Last week, I talked about my efforts to get in more steps. Thanks to my Fitbit, I’m well aware that I’m getting far fewer steps in than I used to. Can I still blame the pandemic? That was when the slowdown really happened. We were all sitting on our butts WAY more than usual. Even though life has picked up again, my steps haven’t. Womp. So, I’m focused on changing that. One step (see what I did there) was signing up for my first 5K.
It turns out I had been walking 5K’s for a while and didn’t know it. I had never looked into a 5K before and I didn’t know what the distance was. When I realized it was 3.1 miles I realized I had been doing that on walks with Girl Trek. They have a monthly walk that’s about an hour. I get over three miles in each time. When I made this connection, I felt like I was well prepared to tackle an actual race. Spoiler alert: a race is different.
What I Learned
I walk as fast as some people run. I’m a tall woman and have the stride to match. These long legs cover lots of ground. I noticed a couple of ladies that were doing the race together. They were walking/running the 5K. Every time I caught up to them they’d take off running again. I (power)walked the whole time. We finished about the same time.
In previous walks, I covered a distance of more than a 5K in an hour. I realized that in an actual race, I moved out a bit faster and finished in way less time. What’s the difference? Competition. I had to move faster than those around me. As I progressed, I had to move faster than the new set of people around me. Apparently, I’m a wee bit competitive.
Sign me up for more! I want to do more races. I know people who always seem to be training for a race or in a race. Maybe I’m about to be one of those people. I already have my eye on at least three races I want to do in the next few months. The goal is to see how much time I can shave off each time. I get why races are addictive. I want to do more and move up to a 10K and maybe a half marathon at some point. I’d also like to move from power walking to jogging and then to running. I’ve never been a runner but I’m willing to give it a shot.
The biggest lesson I learned was that maybe don’t do a 5K the day before you do a 5K. The day before the race I went for a walk along a lake to get some steps in. I walked for over an hour. I didn’t just stroll, I was power walking most of the time. It was a good morning workout. It was over 3 miles of pounding the pavement. That night, my legs were so sore I was struggling to stand up, let alone walk.
I had already stretched so I took some medicine to relax my muscles. After drinking plenty of water, I went to bed early. I felt better the morning of the race and laced up my shoes to complete a 5K. A few minutes into the race, I felt my legs started to turn on me. The soreness in my hips kicked back in and I could feel every. single. step. I was determined to finish though. Even though I was in pain from the first mile. I pushed it and made it to the end of the race.
Post-race care is important. I met up with a friend afterward for a lunch that lasted well into dinner. After sitting down so long, my legs DID NOT want to budge. All the muscles stiffened up and I was walking like a robot. I knew what I needed to do. What I wasn’t going to do was push myself to get a normal workout the next day. That just seemed like doing way too much damage. Instead, I jumped into a yoga class that focused on my hips. Getting some guided stretching in seemed like the best option. After the first day, I felt closer to normal. After the second day of focused yoga, I was walking like a human again.
Now that I know what to expect, I’m moving forward with plans for the next race. I’m looking at you turkey trot! Maybe I can get my family to join me?
