My First 5K Run
I ran, and my inner demons didn’t catch me today. 😜 - Amy, 2023
Wow…that quote sounded funnier in my head.
Anyways, hi everyone!
I am so proud of myself for doing this! I’ve been struggling with my mental health lately, but I’ve been feeling better these past couple of weeks. This 5K run was a huge victory for me!
I signed up for the LoveStruck 5K about a month ago, when I felt spontaneously motivated. However, earlier this week, part of me didn’t really feel like going to the run anymore. That part of me wanted to sleep in on a Saturday. But, when I picked up the packet of my free T-shirt and bib number a few days before the event, I was excited again.
The run started at 7:30 AM, and I’m not quite the “morning person”. Plus, the weather was very cold, about 38°F degrees. After they announced the countdown, I ran for about 15 seconds and then gave up and went back to walking. Honestly, I was dead tired very early, and you can imagine my face when I saw the large 1-mile sign and realized I was not even halfway done. Overall, I was alternating between walking and jogging. I usually run on the treadmill in the gym, so running outdoors was a different experience. Very cold and windy…so different, haha. There were moments where instead of my mind fighting against myself, my mind was fighting against the weather. But, I did get to appreciate the scenery as the sun rose during moments of walking. Also, time went by faster for me since it was cold. I wasn’t sure if I should have brought my AirPods for music, but it turns out I didn’t need them. I thought it was funny when I noticed a few runners who were way ahead and then I saw them again passing by me since some people were doing the 10K. I find it remarkable how they got to that pace. After I passed the 3-mile mark and got closer to the Finish line, I gave it my all and ran as fast as I could, finishing the run at 47:15 minutes.
Also, the finisher medal for this run is super cute with its pink heart and lightning bolt shape. Houston Running Co. has a holiday race series, and so the LoveStruck 5K/10K run celebrated Valentine’s Day! I might try to run more races to collect more medals because they were so cute (and I do low-key like being rewarded, haha).
I didn’t expect myself to run as a hobby. I hated running. I was never good at running, and my cardiovascular health…could use some work, not going to lie. Do you remember the pacer test that you had to take in PE class in middle school and high school? Well, I was always one of the first ones to quit and felt a bit embarrassed to watch the other kids run longer than I did. Also, I used to go to boxing classes last year, and the group invited me to run with them that weekend. I decided to challenge myself and oh man…that was rough. I barely ran a quarter of a mile, and my heart was racing so much. At the time, I tended to work out with weights, but eventually, I wanted to try something new. That's when I started my running journey.
A friend suggested the Couch to 5K program, so I downloaded the app to follow through with the program which was for 8 weeks of training. It turns out there are lots of resources online, so it's a great beginner program plus it’s free if anyone wants to try it! The program alternates between walking and jogging, and you gradually increase your jogging time over the time span of the program. By the end of 8 weeks of training, I noticed that my jogging time had significantly improved and, I didn’t need a lot of breaks like I used to. However, my pace was still slow, so I was not able to run for 5 kilometers (or 3.12 miles) in 30 minutes without breaks. I still try to run 5Ks on the treadmill, but it usually takes me about 55 minutes to finish the run, including warm-up and cool-down time. However, I have been training on the treadmill so I am pretty sure my experience could have been different if I tried to run outdoors. I mean I did run for 47:15 minutes on the 5K run, so it wasn't bad in my book!
Now I have a better relationship with running....or at least a love/hate relationship. When I was depressed, it was hard for me to go to the gym. Actually, running is just hard in general. However, every time I am on the treadmill, sweating and my body heating up, it feels like there is an emotional weight falling off my shoulders. And I feel better after every run, even if the run is less than a few miles. During the time when I had no motivation, forcing myself to go to the gym and run helped me feel accomplished for the day. In the end, I took action to become physically and mentally better. That is something I need to remind myself of, to be grateful that I am taking care of myself.
There are actually pretty cool-themed runs that I want to attend! I used to volunteer for Color Runs in high school (throwing color-dyed cornstarch at the runners, haha) and so I would love to circle my life back and attend a color run, as a runner. I also heard there are glow-in-the-dark and bubble runs, and those sound fun, too. Maybe I just like the runs for the vibes. A marathon sounds like a wild dream, but maybe someday…in the very, very long future… I will run a marathon.
I hope you enjoyed this blog post while I talk too much about my fitness journey, haha. Until then, thanks for reading, and Happy Valentine’s Day!
Mavis - thank you so much for inviting me to run with you! I had a great time and hope to run with you again.