Have you ever done a 5k race?

If you haven’t, it’s likely you’ve thought about it. Perhaps you’ve even considered doing a 10k, a cycling ride, or a triathlon?

For me, going through the fall season without a race would be like going through summer without a trip to the beach. Racing and fall go hand in hand for me, and I know there are many others in our group that feel the same way.

In the last two years I’ve participated in countless races including 5ks, 10ks, half marathons, and even a few triathlons (things that I truly never thought I would accomplish!). For a while, signing up for a race was the only thing keeping me motivated to exercise.

Before you say you “can’t” or you’re not interested, let’s dive in to some reasons why signing up for a local race could be beneficial to you.

Why Sign Up for a Race?

• It gives you a new and/or additional goal to work toward
• It helps boost motivation and commitment to exercise (“I don’t feel like running today but I’ve got my race coming up in two weeks so I’m going to get out there anyways.”)
• It pushes you to step out of your comfort zone and try something new
• It tests your fitness abilities (Make it a tradition to do the same one each year and try and beat your time!)
• It supports local charities (most races benefit a local cause)
• It gets you involved in the Orlando fitness community (it’s a great group of people!)
• It gives you an unbeatable feeling of accomplishment after crossing the finish line after weeks or months of dedication to training and hard work

The Greater Orlando Heart Walk!

As I talked about in my last blog post for Forte Fitness, goal setting is huge for bridging the road to success in all areas of life, including fitness and health.

Signing up for a race is GREAT for all of the reasons listed above, but especially for setting a realistic and FUN fitness goal for ourselves, and accomplishing it.

So what’s stopping you?

Before you think, “I’m not a runner, this really isn’t for me,” did you know that sometimes we run up to three miles in boot camp on occasion?

Signing up for and completing a race DOES require dedication, planning and intention. But I truly believe you can accomplish anything you set your mind to.

With all that being said, I challenge you this week to sign up for a local fall “race” that appeals to you.

It could be a 5k (3.1 miles), a cycling ride or maybe even that half marathon you’ve been thinking about for a while but haven’t gotten the courage to sign up yet. No better time than now.

You might be thinking, “OK, you want me to sign up for a race, but how do I know what race is best for me and where do I find the races coming up?” I like where your head is going.

Well, some of the local running stores like Track Shack (www.trackshack.com), which has been serving the Orlando area since the 1970’s, offer a race calendar on their site, a great place to start for learning about local races and events.

Deciding your distance or which race is best for you is totally up to you.

There are a lot of great training programs out there to check out too if you don’t know where to start. (Jeff Galloway has a fantastic run-walk program and there’s an app for the Couch-to-5k program that I’ve heard great things about!).

I know you can find something that works for you. If you’d like help putting together a “training schedule” for your race, please let me know and I’d be happy to help!

I went ahead and looked up a number of upcoming events (running and a few non-running related because I know that not everyone enjoys running) in the area and made a list below (there are many more though so feel free to do some research yourself!)

Most of these races are walk-friendly, too.

Races coming up in the Central Florida area:

• 9/30: Project Walk Orlando’s 3rd Annual Walk-n-roll-a-thon
• 10/14: U Can Finish 5 Miler & 2 Miler (& 7 mile distance dare!)
• 10/27: RUN NONA 5k
• 10/29: Dash for Dogs 5k & Halloween Pet Festival benefiting Pet Rescue by Judy
• 11/3: Fight for Air Climb at Bank of America Building
• 11/11: Baldwin Park Half Marathon and 5k
• 11/17: Horrible Hundred Cycling Event in Clermont, FL with 35, 70 and 100 mile routes
• 11/22: Seniors First Turkey Trot (would be fun for the whole family before a day of feasting!)
• 12/01: OUC Half Marathon
• 12/02: The Color Run Orlando (I think we have an eye on this one as a group!)
• 12/15: Reindeer Run (this one is super fun, everyone dresses up holiday themed!)

Bonus: Most races offer a kids fun run at the end, which makes it fun for the whole family to attend these events.

If you’re up for this week’s challenge, let us know in the comment section which race you signed up for OR a future race you have your eye on.

One last thing. Encourage a friend to sign up with you. Who knows, you may even inspire them to live a healthier lifestyle like you!

Make it a great week!