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Community Corner

How to Run a 5K and Live to Tell

Maplewood Patch health columnist runs her first foot race.

I often looked at runners with envy. I coveted their sleek thighs and the graceful way they seemed to glide through the air. I was in awe at my many neighbors who get up at the crack of dawn for an early morning group run. In April, I decided to turn my dream into reality. I would become a runner no matter what.

When I first started running, I kept it simple. I put on a pair of sneakers and ran. I live near Prospect Street, a nice, flat road. Perfect. I would just run as far as I could go. Easy right? 

But after a week, I felt like I was going nowhere fast. I decided I better do some research and discovered a great program called from Couch to 5k. It's a running program where you run three times a week and you end up running a 5k or about 3.1 miles in 9 weeks. I knew that Maplewood has a 5k every Fourth of July and thought that would be an ideal first race. I felt very confident and secure of myself when I downloaded the podcast.

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I excitedly shared my goal with friends. I figured the more people I told, the more likely I would keep up with the program. However, I did not get the types of responses that I wanted to hear. I kept on hearing "Oh, it will be easy for you" over and over. Yes, I am an active person. I practice at Baker Street Yoga. I have a gym membership at Can Do Fitness. I've taken classes at Core Mind & Body and at many other fitness joints.

Nevertheless, running is a completely different animal. Even though I consider myself to be in decent shape, I could barely get through Day 2 of Week 5 of the Couch to 5k where I was supposed to run for 8 minutes straight. This was a killer! I could not believe my friends, especially my runner friends who knew firsthand how challenging running really is, could utter those words to me.

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Around that time, I decided to invest in a pair of real running sneakers. Everyone told me there was only one place to go: The Sneaker Factory in Millburn. I happened to be wearing my sneakers, Reebok EasyTones, when I went to the store. The sales guy shook his head in disbelief when I told him I had been running in the sneakers. He literally put his hand on his head and said, "I have never seen a pair of sneakers like this before!"

I think you had to be there in order to fully grasp this experience.

He was very patient with me as I tried on about seven pairs of sneakers before I settled on a pair of Nikes. I felt like an official runner.

I had my heart set on running the Maplewood 5k as my first race when I saw a banner in Millburn as I was driving to the gym. It was announcing the President's Day Cup, Millburn's 5k, being held on June 21. I later heard that it's a very popular race. I decided to sign up with two friends, both experienced runners.

The day quickly arrived. The folks at The Sneaker Factory had advised us to get there early since parking would be challenging. We got there at 6:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. race. There were tons of people, including a few Maplewood residents. I had a lot of butterflies in my stomach. I had never run in the evening before, as I've always been an exercise-in-the-morning person. It was also very hot and humid.

And we were off! It was a lot harder than I had imagined. I had visions of just stopping or slowing down to a walk. I did neither. I kept on running along side my friend. The people cheering us on were a great motivator.

Throughout my training, my two daughters kept on asking me if I was going to win the race or win a medal. Sadly, I did neither, not that I was expecting to win anything. My mission was to complete the race and I did. Even though after it was done, I felt like I was going to be sick, I opted to wait on the never-ending free beer line. My friends and I commented that they should only give free beer to those who had run the race. Yes, I was not only a runner, but an elitist one at that.

My time came in at 35:08. Now I have a time to beat for the Maplewood 5k. I'll keep you posted!

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