TOWNSHEND – Want to get started running, but not sure how to do it safely? The Grace Cottage “Couch to 5K” group is designed for you!

Grace Cottage Family Health & Hospital is hosting the “Spring Into Health 5K” in Townshend, VT, on Saturday, May 12. Grace Cottage Nurse Practitioners Jorda Daigneault and Devan Lucier will be leading a “Couch to 5K” (C25K) preparation-support group for nine weeks in March, April, and May.

The C25K group will meet Tuesdays at 5 p.m. in the Grace Cottage cafeteria, March 13th - May 8th. Participation is free. The group will train outdoors together once a week, and they’ll be encouraged to train on their own time two more days each week. Best to start on March 13th, but you may join the group at any time.

The C25K program follows a prescribed schedule to help potential runners get in shape, using an alternating pattern of walking and running. Each week the amount of time spent running increases, while the walking times decreases. Daigneault and Lucier will teach the method and will answer questions in a supportive environment.

By the end of the nine weeks, participants should be able to run a 5K, but walking during the “Spring Into Health 5K” is also perfectly acceptable. Proceeds from the 5K benefit Grace Cottage.

Online registration for the 5K is available at www.gracecottage.org/events. For more information on the C25K group or the 5K itself, call 802-365-9109.