First race

[sophinisba]

Hi everyone! I'm getting ready to run my first 5K on Saturday, and I wondered if any of you have tips for newbie's first race. I do this distance on my own fairly often and occasionally go farther, but I still just want to make it my goal to finish the whole thing without walking, rather than worry about my time. I've read that if you usually go slow it's a good idea to start out toward the back of the pack so you don't feel pressured to keep up with the faster runners and burn yourself out early on. What else do I need to know?

Comments

[blnchflr]

In my experience (6 7 races now? So no vast experience, but still), most people start out hard at the beginning of a race - it's really, really difficult not to try and keep up with the pack. It sounds like you're in good shape for your 5K race, so it may not be an issue for you.

(I learned my - positive! - lesson at my 4.5K race last year, where I started out slow, and kept going slow - and still managed to overtake people right up to the finishing line, nobody overtaking me except for right at race start \o/ ! However, even knowing that starting out slow will benefit me in the end, it's so hard to do - because you'll be running a lot slower than most others [it feels like]. It's why I really want to get a pulse watch, so I have hard data backing me up that I'm running as fast/slow as I'm supposed to.)

And have fun! Even though I'm not a good runner, I love running races - even if I'm running on my own and not competing with others, I feel part of something, and there's always a great energy, especially at the beginning of a race :o)

[sophinisba]

I think it could definitely be an issue for me. I said that I often do three miles at a time but I also sometimes start out intending to do three miles and end up needing to take a break, especially if I start off too fast. I'm not at all used to running with a group or with other people watching so I just don't know how that will be. I read that if you go slow you might have the security vehicle right behind you and I think I would find that really embarrassing. :/ But I will try to remember that it's okay and take inspiration from your 4.5 experience.

[blnchflr]

I've never participated in a race with security vehicles - that would be stressful to have tailing you :oD

Hope you plan to post a race report afterwards!