I just ran my first 5K. While I live for outdoor workouts, like hiking, mountain biking, and snowboarding, running has never really appealed to me. Still, I’ve long wanted to get into running because it’s an infinitely accessible cardio option for nearly any scenario or worldly location, just as long as I have an appropriate pair of sneakers. So when presented with the opportunity to run my first 5K at 38 years old, I hesitantly agreed.
I’ve biked 60+ miles on a single-speed bike in a single day, hiked well over 25 miles in one go, and snowboarded more than 25,000 feet of elevation in a solo session, but the concept of jogging just over three (plus) consecutive miles during an official event caused me great anxiety, especially as race day approached.
With a pit in my stomach 24 hours prior, and no shortage of jitters, I was nearly tempted to bail out of the event the morning of… but I’m glad I didn’t. If you’re new to running and considering your first official race event, I'm here to tell you that it’s worth pushing through the nerves and jitters, because come race day, the experience is nothing short of amazing.
With that in mind, here are the five ways I mentally prepared ahead of my first 5K to ensure a manageable and surprisingly fun race day.
1. Walk the course ahead of time if possible
If you’re new to running, I'm here to tell you that it’s worth pushing through the nerves and jitters, because come race day, the experience is nothing short of amazing.
I can’t stress this enough: If you’re doing your first race event, regardless of the distance, try to get there a day or two early so that you can familiarize yourself with the route ahead of time. Even better: speed walk the route and see how long it takes.
Doing so allows you to fully absorb what you’ll encounter come race day, making everything feel more familiar and less grueling. Sure, the best smartwatches will alert you to every mile conquered as you run, but for me, knowing that “once I pass that church at the top of the hill, I have just 1.1 miles left” is an even better motivator for finishing strong.
2. Practice interval walking-running ahead of the event
I spent roughly two months training ahead of my first 5K. Ultimately, the training method that worked best for me was attempting to conquer the total distance each training session, but doing so by mixing walking intervals with running ones.
When I first started, I would walk for two minutes, run for 30 seconds, wash, and repeat. As I became more comfortable running, I switched that to one minute of walking followed by one minute of running. Ultimately, after two months, I became more and more comfortable with running for longer periods, even if my pace was about the same as my fast-walking pace.
3. Give yourself a realistic finish time and pace goal
Going into my first 5K, I knew that I could manage a 15-minute mile without ever needing to run by simply walking quickly. Additionally, through training, I came to understand that a 10-minute mile via jogging was well within my abilities.
Going into race day, I planned to, at the very least, run a mile in roughly ten minutes and speed walk the other two in around 30 minutes. As a result, I set myself the goal of finishing the 5K in under 40 minutes total, with a stretch goal of 36 minutes.
Ultimately, I blew past that personal goal, running for all but roughly 90 seconds of the event, and finishing in 31 minutes and 11 seconds.
4. Preload your ultimate pump-up music track and meal prep the night before
I ran my first 5K wearing the Garmin Forerunner 570, which features ample storage for your favorite running playlists or albums for Spotify, YouTube Music, Deezer, and other streaming platforms, without the need to carry a connected smartphone.
I ultimately settled on the classic New Jersey punk-ska album, Keasybey Nights by the legendary band, Catch 22, as my race-day soundtrack. This roughly 45-minute album not only made me stoked from the start but kept the epic vibes rolling until the event was done.
5. Find and stick with similarly-paced runners the day of
Last but not least, keep in mind that though you may be feeling unworthy to run in your first event, plenty of other folks are having similar vibes. One of the coolest things I experienced while doing my first official running event was the seriously amazing camaraderie before, during, and after, for all participants, regardless of age, body type, or ability.
Ultimately, take your time to find a pace that feels right for you, locate others with a similar speed — I promise there will be ample folks — and try to stick together.
At the end of the day, while I nearly bailed on my first official 5K run due to nerves, I’m so glad I ultimately took part, and I bet you will be too!
Moreover, now, I’m actually kind of stocked on running and plan to continually incorporate it into my weekly workouts, even if another 5K isn't in my immediate future.
