How To Pick The Perfect First 5k

Honestly, I could sum up this blog in one sentence. Make sure your first race is going to be FUN!

If you're looking to sign up for your very first 5k, you're most likely just beginning to run. I started trolling for the Perfect First 5k almost immediately after deciding to try out running. I wanted a concrete deadline of when I needed to be able to run 3.1 miles to keep myself from slacking off. I'm cheap enough that shelling out $35 to run around my own city is plenty of motivation to stay on track.

My only goal (and yours should be too) for my first race was to not walk. I am not in the elite athlete category, so I passed over any races that even mentioned qualifying for anything, course records, age group finishers, etc. And I found the perfect one: The Ugly Sweater Run.

That is a child's skirt. Billy is sporting a women's plus size turtleneck. Gotta love K-Mart.

Beginner's Guide To Choosing Your First Campsite

Camping is supposed to be a simple way to connect with nature, but if you've never done it before, choosing a campsite can seem much more complicated. Fortunately, you can book a campsite online in most parks at www.Recreation.gov. Even if you can't book your campsite online, playing around on the website will help you learn more about potential campgrounds.

My Love Affair With Darn Tough Socks Continues

I thought it was impossible to improve on the perfection that is Darn Tough’s ¼ Hike/Trek Sock. Then I met the Light Hiker Micro Crew.

As the name implies, it’s a lighter sock, which is something I was in desperate need of this summer. My feet tend to sweat (yes this has already come up multiple times in this blog!) and my original Darn Toughs were still just a little too thick for hiking around in waterproof boots for hours. You give up some cushioning for the lighter fabric, but I didn’t notice any difference. My Merrell hiking boots are extremely comfy, though (cough cough you should get yourself a pair cough cough).

These socks felt stretchier than the regular weight socks, but again that’s probably just because they’re lighter. They are still just as durable as the regular weight - I put them to the smell test the morning after spending several hours hiking in 75-80 degree weather and they passed with flying colors. Yes, smelling my hiking socks is a thing I do now.

Beginner's Guide To Whitewater Rafting - It's Not As Scary As It Looks

When my boyfriend first proposed (I just realized I got a LOT of family member's hopes up with those first five words) the idea of going whitewater rafting, I thought he was insane. I envisioned the experience being something like this:

Uhh no thanks I think I'll pass on drowning today.
Photo by Colorado Adventure Center

Much to my surprise, you can actually go whitewater rafting on completely newbie-friendly rapids. 80% of the ride you barely even see any white water. The rapids you do go through are totally non-threatening and are actually super fun! After witnessing other beginner rafters making their way down Clear Creek while driving on I-70, I began to think this was something I could definitely do. 

Your New BFF Flipbelt

Even for beginner runners, the issue of where to put your stuff while you run is an important one - especially for women. If you've shopped for any women’s pants/shorts/anything that goes on your bottom half recently, you've probably noticed that they are severely lacking in the pockets department. 

This is most true with women’s running clothes. They either have no pockets or a ludicrously small pocket that you can fit all of one house key in. Some brands are better about this, but then you've got your phone bouncing around in your pocket, which is equally useless.

Photo snipped from the Flipbelt website

Enter Flipbelt. 

August's Adoptable Adventure Dog - Meet Bram

Bram

**Update** Bram was adopted shortly after this blog was posted! Thanks Outdoors Beginner readers!

The Perfect Beginner Running Shoes Are Probably Waiting At Payless

My running shoes are starting to fall apart. There is a hole in the mesh over my pinky toe joint that is ever-increasing with each run I go on, stubbornly hanging on to my first pair of running shoes. They've been a great pair, carrying me to some of my most exciting running milestones - first time running a mile without stopping, first time making it around the block in Denver without feeling like my lungs were going to explode from lack of oxygen, my first 5k, the first time I realized I was breezing up a hill that had previously made me gasp for air and question my sanity.