Running with Someone on Their First 5K

Brava! you have gone from a non jock to a runner to a trainer! Wish her luck for me.

how's the training going?

It sounds as if you are traoining yourself to be a trainer. That is a good thing, as it will also help you analyze your own running.

4 weeks, it can be done! Just add .5 miles a week and she will be there. Let her take a walking break every once in a while. After the first 5k that she runs, maybe she will get more committed and really want it. I think it's good to take her off the track, which is too repetitive and boring. And working it up with only 2 miles is good too! Good luck, coach!

The first, crucial step to reaching a goal physically is to see your ability when starting training. Your friend only made it half the distance on their first attempt. The three essential aspects one must possess in order to complete a physical task are muscles, cardiovascular endurance, and a strong mentality. If your friend feels sharp, shooting pain in their muscles after running then it has to do with their muscles. If they feel like their heart and lungs are about to burst then it's a cardiovascular setback. Most importantly, if they say, "I can't do it," or anything of the sort during or after a workout session then they don't have the mentality. However, if your friend gives up because they are feeling extremely dizzy then it may not be their mentality. If they tell you that the environment around the is spinning, they are seeing stars, they suffer a sudden blackout or total loss of any of the five senses, then they should STOP! All of the above could be due to a few factors: 1. Dehydration; I've seen this time and time again with my friends and opposing competing athletes. Staying hydrated is the most important thing when taking part in vigorous activity. Water helps keep things moving. Without water your body will overheat and you will pass out. When running a planned 5K, like the recent Susan G. Koman Race for the Cure, there are usually designated areas where water is passed out to runners. This is to prevent runners from fainting and suffering minor brain damage as a result. So, when running for a prolongued period of time bring along a bottle of water. If you start to feel any of the above symptoms then you should drink water. However, don't wait for the symptoms to show up. Every few minutes you should be drinking water. You may not notice that you are sweating while running because the wind brushes it off but when you stop you should feel an almost immediate sensation of persperation. In short, DON'T FORGET WATER! 2. Cardiovascular system, Breathing is another fundamental part of running. Inhale through the nose, if allergies aren't preventing you from doing so, and exhale forcefully through the mouth. Exhaling shouldn't last more than a second. If it does you're breathing to slow. Some runners find it best to "breath with their feet." Basically, they breath in harmony with the movement of their feet. Two strides to inhale and two to exhale. This will vary between running pace and length of strides. If you aren't breathing properly then the oxygen supply to your brain and muscles will be in short supply and will lead to a painful collapse onto the pavement, track, gravel, or any other running surface you are running on. As I said before, a runner's mental state is the most important. If you think you can then you inevitably will. When I first started running I used to give up by slowing down or immediately stopping, like your friend. I have a feeling that he/she could've ran a solid two miles without stopping but they didn't have the mentality to perform it. Another important factor when running is to have a constant, steady pace. If you had your friend try to keep up with you then that's no good. They need to find their own pace. Start them off by running a mile timed then slowly improving it. Although it's only 1/3 the distance you're training for it's a much easier distance to find your personal running pace on. If your friend has enough energy to sprint that last 100-200m then they weren't running fast enough throughout. Maintaining a constant pace will give a better time than slowing up and speeding down at certain parts of a race. When training for an endurance type race you surprisingly don't simply run endurance-length paths. Anaerobic distances, like the 100m dash, are as equally important. This is to help build muscle AND train your cardiovascular system, (heart and lungs). So, one day that you train you should run a couple miles and the next day you train you should run 100-200m sprints. 6-8 sprints followed by a leasurely cooldown is good. Vary the sprint distances too. For instance, one sprint day you run 8 100m sprints then the next sprint day you run 6 200m sprints. Increasing distance: Your partner could only complete 1.5 miles the first run. The next time you run increase the distance. .5 miles added on per every two weeks is ideal. If they can increase more then great! Keep in mind, though, that their time per mile ratio should be consistant every increase in distance. For instance, if they ran 1.5 miles in 12 minutes the first time you trained and ran a 2-mile run in 20 minutes after the first two weeks then they didn't run hard enough the 2nd time around. DON't FORGET!!!!! Warm up and stretch before performing your training. A warm-up should consist of approximately 5 minutes of slow-paced jogging, or powerwalking if you aren't in good shape, followed by 5-10 miuntes of stretches. A warm-acts as a means of waking up your body. It gets the blood flowing and everything ready for exercise. It also relaxes the muscles so that you can stretch them more easily. If you stretch muscles without warming up you're risking pulling or tearing a muscle, which could take weeks to heal and, in more serious cases, requires surgery. Don't forget to stretch before AND AFTER every exercise session. After finishing your running session you should follow it up with a 5 minute cooldown and a brief stretching session. The cooldown allows your heart rate to get back down to your normal, resting heart rate. This will prevent your heart from pumping to much blood to your muscles and brain. When your muscles and brain get too much blood they stress and become inoperable. This means that you risk fainting if you don't perform a cooldown. After a cooldown you should stretch your muscles. This will reduce pain and soreness later and keeps your muscles loose. If you don't stretch after a race then your muscles could become really tight later that day and that's no fun to go through. This is all the stuff I've learned from taking courses in fitness and health and from some of my athletic trainers, one who won a silver medal in the Olympics! Good luck to both you and your friend. :D