With one day to go until The Canberra Times Family Fun Run and Walk, first-aid volunteers from St John Ambulance are full of helpful tips to make sure punters finish the race in one piece.

St John Ambulance ACT superintendent Jeff Butler recommends bike shorts as well as Vaseline to avoid uncomfortable thighs.

Dehydration and heat stroke, especially in cooler weather when people aren't as aware they could overheat, are risks, so participants need to keep drinking water.

His advice to runners and walkers is, ''Wear comfortable running shoes you've actually worn while training, and next year start training well ahead of the race. If you haven't trained much, don't go too hard, have fun rather than trying to be competitive. Drink water and if you feel light-headed or injured, don't keep racing, pull over and see a St John volunteer to get help.''

For more, pick up a copy of today's Canberra Times