Whether it is your first time participating in a 5K event or a return to the pavement, here are six tips to prepare for your event:

1. Start now

 Avoid the “terrible toos,” TOO much TOO soon TOO quickly and without enough rest/recovery. Start training two to three months before your race and reduce your risk of developing overuse issues, like Achilles Tendonitis or Plantar Fasciitis.

Whether training for a marathon or a 5K, it is essential to gradually ease into exercise while preparing for an event, so that your musculoskeletal system doesn’t become overexerted and break down.

Those who increase their distance too quickly are at increased risk of overloading not just their tendons, but also their bones and joints, and increasing their risk of those injuries as well.

You may benefit from ensuring you don’t reduce your intensity, time, or distance by more than 10% each week. You must start small and gradually increase. Focusing on building up slowly to a distance first, before concentrating on performing that distance faster, is recommended. A Walk-Run-Walk-Run interval routine is a great method that gradually increases your ability to jog the entire distance before your event. For example, if you plan to run for 15 minutes on your first day of training, instead of just jumping into a 15-minute run, start with 3 minutes of quick walking, then 2 minutes of jogging, then 3 minutes of quick walking, then 2 minutes of jogging, and finally 5 minutes of walking to finish. As you progress, you gradually decrease the amount of time walking, and increase the time running.

2. Rest and Recovery Days

I once heard a running coach say, “The key to running healthy as we age and running healthy for a long time, is not running every day.” It is essential that when planning your fitness regimen, you don’t run every day of the week. The ideal number of days per week is unique to each participant, based on factors such as age, health, fitness level, and history of injury. Newbies (or returners) typically start with two to three days per week and then gradually increase to three to five days per week.  On non-running days, one might want to take these days as rest days, resting from all exercise, or “active rest days,” which may include cross-training or strength and conditioning.  Cross-training days may consist of any exercise that isn’t running, such as strength training, gym sessions, fitness classes, or non-impact cardio, like biking. But early on in your training you may need a complete rest day or two per week!  

3. Running shoes

 Like any other sport you would participate in, you must invest in good equipment. In the same way a baseball player would invest in a good well-fitting glove, strong consideration should be placed in proper running shoes to avoid injury successfully.

Many factors contribute to selecting the best shoe for an individual. Selection extends beyond flat feet versus high arches, and includes the complexities of foot strike patterns, injury history, BMI, training goals, surface type, and, of course, foot type. Your local sports medicine podiatrist and running shoe store are expert resources.

Replace your running shoes regularly, as they typically last anywhere from 300 to 500 miles, which includes time spent walking. This means your existing shoes may need to be replaced if you have reached this mileage, which can be tracked based on the weekly steps you take and the number of weeks you’ve spent wearing them exclusively. Runners may examine the shoe tread, but tread depth is not always a reliable indicator of overuse, as the midsole of the shoe with also break down and loses its ability to absorb shock. Some shoes have a moderate amount of midsole cushioning, while others have a substantial amount. These foams are designed to absorb shock, but eventually they lose their ability to do so and need to be inspected for indentation lines, which may mean it is time for a new pair.

4. Strength and stability 

 On at least one of your non-running days, incorporate strengthening exercises.  Runners should train other areas of the body to reduce or eliminate stress on their feet, ankles, and shins. Exercises that strengthen and stabilize the entire body, including those that address hip and core weakness, can reduce lower extremity overuse injuries. The body’s kinetic chain refers to the interconnectedness of all the motions, muscle actions, and joints throughout your entire leg, from your toes to your hips, back, and spine. Any extra motion, accessory motion, or abnormal twisting anywhere along the kinetic chain causes compensation and shifting along the rest of the chain. Suppose one’s gluteus medius muscles are weak. In that case, the hips will wobble more, one’s leg could cross over the body more than it should during running, placing a significant amount of excess strain on the foot, ankle, and shins, resulting in the overloading of various structures, predisposing individuals to conditions such as shin splints and peroneal tendonitis. During each step of your run, your body absorbs around three to five times the force of your body weight, so if something's throwing off the mechanics of your stride while you're running, that can put a lot of undue stress and strain on different joints and bones in your foot. That is why it's so important to strengthen the muscles of the core, hips, glutes, thighs, lower leg, ankle, and the intrinsic small muscles in your foot, all of which are used during running and can be achieved with at-home exercises using your body weight.

5. Flexibility

Equinus is when tight calf muscles don’t allow your ankle to flex up. The condition is a precursor to many foot and ankle ailments, including plantar fasciitis, which is very commonly seen in our offices. Maintaining good calf flexibility is a great tool for prevention. If you have tight calf muscles, I generally recommend a combination of static stretching and dynamic stretching. Static Stretching is stretching while holding a position like touching your toes.  There are several safe ways to perform dynamic stretching of multiple muscle groups. Dynamic stretches are simple, motion-based exercises that help not only stretch the muscles but also warm them up and can be performed quickly, easily, and effectively before a run. While there's some debate about the best time to and how to perform stretching, stretching is beneficial.  I generally recommend dynamic stretching before the run and then static stretching afterwards specifically for those tight muscles that require extra work to loosen up.

6. Cross-training

Cross-training, which is defined as exercises outside of your sport, may be performed on active rest days. Cross-training may protect your body from the repetitive nature of running and can be achieved through strength training or taking a fitness class, such as yoga or Pilates. A full-body workout that addresses the overall stability, mobility, and strength of the entire body, such as Barre, can be beneficial for runners. Another important consideration on the non-running day is cardiovascular conditioning.  To give your joints a break, incorporating non-impact cardio exercises can be helpful.  Non-impact cardio exercises, such as swimming, cycling, or using an elliptical, put less stress on your joints.  You can increase your knowledge of practical exercises on non-running days by consulting a podiatrist specializing in sports medicine, collaborating with running groups, and visiting a running shoe store. 

Alicia Canzanese, DPM, is a podiatrist in Pennsylvania who frequently lectures on sports medicine of the lower extremity in the United States. She is the President-Elect of PPMA and immediate past president of the AAPSM.