Green means you progress a little.
If your breathing is under control, your body holds up and is relaxed, and you are not sore going into your next workout, it is time to progress. Don't make a giant leap just because you had a good week. Slow and steady progress is what builds consistency.
For example, if you are currently doing 45-second intervals, progress toward 60-second intervals. You may not progress every week, and that is okay.
A yellow light indicates that the week needs to be repeated.
If you are gasping for air during the run portion, you struggle to recover during the walk portion, your body feels unstable, or soreness lingers into the next workout, that calls for a yellow light. Repeating a week is not a failure; it is part of the process and is bound to happen at some point.
Your week calls for 60-second intervals, and the first two workouts go smoothly and you have a green light. However, on the third workout, you are gasping for air and each following interval feels harder. You barely finish and are sore for a couple of days. Give this workout a yellow light. Your week has two green lights and one yellow light. This calls for a repeat.
The following week, you will stay with the 60-second intervals until all three workouts have a green light. This is not a score on toughness; it is an assessment so we can take a smart approach to training.
Just like coming to a red light at a traffic stop, we are going to come to a complete stop. If you have to change your stride due to pain or experience dizziness or lightheadedness, stop the workout right away. At this point, contact a medical professional and do not return until cleared. You do not want to push through and further increase any risks. Red lights can happen, and this always calls for caution.
Training for a 5K has its challenges, and I understand wanting to get over the hump. In order to do that, you need as many green weeks as possible. However, yellow weeks can produce more green weeks by keeping you out of the red.
Check your pacing and soreness, and ask yourself this simple question after every workout: Could I have done one more interval? After your next workout, document in a journal whether your pacing was comfortable and how your body felt. Assess your journal at the end of every week and decide your action for the following week.
If you find yourself stuck repeating the same week over and over, I can help you get over the hump. Fill out the short questionnaire at the bottom, and I'll be in touch.