breast cancer walk

Question
My mom had breast cancer last year and my daughter and I would do the walk/run. We both walk a bit but not much. I am not so concerned about me, but she is 35 and just found out that she is pregnant. We do want to do the walk, for obvious reasons, but what precautions should she take? Besides water, is there anything I should watch out for? Thanks, Jenger

Answer
I assume you are talking about an organized walking or running event, maybe a 5K. If so, your daughter should not have any difficulties as long as she is healthy and early in pregnancy. If in doubt, check with a doctor, as I cannot give medical advice.

The standard precautions apply to any run or walk of this length. Warm up before the event with some light jogging, walking and stretching. During the event, don't get caught up into running too fast. Start off slow at the back of the pack, and gradually speed up but not to the point of discomfort. Drink plenty of fluids after the race (especially if you sweated a lot), and do some stretching.

Depending on how far in the future the race is, you will want to gradually increase your training mileage, then taper off a couple of days before the race.

Good luck!