five runs of 2 km. The rule was full sentences. On the first hill he had to walk to keep it. "It felt too slow to count. That was the point."

Step 3: Build 10%, then cut back

Each week he added roughly 10%. Weeks 4, 8 and 12 were cutback weeks, 20% lower than the week before. By week 12 he was running 45 km a week with no niggles. His easy pace dropped by 40 seconds per km without a single hard workout.

Step 4: Strides, not speed work

Once a week he finished with 6 strides: 20 seconds smooth and quick, 60 seconds walking between. That kept his legs used to faster running without turning the base into a race.

Try it this week

Pick the time your old commute started. Run 20 to 25 minutes at talking pace, five days in that slot. Log the total distance. Next week, add 10% to that number.