New and Nervous

dmsl977

Hi, y'all. My name is Deanna. I have just signed up for my first 5K (a color vibe race) in September (my birthday weekend). I'll be running with my best friend (an avid runner who's run multple half marathons.) I'm a nervous wreck that I won't be able to run the whole race. Running a 5K is on my bucket list. I want to be able to run the whole thing. I have walked a couple of 5K's, but running is important to me. I'm not new to exercise. I do zumba 3-4 times per week and I lift weights. I know I'm rambling. Sorry. lol Just looking for encouragement and a support group. I plan on getting started tomorrow. I had planned on starting yesterday, but made the mistake of waiting until after work. It was 95 degrees when I got off. I'm going to have to do it first thing in the morning.

Any tips/tricks/etc. would be appreciated.

rabblerabble

You have plenty of time to get in shape for a 5K in September (especially if you're fit enough to participate in Zumba)

Running in 95 degrees isn't fun and certainly help if you can make the time to run earlier.

On days that I run, I almost always do it first thing in the morning while it's still cool and after the run, hit the showers before starting the rest of the day. Especially nice to do that right now when the days are long and there's a lot of daylight in the early hours.

pmur

I was also dancing zumba 5-6 times a week and strength training a little when I started the program. The zumba helped me get off the couch! I think because of zumba I didn't have as much muscle pain and aches when I started C25K. I had an injury on my shoulder so I was not doing any strength training for a few months but I was still doing zumba. When I first started zumba, I hurt all over. I couldn't climb up stairs.. I couldn't walk. My knees hurt all the time. Running was better. I was already used to working out so nothing hurt. A few valuable suggestions I got from here were life savers. First and foremost, get fitted for proper running shoes. Secondly, do the runs slowly. Start with a warm up, stretch and then start the running. I used to walk 5 mins, pause the app, stretch and then start running. Same with cool down. cool down and stretch right away. Don't wait till you get home to stretch, by then you will be stiff. If you haven't already done so, buy a foam roller. My trainer showed me how to use it for after zumba soreness but it does help after running soreness as well.

You will be fine! Sept is enough time for you to get done with the program. Just keep at it, you'll rock the 5k.

dmsl977

Thanks, y'all! I appreciate the help and tips. I know the importance of good shoes! I have flat feet, pigeon toes, and the whole nine yards. I had to get actual zumba shoes (Rykas actually) in order to do it correctly (i.e., not hurt). I need to go to our local running/fitness store to get fitted for the running shoes. Thanks again!