This past weekend, I completed my first ever 5K run! Here’s all the deets, from the good, the bad, and the frigid.
Several years ago, while traipsing through Disney Springs, Aaron and I noticed other guests walking around with medals around their necks. Upon further inspection, we deduced that they were finisher medals after completing the morning’s Disney Run. As it just so happens, an entire organization, COMMUNITY even, exists for Disney enthusiasts who love to run! Aptly named runDisney, the team organizes several runs throughout the year, all taking place on Disney property! Runs varied in length, from the standard 5K all the way up to full on marathons!
That day, I tucked that piece of information into my brain. Then, COVID hit. Soon, I found myself opening “Couch 2 5K,” a training app on my phone, to keep myself active without a gym! As I began to pick up speed, I found myself remembering the runDisney program. With the pandemic closing down public crowded events, I didn’t have much of a goal to work towards… for now. For then? At that point, no goal existed. Sure, the group had organized dates for virtual runs, but what good is a run if there’s no medal nor run through a Disney park?
Fast-forward a year, and then, a breakthrough! In summer 2021, runDisney announced a return to in-person races, kicking off with the Food + Wine 5k in November. With that, Aaron and I kicked ourselves into gear. Registration? Completed. Workout clothes? Plenty in stock! Sense of pride and dignity? Long gone. It was time to train.
5K: THE TRAINING
Aaron had years of cross country under his belt. He quickly picked up where he left off, outpacing me in practice runs and offering tips to improve my running form.
PROPER RUNNING FORM:
- Arms low, mostly at the side! Imagine holding a potato chip between the thumb and index fingers. The less pumping of the arms, the less energy goes wasted!
- Head up and straight ahead. Looking down during a sprint cuts off access to oxygen.
- Lift your feet! Picking up the knees keeps your pace strong.
It’s more important to keep good form than to go fast! Good form prevents injuries (as does stretching).
I found myself huffing and puffing throughout my training sessions. However, that’s what training is for, right? Pushing your body to the limits to see how far it can go! By the time I had completed the Couch 2 5K program, I was finishing a 5K at around 44 minutes. I had hoped to finish the Disney 5K in 40 minutes, even though my previous ambitions had me finishing a 5K in 30 minutes! Nevertheless, by my final run before the 5K, I had shaved off enough time to come in UNDER 40 minutes!
5K: THE BIG DAY
With the local annual passholders coming in for the event, runDisney anticipated there would be lots of traffic leading up to the run assembly. As a result, Aaron and I checked into a Disney hotel, since they would provide free shuttles to and from the event.
I had been running in temperatures of varying heat. The summers were brutal. Sunrise runs left me sweaty. Post-sunrise runs left me drenched and cursing the universe. Regardless, I ran with the sun, hoping that November mornings would be colder.
I had no idea what was in store. Not only was it roughly 58 degrees that Friday morning, but not long after we arrived, it started raining! It wouldn’t stop coming down until the next day. A Cold, rainy 5K? A surprise to be sure… but not necessarily a welcome one. I planned my runs so meticulously. When I got to draining puddles in my practice runs, I always stepped so carefully. I feared a slip or a slide in a puddle would leave me with a sprained ankle, or worse!
The 5K took place in EPCOT, and we had to arrive by 3:30… in the morning! Aaron and I woke up at 2:50, after barely falling asleep only a few hours earlier. Once we arrived, we hydrated and then made our way over to the start corral. Depending on your speed (which you provide at registration), runDisney divided the runners into corrals of three: the fast, the average, and the “I might run, but I’m really just here to have fun” crowd. Aaron and I were in tier two!
An hour later, the “hosts” of the event (representatives from runDisney and the ESPN Wide World of Sports) got onto a small stage to welcome the runners and kick things off with flair! A round of the National Anthem and some fireworks later, and the race began.
The corrals were broken up into smaller groups so that the walking starters and the safety of all the runners could be better secured. Rather than start a few hundred at a time, it was probably more like fifty runners per shift! Shifts were released at three minute intervals. Aaron and I were in shift six! At 5:18 AM, with another jolt of fireworks, Aaron balled his hand against my shirt to push me past the slower starters. Then, it was off to the races, in every sense of the word!
5K: GET SET, GO.
The 5K took us from the EPCOT parking lot, through the World Showcase, around the Land pavilion, and back through the other side of the parking lot. There were backroads and pavement aplenty! From my first step past the starting line, I sensed some trouble. I had already felt nervous with the rain making the road slick. Then, I stepped wrong and I got a jolt of pain up my foot. Not a minute later, I started feeling a stitch in my stomach. I KNEW I should have pre-gamed with a salad and some ice cream the night before the run!
Nevertheless, she persisted. With a new pair of running-specific shoes, and a kickass playlist, she ran. She huffed, puffed, and hollered “YEET” as she nearly bowled over slower participants in her way. She is me, by the way. I nearly yelled “PARKOUR!” as I skirted around some of the others.
Truthfully, the combination of fear, adrenaline, and desire to finish with a new record blocked out most of my memories of the actual run. Here’s what does spring to mind:
- Sponsors of the event stood at the sidelines, cheering and ringing bells as participants ran past them. It was a great jolt of enthusiasm.
- I took about a three minute (technically 2 minutes and 52 seconds) walking break once I got slightly past the halfway checkpoint. The halfway checkpoint had cups of water, and a chokehold that turned the wide berth of runners into a more narrow line. The groove was thrown off, so I decided to walk my way through it. Interestingly enough, the three-ish minutes spent walking hurt more than the rest of the run.
- While I’m sure the rest of the park looked great, the only truly surreal “Wow, I’m running through Disney” moment came shortly after the chokehold. This part of the 5K took the runners through the France pavilion past the new section set up for the new “Ratatouille” ride. It really looked like Paris for a moment, and even though Matt + Kim was playing in my speakers, the theme played in my heart. I briefly thought, “What if I did a run through Paris?” Mental note made, I resumed running, straight for the finish line.
I had thoughtfully placed Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen towards the end of my playlist, as a good final burst of adrenaline. It had gotten me through my practice runs, so I figured that it would make for a strong finish!
I finished the run with a minute of the song left to spare. The final notes of the song played as I blearily recognized what had happened. I had done it. I set out with a goal to run a 5K, a Disney 5K no less, and I did it. In roughly 38 minutes.
I shakily stepped up to one of the volunteers handing out finisher medals. I don’t know if other runners simply grabbed them and walked away, but my worn out body and sleep deprived brain just had me approaching her and bending my head for her to slip it over my neck. In my excitement and joy, I nearly hugged her. Then I remembered she was a stranger and that would be weird. Instead, I thanked her for my medal and walked off to find Aaron, who had quickly left me in the dust!
The two of us returned to our hotel room, and passed out for a few hours before enjoying the spoils of EPCOT… for maybe three hours, until we realized we were still worn out and sleep deprived and needed another nap. My calves hurt extra that day (I had struggled with that pain for the latter half of my training sessions), but other than that, all I felt was a sense of pride and accomplishment.
In Conclusion: What Did I Learn?
As that volunteer slipped the medal over my head, my brain had only one thought: I need, like, six of these. Completing the runDisney 5K filled my heart and boosted my self esteem like nothing else had in a long time. I’m not gonna say I’m going through it, but I’ll say it was nice to win one (even if there’s no “placing” system in the 5K run). Aaron and I have plans to run the spring 5K, possibly with his parents joining us! I’m hoping that with four months training (give or take), I can shave down that 38 minute mile to thirty minutes total. It’s never too late, right?
I would highly recommend the runDisney program to anyone. Considering some people walked the entirety of the 5K, you don’t even need to train three times a week like I did to do it! All that it really takes to complete the runDisney 5K is probably all that you need to accomplish any 5K (or anything in life, if you ask me): faith, trust, and pixie dust.
Also water. You could always drink more water.