Today’s guest post is by Pamela Hernandez. Pamela is an ACSM Certified Personal Trainer and an ACE Lifestyle & Weight Management Coach. Today, Pamela writes about the right way to train for a 5K so that you accomplish your goals. Pamela is the owner of Thrive Personal Fitness. Follow her healthy weight loss and fitness tips on twitter: @thrivefit. She is ThriveFit on DailyBurn.

Running is not my exercise of choice. I would rather hit the road on my bike then on my own two feet.

Yet every year I do at least one 5K to challenge myself.  I lace up my running shoes as soon as the weather gets warm. (I hate the cold.)  I run, maybe jog is better term, at the relatively level track in the park near my house. Unfortunately, this was not the best prep for the first race I signed up for this year.

If you’re thinking of doing your first 5K, let me share a couple of things I learned this year.

 
First, check the course map before you sign up. I drove the race route 2 days before the actual event, hitting one hill after the other. It became very clear very quickly that my leisurely and level park track was not adequate prep for this event.

Second, if you don’t like the cold and you live in the Midwest, wait till at least June to pick a race.

 
Mine was on May 15 and I watched the weather forecast for a week prior as the predicted temperature dropped the closer it got to race day. On the day of the event it was cold, cloudy, very windy and slightly rainy. I said to myself, “Time to get a little bit uncomfortable”.  

You know what? It was a good thing, getting a little uncomfortable. Being uncomfortable is how we grow.  Being uncomfortable spurs us to change, both mentally and physically.  

How long have you been doing your same routine?

 
Do you go to the gym and just go through the motions, logging the same miles and weights every day? Have you also noticed you’ve stopped seeing progress in reaching your goals? Maybe it’s time for you to get a little uncomfortable too.

I don’t mean hurting yourself. I’m not a believer in “No Pain, No Gain”. What I mean is pushing yourself a little out of your comfort zone and letting go of the old beliefs that may be holding you back.  If you’ve been stalled on your journey and are feeling uninspired, it’s time to go above and beyond.

• Start with an honest assessment of your current routine. Are you doing the same thing day after day, week after week? If so, pick one element to change.  If you’re a walker, starting adding jogging intervals for example.
• Do you need support to make a change? Find a workout buddy who is slightly farther along on the journey than you are. They can encourage you to go a little farther or lift a little more. If you’ve only done a 5K, find a running partner who wants to do a 10K.
• Are you the one farther ahead than your friends? Then hire a personal trainer to push you a little harder than you would push yourself. It may only take a few sessions to give you confidence and a routine that is fresh and challenging that you can do on your own.
• Are you constantly telling yourself what you can’t do? Replace negative messages with positive statements of action. Instead of “I can’t do a pull up ”, tell yourself “I can get a stronger upper body if stay consistent with my weight routine and practice pull-ups every week”.

Most of us like our creature comforts. Our familiar weight routines and running routes make us feel safe and secure.  But they also can hold us back. I didn’t run for a long time because I held on to memories of me in grade school huffing, puffing and coughing my way to last place in the mile run test.  My first 5K was a huge mental and physical break through for me.  However, when I was standing at the starting line of my most recent 5K, those message and mental pictures of me gasping for breath started to come back as I breathed in the cold, damp air and anticipated the first hill. But this time I wasn’t afraid. I knew I could do it, I knew no matter what I couldn’t fail. Winning was showing up and not being afraid to take on something new.  Winning is not being afraid of breaking free and getting a little uncomfortable from time to time.