If you follow along with my blog at all, you would know that I have an on again, off again relationship with running. One week I am posting I am running a half-marathon, the next I am saying who needs running or exercise. But when it really comes down to it I really do enjoy running. I think it is something you either like or do not. For me (as a former college athlete) it is a form of competition that I now have a lack of in my life. The other part for me is I LOVE to eat! So if I can eat what I would like and go run it off, then I am a happy girl!
Daniel and I set out on the task of training for a 5K back in February. I posted a long time ago about my first 5K experience. I knew this time I was really going to train and push myself. Yeah right! I got about 3 weeks into the training and life happened. I started staying late at work making sub plans and spending my afternoons getting things together for my trip to Europe over spring break. To make a long story short, the training just stopped.
Now add two weeks in Europe to the equation. No time or access to running coupled with exhaustion made it impossible for me to pick up my training schedule. Needless to say I arrived back in the States booked for a 5K and no time to train. The only advantages that I had going into the race were that I am athletic and Daniel did not train at all, so we could suffer through it together.
The morning of the race arrived and we were pumped. The goal was to finish the race. We took it nice and slow, not pushing ourselves beyond what we were physically capable of handling. In the end we both crossed the finish line in pretty decent times (33-34 minutes) and had a blast. We are even trying to figure out what the next one will be... granted there will be training involved with that one!
I told you all that, because I want to stress two things. First of all running a 5K is a reality for almost anyone. There were people at that race from all ages and all types of physical capabilities. With the right amount of training and the right program it is something that anyone can aspire to complete. The second thing is that training is essential. Unless you have been very physically active in your life leading up to this you will need to train to ensure your safety. By gradually building up your distance it makes it seem like such a doable task and much more enjoyable.
Below I have shared by training schedule that I followed (for a little while) during the training for this last 5K. I made it a really long time ago, but I think I used Hal Higdeon's 5K Novice training plan. His website is a great resource for all distances. Another great tool is the Couch to 5K Program, which starts you off very slow with small intervals of running mixed in with walking. Both programs offer applications to download on your smartphone as well and they walk you through your exercises.
I hope this helps any of you considering walking or running a race of any distance in your future! Check out the following resources for more information about races in your area:
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