Running my first 5k - any tips?

[hxd]

So 12 weeks ago, I started training for my first 5k race. I have come a LONG way. I have gone sucking wind after walking a 20-minute mile to just starting to suck wind after two miles in 19 minutes.

The race is in just about a week. I plan to keep training right up through Thursday, and then either take Friday and Saturday off or just go light on those days. I'm not doing anything new or different between now and then either.

Any tips, hints, or well wishes for a first-time 5k runner?

[OTVFD18]

So 12 weeks ago, I started training for my first 5k race. I have come a LONG way. I have gone sucking wind after walking a 20-minute mile to just starting to suck wind after two miles in 19 minutes.

The race is in just about a week. I plan to keep training right up through Thursday, and then either take Friday and Saturday off or just go light on those days. I'm not doing anything new or different between now and then either.

Any tips, hints, or well wishes for a first-time 5k runner?

I'm not a personal trainer, fitness guru, doctor, or anything important. However, I once was a bad runner, just like you were. I ran my first 5K last September and finished in about the middle of the pack. My only advice is to keep your own pace...just like a PAT. Don't try and stay with those guys who start off at a dead sprint...it's more fun passing them 2 miles later when they're out of gas. Have fun and savior that sense of accomplishment when you cross the finish line. GOOD LUCK!

[Zamkn]

Just finish.

Finish at your own pace.

Finish proudly.

Just finish.

[TheKansan]

Start going as fast as possible in the last quarter mile. I love running, good luck. Post your time after you complete it.

[nolo]

Cut out dairy for the week before the race (it will make you less likely to cramp up). Wear a watch (so you know how long you've been running) and, if possible, know the race course (so you can pace yourself, accounting for any hills) on the way.

Good luck and kick ***!

[Presence]

Good Luck!!

You gonna listen to music while you run?

I'm proud of you, can't wait to hear about it!

[GrayPatriot]

First of it is only a 5K so don't be too concerned about it

Running in these races is fun; you can go at your own relaxed pace or you can use it as an opportunity to crush your PB. If the conditions are good and it is a flat course you good really surprise yourself with your time.

Don't be discouraged by the old people in their 70's or young people under 14 leaving you in the dirt as this will happen, but this can also motivate you to do better.


If you become serious about ruinning you should invest in a garmin forerunner. I have the outdated 201

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=142&pID=11039


Either way good luck and happy running.

[USMCadam]

I work at Garmin Internation in Olathe, KS. A Forerunner watch is one of the best investments you could ever get for running. You can track your pace, how far you have run, heart rate (if a 305), calories burnt, and so much more. The Forerunner is a great training tool and it can help greatly with your personal running goals. I will personally never run without one. If you don't care about knowing your heart rate, then stick with the Forerunner 205. You can get one online around $150.00. Any questions on any Garmin running product, throw me a message or just post on the forum!

[hxd]

Well, I did it! Ran the first race this morning! It was a hell of an experience.

The the first 1/8th of a mile or so was uphill on a very steep grade. By the time I made it to the road, I was already starting to feel it. The rest of the course was ALL hills. We went up a hill, leveled out a little, up another hill, down a hill, around a loop, back up the hill, leveled out, went off-road for a half-mile, back up a hill, back down a hill, and then back to the finish.

The course I trained on had about a 50 foot change in elevation across the entire three miles. This course had several changes in elevation totaling about a 500 feet across the three miles.

By the time I hit 2.5 miles, I was SMOKED. But when I made that last turn and started coming down towards the finish line, I managed to find a little bit more energy, and I finished with one of the gals in my group who was about 50 feet ahead of me.

Based upon my training over the 12 weeks, I was looking for a 30-32 minute finish time. I came in at 36:15. With the hills taking me by surprise, I'm happy with that time. It's very respectable, given the facts that this was my first race and I'm still weighing in at 270 pounds. All in all, I'm very happy. Unless I hurt myself, I can only get better from here.

A bunch of the folks in the group I've been running with have "reserved" our regular training time slot, and we're going to keep running together as a group. I'm really looking forward to it!

(And for those of you who are MySpace friends, I've posted some pics.)

[Presence]

Yay! Good job! Hills definitely make the trip harder, but you are only stronger because of it!! Keep it up!

[Guzman]

I work at Garmin Internation in Olathe, KS. A Forerunner watch is one of the best investments you could ever get for running. You can track your pace, how far you have run, heart rate (if a 305), calories burnt, and so much more. The Forerunner is a great training tool and it can help greatly with your personal running goals. I will personally never run without one. If you don't care about knowing your heart rate, then stick with the Forerunner 205. You can get one online around $150.00. Any questions on any Garmin running product, throw me a message or just post on the forum!

just my input... here's my alternative I use

I run with Nike+ shoes and i own an ipod nano, so i naturally bought the Nike+ running pedometer. Now it tells me my pace, distance, calories, personal best mileage, if i've beaten a record of mine, total time. I use a mio watch from walmart ($40) that i saw on Dr. Phil to keep track of my heart rate. it will tell me my percentage of max so i know if i'm at my 70% THR, 60% THR, etc. also... you can "compete" with friends over the internet using the ipod nano running aid.

Good luck. i'm working up to a 5k.

[SilverBrat]

Congratulations! I also ran my first ever 5k this year. I just started running in March, figured if I feel like I do at this age what will I feel like when I'm 70. Ran my race end of June with a time of 41 minutes. I will say when I first arrived I was intimidated by all the skinny people. I'm not skinny. My friend encouraged me with "Endurance matters more". She was right. I turned up my Ipod and just ran my own race. My goal was to run the whole time, steady and finish. It was such an awesome experience. I am hooked. Good luck and keep running.

[hxd]

Thanks guys and gals.

As I mentioned in another thread, I partook in a 12-week "learn to run" program. This 5k race was our "graduation" of sorts.

In the days leading up to the race, I started feeling anxious. And it wasn't because of the race itself, but rather because the 12-week program was coming to an end. As it turns out, I wasn't the only one. After the race, several of us agreed that we wanted to keep going - together. So last night, the same half-dozen of us that had run together on Wednesday nights met up at "our" spot at "our" time and ran together. We all had a slightly different attitude last night too. It was no longer the "I need to do this to finish the race" attitude. Rather, it was a "I'm not breaking any records. I'm doing this for the fun of it" attitude. It is now a part of my lifestyle.

Now that I've accomplished that goal, I'm looking for the next one. I have two of them in mind. In about a month, my gym is sponsoring a Body For Life program. If I do it right, I'll drop some fat and muscle up a little more. Depending on how far that takes me, I'm very seriously considering a Sprint Triathlon next summer. Could be fun, right?

I'm also talking up this 12-week program to several of the folks that I work with. I'm trying to put a team together for the JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge in May of next year.

[GrayPatriot]

Congrats!

I worked with a guy who was 300+ only a few years ago and ran the most recent NYC marathon in close to 8min mile pace and ran the 1.5 miler in 9:00 last summer.


As the weight comes off your time will improve dramtically.