I ran the worst 5k ever; as a new runner. Is running just not for me ?

the anemia is everything here. i got anemic one year. i got whole minutes slower 5k. no speed, tired and sleeping all the time.

my personal experience anemia was poor diet. if you want to run you have to fuel the tank or it will not work. no diets, no fads, and while you can eat junk food you can't try and literally live off it. get back to a healthy balanced diet. meat, veggie, carbs.

to deal with the anemia my parents had me drink a daily 1-2 egg yolk "shake" of some sort. i took a couple weeks off of playing soccer or running meets. you then have to reboot your fitness and running from zero but anemia can cause you long term issues or kill you. you need to worry about getting well first instead of the running as the anemia will not just make you ill but make the running a joyless slow chore of pointless quality. your body is trying to tell you to take some time off and eat better.

you're not done -- you're sick.

re "keep running," not until after you heal the iron deficiency/anemia. the gas tank is empty. your runs will be crap as long as it's empty. you do not speed the process along by continuing to empty the tank while trying to work on the anemia. the quicker route to health and running again is take time off and get your iron back right.

my personal experience in 3 weeks i felt rested and after a handful of practies while i didn't do a PR first 5k i was with the lead pack lap 1 and finished top 20. your mileage may vary but my point is you will actually feel recharged and eager to run other end of it.

My daughter ran XC for a couple years in HS, never became great, but it had plenty of benefits anyway. She stayed on a good schedule, was part of a team, had friends with good priorities. Now that she's in college she is running on her own and asking for advice, so it can have a lasting impact.

Don't quit running if you like it, especially over one bad race. If that were a good reason to quit, I don't think anyone would still be a runner. It can take time to develop as a runner, especially when you are young. The point of high school sports for the vast majority of people isn't to train future champions or even be highly competitive - it's to teach people healthy habits, discipline, sportsmanship, socialization, etc. I'd say maybe if you don't like your teammates/coach, then just run on your own, but even then, you'd probably get a lot more out of running as part of a team.

Get your testosterone up! Sleep well, don’t use alcohol, smokes, intoxicants, reduce seed oils, weird chemicals and fragrances. do cute little workouts that let you feel accomplished on all aspects of the running, instead of doing something you don’t feel “about” - do your workouts with purpose and fulfillment, and only push when you’re warmed up and in the groove.

Some people just don't have the bodies for running fast and that's fine. People have to find the event or sport that is right for them. A good shotput thrower will make a bad distance runner. Etc. Looking back, my recent should have been the 400m instead of the 800m. I only went under 20 minutes once for 5k. Buy my sprint times as a freshman went to bad and could have been improved.

3/10

my hs has 27, 28 min guys, 3 girls slower than 30 at woodbridge, a girl who could not break 10 in the 1600, girls that could not break 4 for the 800, 18 sec 100m, guys with a season of xc and 57 speed who could not break 6, etc.

Liana, I'm in Nevada as well. As a 6th grader at Clayton Middle School here in Reno, I could not finish the PE class mile run. 20 years later, I ran 2:18 for the marathon and qualified for the Olympic Trials. Nevada (except for nasty hot Las Vegas) is fantastic for training. I encourage you not to lose heart, and to just use this result in your race to let you know where you are at. Shut off your phone, shut off all distractions, and train hard. Get up extra early for a few miles of jogging before school. I wish you well.

Stick with it if you enjoy running and think of it has something have a lifetime to improve and experience. Stay consistent and do some strength for those ankles, and you will improve...and possibly by several minutes if you keep at it. Enjoy the progress. Those folks laughing at you won't succeed, they don't appreciate the process or the sport. Take care!

Ummm what? Anemia is a serious condition and will obviously greatly affect athletic performance. You need to fix that anemia immediately. No point in worrying about what times you are running until you get your anemia fixed, because anything you run with anemia is going to be awful.

Iron plays a huge role in running performance. Make sure they check your ferritin as well.

I'm a lot of older (and probably out of shape) than you but it took me 5 months of constant running to even break 30 mins. So, your "worst 5k ever" took me a very long time to achieve. We're all different and you won't know your potential unless you keep trying. If you're enjoying running then just run for fun and don't let your performance in races dictate whether you run or not.