• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Carmy - Easy Healthy-ish Recipes
  • Home
  • All Recipes
    • All Recipes
    • Airfryer
    • Breakfast
    • Dips & Dressings
    • Freezer Friendly
    • Instant Pot
    • Main Dishes
    • Meal Prep
    • Meatless
    • One Pot/Sheet Wonders
    • Pasta
    • Sheet Pan Meals
    • Under 60 Minute Meals
  • Meal Prep
  • Instant Pot Recipes
  • How To Tutorials
    • Meal Prep
      • Meal Prep 101: Why You Should Meal Prep, How To Meal Prep, and Other Meal Prep Tips
      • Tips To Help You Meal Prep For the Week Successfully
      • Tips for Meal Prepping on a Budget + 28 Recipes
      • Whole Chicken Meal Prep (3 Freezer Friendly Meals)
    • Meal Prep: Learning the Basics E-Book
    • How To Tutorials
      • How To Cook a Whole Chicken in an Instant Pot
      • How To Cook Chicken Breasts Perfectly
      • How to Make the Perfect Hard Boiled Eggs
      • How to Press Tofu Without a Tofu Press
  • About Me
    • Collaborate With Me
    • Privacy Policy
menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • All Recipes
  • Instant Pot
  • Meal Prep
  • Airfryer
  • How To Tutorials
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    You are here: Home / Running Info / [BG8] Tips to Selecting Your First Race!

    [BG8] Tips to Selecting Your First Race!

    Posted: Jan 6, 2016 Last Modified: Jan 6, 2016 by Carmy

    • 2

    So you’ve been running for a while now.  Just doing your thing, having fun, losing weight, etc but seeing and hearing the buzz over big races has peaked your interest. However, are you not sure where to start?  Well here are some of my tips and tricks to selecting your first race!

    What You Need To Know: Tips On Selecting Your First Race #running #fitness #tips @ http://www.carmyy.com/selecting-your-first-race

    Pick a Location

    • Do you want your first race to be nearby or a destination race?

    Picking a local in-town race means you can sleep at home in your own bed, wake up and prep in a familiar space, and not worry about forgetting to pack something. Local races are usually cheaper than big international/destination races. Another plus for picking a local race is familiarity with the course.  There are a couple races that take place in a trail nearby my place and that means the weeks before, I can do my training runs there so get a feel of the terrain (any hills, any sharp turns, how the ground is – pavement, gravel, grass).  Another reason local races are great first races is because you can have your friends and family there to support you during the race or at the finish line.  Having your friends and family around for your first race can be quite exciting as it means lots and lots of (free) race photos!

    Your second option is a destination race.  Destination races are a great way to sneak in a mini vacation haha.  Destination races means you can do sightseeing, shopping, and go to a new town that you’ve never been to before.  However, destination races can be a bit difficult logistically since it involves a lot of planning.  My first destination race was luckily not too far so we were able to road trip there but I had to pack multiple race outfits as I wasn’t 100% sure what the weather would be like at the race.  Also, my meals weren’t planned like I usually do before a race since we were out of town and I forgot to cook/pack a meal ):

    Pick a Distance

    • 5k? 10k? half-marathon? marathon?

    What do you want your first race to be?  Did you just start running and a 5k is something you’re comfortable with or have you been running a while with a good base mileage that you can do a longer race?  Personally, my first race was a 5k because I wasn’t feeling ready for anything longer but over the years I’ve moved up to 10ks and half-marathons.

    Pick a Terrian

    • Road Race vs Trail Race

    Road races are usually larger and have more spectators compared to a trail race as it’s in a more isolated area. Keep in mind that trail racing can be a bit more difficult if you don’t already train in trails as the paths aren’t paved and there’s more obstacles such as tree roots to run over/around which may slow your time. Keep in mind the elevation of the path as some races has hills while others don’t.

    Pick a Training Plan

    You may or may not want to use a training plan but it’ll be a good idea to have a plan to make sure you’ll be finish your race in the time that you want (without hurting yourself by increasing your mileage too quickly!)  A good beginner’s plan is Couch to 5k and Runner’s World has a couple plans that you can follow.  Having a plan also means you can calculate when you’ll be ready to race so you can pick a race in that time frame.

    Pick a Race

    A good way to pick a race is by reading race recaps of people who’ve done the race the years before to see if it’s something you want to participate in.  If you’re Canadian, we have a Canadian Race Guide that you can pick up for free in Running Room or you can download the app.  The race guide has a list of races available in the next year organized by province and they all have a little blurb to let you know what it’s about.   If you’re American, Cool Running  and Running in the USA can help you find a race in your State.

    And finally… sign up!

    So tell me, is there anything you’d like to add to this list?  What was your first race?  What’s your next race?

    [Tweet “Tips to Selecting Your First Race! #runchat #fitfluential #sweatpink”]

    Don’t forget to follow me here on my blog ;)
    Other places to find me
    Instagram: http://instagram.com/runcarmyrun
    Twitter: https://twitter.com/runcarmyrun
    Snapchat: runcarmyrun
    Email: [email protected]

    <3 Carmy

    PIN IT:

    What You Need To Know: Tips On Selecting Your First Race #running #fitness #tips @ http://www.carmyy.com/selecting-your-first-race

    • 2

    NEVER MISS A POST!

    Want a free downloadable shopping list and recipes for one week's meal prep (lunches and snacks)? Sign up now for updates and get your shopping list and recipes today!

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. nomadicalico

      June 02, 2014 at 5:29 pm

      I have my first ever race coming up this Saturday night! I haven’t even finished my c25k program yet and this is a Nike 10k run so there will def be a lot of run-walking going on. I think it would have been better to start with a 5k really but I got so excited when I found out that the race was happening near me (as I’d been reading all the race recaps of those in the USA who’d been running the Nike series) that I kinda got ahead of myself and signed up anyway! Keep your fingers crossed for me please :)

      Reply
      • carmyy

        June 02, 2014 at 5:53 pm

        good luck! Think of it as interval training! :D

        Reply
    2. Kristin

      June 02, 2014 at 7:59 pm

      I’m loving this post!!! The excitement of signing up for races!!! SO MUCH FUN!!!! You rock Carmy!!! XOXO!!!

      Reply
      • carmyy

        June 02, 2014 at 8:40 pm

        I know! I love signing up (until I get to the payment part and see how much it coats!)

        Reply
        • Kristin

          June 02, 2014 at 8:41 pm

          Ooooo :(

          Reply
      • carmyy

        June 02, 2014 at 8:40 pm

        Costs*

        Reply
    3. kristenk

      June 03, 2014 at 1:52 am

      Great post! You should mention how addicting races are – I usually end up signing up for a new race as soon as I finish one!

      Reply
      • carmyy

        June 03, 2014 at 8:06 am

        They are! It’s always great to have an upcoming race to look forward to!

        Reply
    4. Jen @ Pretty Little Grub

      January 06, 2016 at 8:26 am

      Some great tips. The first race I ever did was local and it was a half-marathon. I was woefully under trained for it.

      Reply
    5. Ariana

      January 06, 2016 at 11:39 am

      These are great tips. My first race was a local 10k here in Vancouver. As much as I love the idea of destination races, I am such a creature of habit that I have always been nervous to register for one, especially for triathlons. My next race that I know of will be my tri in July, but I might try to pick up a couple cycling races before then!

      Reply
    6. Cindy Hoffman

      January 28, 2016 at 7:21 am

      Great tips there Carmy, I remember when I first hit the track, I underrated a 10K race over what I had been doing. It’s really important to gauge yourself, the running practice that one has been doing determines the distance they will cover. Doing otherwise will have someone drop out without reaching the finish line. Thanks a lot for these tips.
      Cindy

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    meet carmy

    Carmy is a healthy-ish living blogger based in Toronto. Here you can find healthy-ish meal prep recipes, Instant Pot recipes, and lightened up family favourites! Follow along on as she shares what she learns along the way!

    Visit her about me page to learn more about her.
    Click here to check out her Meal Prep: Learning the Basics ebook.



    Click here if you'd like to collaborate with Carmy

    Never Miss A Post

    Sign up for updates and get a free downloadable shopping list and recipes for one week's meal prep (lunches and snacks) AND a weekly meal planner printable to help you plan!

    Copyright © 2021 Carmy - Easy Healthy-ish Recipes on the Foodie Pro Theme