First Parkrun done!

[Oldgal68]

I wasn’t too worried about coming last when I set out on my first Parkrun this morning, so coming 140th out of 147 felt like a win-win, lol! It took me 40.27 mins and by the third lap I had relaxed a bit and was beginning to notice the crocuses and other spring flowers! The volunteers and other runners were so encouraging especially the last few hundred metres or so, when one of the finishers ran with me, so my first run in a group was a really positive experience. Just need to work towards running the 5k in 30mins now - a work in progress!

[Sarakc Graduate10]

Well done!! I did my first one today too!! 😀👏

[Oldgal68 in reply to Sarakc]

Excellent, Sarakc ! Hope you enjoyed the experience as much as I did. Are you going to try it again? My only concern was getting lost on the maze of paths, but I just kept the earlier runners in sight as I plodded along!

[Sarakc Graduate10 in reply to Oldgal68]

Thank you! I did enjoy it and at least I won’t feel quite so nervous next time! I think I am gaining confidence since I started running! Making such a difference to my health all round!

Will definitely do it again when I can! I work on Saturdays so I can only do it occasionally!

Just wish we had one closer to home!

It gets a bit confusing when the fast runners zoom past and head off to the finish when you’ve still another lap to do!!! 😀🏃‍♀️

[Oldgal68 in reply to Sarakc]

Yea, every time the leader lapped me he shouted over some encouragement - that made me laugh and more determined than ever to get to that finish line! I agree with you about the health benefits too, I’m feeling fitter than I have done in a long time! Might not make it to next weeks Parkrun but I’ll definitely try for the week after. Happy running, Sarakc !

[RunaroundSue Graduate10 in reply to Sarakc]

At least you didn't have a marshal on a hairpin shout at the runners approaching it from one direction (in their final km) "well done, not far now" while not noticing a runner behind her approaching it from the other direction (still heading for the 3km flag)!

I really did try not to do that. Luckily she was laughing at me as she was telling me off

[Oldgal68 in reply to RunaroundSue]

Haha, RunaroundSue , the joys of the Parkrun! We have a couple of pedestrian tunnels on ours and there is always the possibility of encountering an innocent passerby with their dog going in the opposite direction, so we were admonished to give way. It was a bit chaotic at first, but the walkers were very good at keeping out of the way of our, well, my, flailing arms and legs!!

[C25KKate Graduate10]

Congratulations! It sounds like Park run was a big success. Still trying to pluck up courage to do my first ‘public ‘ run. I hope you have many more happy Park runs 😀🏃!

[Oldgal68 in reply to C25KKate]

Thanks C25KKate ! I can certainly recommend the Parkrun. I was nervous at the beginning, about getting lost, being in a large crowd, not finishing, all sorts of worries, but they completely evaporated after the first five or ten minutes as I found my own pace. I really enjoyed the interaction with the other runners too, so I’d say give it a go - I’m sure you’d smash it!

[C25KKate Graduate10 in reply to Oldgal68]

Thanks Oldgal68 I must try giving it a go. You make it sound v user friendly.

[IannodaTruffe Graduate10]

Well done.

Nearly everybody has a positive experience at parkrun, and now you have an accurate 5k time to whittle away at.

[Oldgal68 in reply to IannodaTruffe]

Thanks, IannodaTruffe ! Yes, it was good to get that accurate time so that I can work on speeding up a bit. Mind you having just found my comfort zone in these first 5k runs, I might have to give myself a bit of a shake as I’m maybe enjoying it all too much, lol! I’ll mix up the pace and speed very gently I think, but having the option of doing more parkruns and testing myself out sound like a plan!

[loopootoo]

I really enjoy going to our park runs we are lucky we have 3 dotted around the city so we were able to pick our favourite. Having the faster runners cheer you on during the last lap as the are heading home is really nice.

Well done on your time too, it's a fab time.

[Oldgal68 in reply to loopootoo]

Thanks, loopootoo ! Yes, I have quite a few within a reasonable distance, so will be able to try out some more. A whole new world opening up for me that I never envisioned as I struggled through my w1r1, hardly able to run for 60 secs!!