Walking the 5Ks

[Alice Royal]

Hello,

I am new to this area but not the Dis itself...I signed up for the Princess Weekend 5K when it opened up hoping to get myself in shape enough to walk it (I have exercise-induced asthma and cannot run as of now). Unfortunately I haven't been able to get to legitimate 'training' just yet. I have been steadily increasing my walking after moving in to an apartment building that is about a half-mile from my college. I am also signed up for a 'running' course next semester that is essentially unsupervised time to walk or run for a gym credit. I am hoping to use the school's treadmills to walk and potentially begin a Couch to 5K-style routine (but not sticking to the 10-weeks as I don't believe I can handle it).

My question is...is it worth my time to attempt this 5K? I believe I already have something to the effect of a 16-minute mile, plus I know there will probably be character meets on the course that I plan to ignore, so I know the timing will be lax. I'm just a bit worried about being one of only a handful of walkers since 5Ks are so 'short' for those of you who are lucky enough to run. For those of you who have participated, is it possible to power-walk? I am hoping to be able to work in short runs by February but I am unsure. I am using this 5K as motivation to finally get in some sort of shape!

TIA.

 

[victoria&al]

Hi Alice - I had the same questions when I did my first 5k which was 2014 Princess. You can definitely walk as long as you keep up your pace to a brisk walk. WDW has been lenient on the pace for both 5k's DH and I have done. We walked quickly, stopped for all of the photos, and still finished in plenty of time.

Don't stress. You will be fine!

Victoria

 

[bumbershoot]

My question is...is it worth my time to attempt this 5K?

Absolutely!

There will be many walkers. Don't worry about this at all.

Sounds like you are doing great. The asthma...you have an inhaler, yes? Have you looked into other things that might help you? I tend toward exercise-induced as well, and this weekend forgot my rescue inhaler (the only western medication I use for my lungs) for a Half. It was cold cold cold which can trigger my lungs to have problems like nothing else. So at the expo I bought a cool product that works as a neck warmer or pulls up over your hair, or pulls up the other way to your nose. I wore it over nose and mouth for quite awhile until I had warmed up enough and my lungs were OK. And I walked much more of it than I would have done, to make sure my lungs were safe. Other things that help me...when I'm under regular chiropractic and acupuncture care, my lungs are far stronger. When I eat really well they are better. (when I go from being ovo lacto vegetarian to being vegan, I have NO asthma and NO allergies, but for whatever reason that just hasn't been a benefit big enough to keep me vegan) If a small attack starts, if I can get black coffee or nettle tea within 5 minutes, I can stave it off. (terrific medicine, black coffee is)

Have you experimented with how to help your lungs?

(that's a pet subject of mine, how to help lungs without constantly medicating them!)


Couch to 5K. It definitely took longer, because of my lungs. Along with heart, arteries, veins, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and bones having to get used to the new activity, my lungs had the hardest time. I had to repeat weeks more than once, that's for sure! So DO protect yourself by repeating weeks as you need, and don't get ahead of yourself.

But you're already walking, and that's good. Get out there, have fun, don't stress (does stress cause your lungs to be problematic, like it does for me?). Yay you!

 

[Ariel484]

Don't have anything to add except that I have done 3 5Ks at Disney (plus the Castaway Cay 5K twice) and ALL were very welcoming to walkers. Have fun!

 

[Alice Royal]

Absolutely!

There will be many walkers. Don't worry about this at all.

Sounds like you are doing great. The asthma...you have an inhaler, yes? Have you looked into other things that might help you? I tend toward exercise-induced as well, and this weekend forgot my rescue inhaler (the only western medication I use for my lungs) for a Half. It was cold cold cold which can trigger my lungs to have problems like nothing else. So at the expo I bought a cool product that works as a neck warmer or pulls up over your hair, or pulls up the other way to your nose. I wore it over nose and mouth for quite awhile until I had warmed up enough and my lungs were OK. And I walked much more of it than I would have done, to make sure my lungs were safe. Other things that help me...when I'm under regular chiropractic and acupuncture care, my lungs are far stronger. When I eat really well they are better. (when I go from being ovo lacto vegetarian to being vegan, I have NO asthma and NO allergies, but for whatever reason that just hasn't been a benefit big enough to keep me vegan) If a small attack starts, if I can get black coffee or nettle tea within 5 minutes, I can stave it off. (terrific medicine, black coffee is)

Have you experimented with how to help your lungs?

(that's a pet subject of mine, how to help lungs without constantly medicating them!)


Couch to 5K. It definitely took longer, because of my lungs. Along with heart, arteries, veins, muscles, ligaments, tendons, and bones having to get used to the new activity, my lungs had the hardest time. I had to repeat weeks more than once, that's for sure! So DO protect yourself by repeating weeks as you need, and don't get ahead of yourself.

But you're already walking, and that's good. Get out there, have fun, don't stress (does stress cause your lungs to be problematic, like it does for me?). Yay you!

Thank you for this response! Unfortunately I have not been given any medications or inhalers, mostly because I haven't had issues with exercise in the short-term other than running specifically. I recently found an 8-week training plan specifically for walking a 5K and I plan on starting it. (Here it is if anyone wants to look.)

I feel a lot better about this with your responses. I'm so excited to be doing this! Now I just have to find a way to get to Epcot that day. (I live close but don't have a car.)

 

[ANIM8R]

I think you should be warned:

5K's (*especially* at Disney) are highly addictive. Not only will you want to do more but you'll start to think "Ooh, I'm going to do the 10K next time". Then - the next thing you know, you're doing marathons, Goofy's, and Dopey's.

Otherwise, have fun walking/running/skipping/hopping or however you participate! My guess is you'll be glad you did.

 

[Alice Royal]

I think you should be warned:

5K's (*especially* at Disney) are highly addictive. Not only will you want to do more but you'll start to think "Ooh, I'm going to do the 10K next time". Then - the next thing you know, you're doing marathons, Goofy's, and Dopey's.

Otherwise, have fun walking/running/skipping/hopping or however you participate! My guess is you'll be glad you did.

This is exactly why I am getting into it. I have been healthy and in shape in the past but I need a serious kick in the butt to get back to my best weight/shape, and Disney is certainly good motivation! We are lucky to be so close and able to do these.

 

[mchllevns]

Just curious...and a bit off topic...but are there walkers for the longer races as well? I would love to try one but know I could never run a 10K or above...or lots of folks who do a combo of walk/run?

Thanks in advance!

 

[ANIM8R]

Just curious...and a bit off topic...but are there walkers for the longer races as well? I would love to try one but know I could never run a 10K or above...or lots of folks who do a combo of walk/run?

Thanks in advance!

Disney events have lots of walkers for all distances of races. One note of caution though...Disney is more strict about the pace requirements for the longer races so keep that in mind.

 

[ImDMous]

Just curious...and a bit off topic...but are there walkers for the longer races as well? I would love to try one but know I could never run a 10K or above...or lots of folks who do a combo of walk/run?

Thanks in advance!

There were plenty of walkers doing the Avengers Half Marathon last month. As PP said, just keep the pace and you are fine. Don't let the Balloon Ladies catch you

I actually saw the balloon ladies this time. I was on Main St waiting for DH to go bye. He went and I figured since I wouldn't be able to see him again until the finish I would just hang out and cheer for everyone. So I waited until the very last person went by. The Balloon Ladies were actually ahead of a lot of people that were not keeping up but hadn't been pulled yet. They leave the start line when the last person starts and walk at exactly 16 min/mile. So even if you are walking a little bit slower, as long as you started enough before them, you should still be fine.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

I just looked at your plan. Hal Higdon is a good resource. The plan looks simple enough. I do better with a simple plan.

 

[Alice Royal]

I just looked at your plan. Hal Higdon is a good resource. The plan looks simple enough. I do better with a simple plan.

Yeah, I'm definitely liking the way it looks. Especially since I am not a completely sedentary person, which I think this plan was designed for. I can always boost the first few weeks up to 20-30min which is about how long I walk in a day anyway.

 

[Ariel484]

I agree, Hal Higdon plans are great. I have been using his plans for 3-4 years now and really like them.

Just curious...and a bit off topic...but are there walkers for the longer races as well? I would love to try one but know I could never run a 10K or above...or lots of folks who do a combo of walk/run?

Thanks in advance!

Yes! You can run, walk, or a combination (that's what I do). When you are training, Disney recommends aiming for a 15:00/mile pace, so that's something for you to shoot for.

 

[Conway733]

I'm thinking about trying the Jingle Jungle 5K, but I'm nervous because I've never done anything like this before. I'll definitely be walking. Glad to hear that people who walk can participate.

 

[Radiorox]

Consider looking into the Galloway method. It's intervals - walking/running which you can set at whatever pace works for you.

Some people start at 10 second runs, 50 second walks. Which you do throughout the whole race.

Have fun at the 5k's they are a great intro into RunDisney and all of the events are great!

 

[Sleepless Knight]

Just curious...and a bit off topic...but are there walkers for the longer races as well? I would love to try one but know I could never run a 10K or above...or lots of folks who do a combo of walk/run?

Thanks in advance!

I have never done a 5K in my life anywhere. But I have walked 3 runDisney 1/2 marathons and finished all 3 without ever seeing the sweepers once. There are a lot of walkers. You may have to skip some or all of the character stops to keep from getting swept, but you can certainly walk the race in plenty of time to finish even starting from the last corral. I started in the last corral at my first race in 2011 and finished in 3:05.