My FIRST 5K!

mjterp

Yeah, I'm fat. (245 pounds give or take depending on fluid retention, TOM, etc.) I'm working on it. Progress not perfection. Many people here are losing way faster...But I keep plugging away.

I didn't think I would EVER share here...yet here I am. WHY? Because if *I* can do a 5K, ANYONE with working legs CAN!

I have been doing couch to 5k. I repeated some weeks. But I committed by signing up for my FIRST 5k which was this morning!
I made it through week 6...but always on my treadmill. Treadmill was nice for seeing my improvement week to week. I started out warming up at 1.6-1.8 mph (and it was tiring!) and "running" at 2.5mph. After a few weeks, I was pumping up the warm up speed to 2.0 and the "run" speed to 3.0. By the time I was at week 5 I was warming up at 2.5 and "running" at 3.6. I KNOW this is slow...but it was a huge accomplishment for me.

SO...I would do the C25K program twice through to get in my 3.1 miles...and the FASTEST that I ever did 3.1 miles (5k) from my treadmill was 63 minutes. So when I was calculating how long it would take me to do my first "real" 5K, because I was told their would be a difference in being outside, as well as a difference because of having HILLS (yeah...I thought I would die a few times) I calculated that it would take me about 75 minutes. (and to set my mind at ease, my only goal was to complete the darn thing!) BUT I DID IT! Woggled it. (walk/jogged...probably more walking than jogging.) BUT I DID IT. AND IN RECORD TIME for me! At the first mile marker, I was on track at 20 minutes per mile. I did have to take a detour into the woods for a quick pee. (the hazzards of staying hydrated! LOL) I was shocked and thought something was wrong with my watch when I hit the 2 mile marker at 36 minutes. So to cross the finish line with an official time of 52:12 had me smiling so hard I thought my face would break!

My kids met me for the last quarter mile-ish...and cheered me on. My middle son kept saying "you know you want those bananas at the finish line! C'mon mom!" and my youngest had me doing MATH problems! Anything to keep my mind off of my heavy breathing and KEEP ME RUNNING! I think that was my longest stretch of running except for the first 16 minutes I did (breathing too hard halfway up that first hill, so I caved and walked).

TRULY, If you are AT ALL in doubt about running...DO IT! I am thrilled with my awesome shoes (went to a real running store and paid more than I have ever paid for shoes before in my LIFE! WORTH IT!!!) And while the scale hasn't moved much, the measuring tape has showed significant changes in my hips and thighs!

I never would have been able to do it without the help and support from all of my wonderful friends here on MFP.
The information, support, encouragement and accountability here is FANTASTIC!

THANK YOU ALL!
Pictures on my profile. my profile is open. Friends welcome.

WillaTKC

Congrats! I did my first about a month ago, and it feels great, doesn't it!?

sam308lbs

that is some accomplishment.You must be so proud of yourself :flowerforyou:

jekissa729

That's awesome!! You should be very proud of your accomplishment!!

wendytc

Great job! Just did my first one on Saturday!!! Congratulations!!

polar135

Amazing! I went from never running in April of 2011, to now i ran 3 half Marathons last summer! Keep up the good work and you will do it! Be proud and use it to keep on track!

JenniferSpindel

I've been saying I'm going to do a 5k in February... myfirst. BUt I've been putting off signing up cause I've had a bad week and I'm afraid I've fallen off the wagon.

I'm going right now to sign up for it.

And I'm going to do it.

Thank you for being an inspiration. You have no idea how much it means....

NuttyBrewnette

Inspiring, YAY. Thanks for sharing!

:drinker: :drinker: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :happy: :happy:

dorothytd

This was an awesome post. And you are awesome!! What a great improvement in your time and dedication to your goal. Keep running strong!!!

Findingmyathlete

What an awesome accomplishment. I'm so proud of you. I loved reading your story, especially the part at the end where your kids came to cheer you on and motivate you *tear*. So sweet Good job!!!
I'm planning on running a 5k on Thanksgiving Day. Nervous and will be alone but I wanted to start off Thanksgiving good. Your post actually really encouraged me!

joakool

Congratulations to you! Your story is very inspirational. Keep up the good work!

dreamchaser12

Congratulations!!! You did it!! What a feeling eh!!?! I ran my first 5k at the end of September. That last km is BRUTAL!! But what an amazing feeling of accomplishment when you cross that finish line!! :happy:

MelisRunning

That is terrific! I did my first 5K a year ago next weekend. I, too did the C25K program. Isn't it the best thing ever!?! I fell in love with running and never stopped! Keep up the great work! It sounds like your kids are behind you 100%. Keep doing those math equations (during the hills to keep your mind off the difficulty of the hill) or anything you can think of to keep yourself motivated and remember that I will be your "virtual cheer leader"! YEAH!! Great job!!!

DMUND

CONGRATS!!!!! So proud and so happy that your kids were there to show their support. You just keep on doing what you are doing!!! Big Hugs!~

bluefox9er

what a fantastic and uplifting post...congratulations on such a massive accomplishment and I hope this serves to inspire others and make people realise '' what is possible?''...

Car0lynnM

You are AWESOME!! thank you for sharing! I just started a beginner 5K training program at our local running store, and I'm loving it. It's slow progress, but progress nonetheless. You are an inspiration!

gungho66

Freakin fantastic !!!! keep up the good work and just keep plugging along one day at a time. It will happen , I,m living proof

Mummsy

Spectacular!!!!!

wrae727

Awesome job. We (a group of ladies at work who started walking with me in August) just did a 5K, but we walked. I try to jog off and on, just don't like it. I too have lost hardly no weight, but lost inches. I am about the same size as you, it can be discouraging not losing weight, but the loose clothes and 5K accomplishments will push you on. Great job to your kids for being an awesome inspiration. When I crossed the finish line, no one was there from my family to cheer me on. My friends and their family cheered me on. We take inspiration wherever we can get it

likemeinvisible

Thanks for sharing you wonderful story, very inspiring. Running for 52 minutes at max effort is very hard, good job pulling through the entire course.

cwettstain

Congratulations! This makes me want to get off my butt and do something. Thank you for the inspiration!

wisebadger53

You ROCK Michelle! I am so proud of you for sticking with the program and completing your first 5k! Keep up the great work!

svgaedtke

Way to Go!!!!

kgb6days

YEAH!!!!! What a great accomplishment. You should feel very proud of yourself!!!!

mjterp

Thank you ALL so much! I will DEFINITELY keep going! My goal isn't to win...just to beat my time!
I appreciate all of your kind words! I will be flying HIGH for quite a while with this!

sanibelshell

Thank you for the post. I am also doing C25K and then the Hot Chocolate 5K on the 18th. I am training on the elliptical and now feel alot more confident about my first race! Keep up the good work!

Coachcritty

Congrats to you! I used to joke when I was 208 lbs that I would only run under 2 conditions: 1. There was something chasing me 2. There was a line forming at the buffet. I'm down to 155 lbs now and ran my 4th 5K last weekend. My goal is under 30 mins and right now I'm at 33 mins. My first attempt (which was a walk/run) was 38 mins. I have another race coming up on Thanksgiving day and I'm gonna push it!

Best of luck to you on your get fit journey. It's way more fun putting the weight on, but I'm so much prouder of me for taking it off! Keep up the good work!

jtotton

Just keep it up, keep training, keep working on beating your P.R. each time, even with each training run, and before you know it, you will be running a half-marathon! I have a lot of respect for anyone who is willing to get off the couch, and it was once said that it doesn't matter where we start, it is where we finish that is important! For a word of encouragement, I ran my first 5k on April 14. I ran, and finished my first half-marathon on October 21 (two weeks ago). Was my time a world record? Nope, not for either race, not for my age category, but both were records for me! And the sense of accomplishment that comes with finishing a race will give you the encouragement to move forward with the next big race or next big change! Before you know it, you will be able to run the whole thing without stopping once to walk any portion of it! I am starting P90X tomorrow - something I never thought possible, but finishing the race has shown me that I can challenge myself and exceed my expectations - you can too!

Colbyandsage

Great story! You should be very proud of yourself.. Please ignore the jerk above!

I will never forget my first 5k. I crossed the line and asked if that was the right time cuz there was no way I was that fast. I caught the running bug officially that day. I have run about 7 or 8 more and beat my time every race, I ran my first half marathon 2 weeks ago and have another coming up next weekend, I love running... It's in my blood now and there is nothing that will take those accomplishments away!

melegge

Great job! Ignore the rude comment above. It doesn't matter how fast you complete a 5k. It just matters that you didn't give up. I just started jogging this year and am still taking 45-47 min to complete a 5k, but I finish. Keep up the good work!!!

robdeering

First of all, I want to say WAY TO GO!!! Completing your first 5k is a huge accomplishment!! It doesn't matter how fast you go, how long it takes to finish, what matters is that you did it and didn't give up. I started with a 7k (should've started with a 5k) and thought I was going to die and debated taking a short cut and giving up. I'm glad I didn't because the most rewarding thing was getting to the finish line and knowing I made it!