Last week, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy began discussing a new report titled “Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation,” which found that about half of U.S. adults reported experiencing measurable levels of loneliness following the COVID-19 crisis.
The health results of this growing crisis include, according to the report:
- 29 percent increased risk of heart disease
- 32 percent increased risk of stroke
- 50 percent increased risk of developing dementia for older adults
“Given these extraordinary costs, rebuilding social connection must be a top public health priority for our nation,” Dr. Murthy wrote in an Op-Ed for The New York Times. “It will require reorienting ourselves, our communities, and our institutions to prioritize human connection and healthy relationships. The good news is we know how to do this.”
We, as runners, agree. You should already know research backs up that many forms of exercise and sport—like running and cycling—offer huge effects when it comes to helping one’s mental health.
But when it comes to isolation, there are other simple, fundamental ways to build social infrastructure through the sport we love. While you may or may not consider yourself lonely, we all can create welcoming, inclusive running groups or crews (whatever you prefer to call it) to help everyone—new runner to experienced—create connections with other people.
If you’ve thought about running with others, it’s time to form a running community with local athletes who share some of your experiences and goals. With the help of Runner’s World+ coach PJ Thompson, here’s how you can get started with building your own group from scratch or finding a community that best fits you.
Pick Your Group’s Name
You’re not just naming your new run group—you’re naming your running brand. Think of something that captures the spirit of the community you want to represent, then add your city name, neighborhood, or zip code—now you have a name for your run group.
Choose Your Specialty
When you think about a specialty, ask yourself these questions: What community needs are you answering by creating a run group? Do you want it to be a midweek group with easy miles among friends? A weekend-warrior group chasing long mileage with a postrun brunch? Or a track-specific group that would focus more on speed workouts? Answer those questions and then select a meeting location that makes the most sense for your group.
Say you choose the latest up-and-coming spot in town with a brewery or mixed-use area with shops. While this may sound great, how accessible is the route? Will you be able to run unobstructed without a lot of stops at street crossings while yielding to traffic? These are all important factors to keep in mind when considering where to meet.
Spread the News
Once you’ve landed on a name, a route, and a meeting location, communicate your updates through social media early and often. You can ask which apps runners in your group use, to meet them where they are. Your choice of platform—Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or any combination—will depend on the type of content you have in mind. Do you want to have a more artistic approach to how your group is represented in content? Do you want to share action shots with amazing backgrounds to show the urban nature of your runs? Social media is where the personality of your running group comes alive for the world to see and where you can highlight its accomplishments.
Plan Frequency and Events
You posted the first run. Now it’s time to decide how often you’ll meet. Will you get together just for weekly group runs, or collaborate with other partners in town in order to grow the larger running community? The answer should come from the group. Then, you can decide when to meet. Build a schedule that works for your community.
As for events, tap into local races in your community. Is the largest half marathon in your area happening in a few months? Organize an unofficial shakeout close to the big race in town to get your group name out there.
Which running group is right for you?
Not into starting your own group? No problem! To figure out what you’re looking for in a running group, ask yourself the following questions:
- What time of the day do they meet, and how does that fit into your schedule?
- Are there pace groups available?
- What do runners do postrun to get to know one another?
- Does the group run for fun or do specific workouts? For example, instead of a route of X amount of miles, is the workout a 10 x 400-meter run on the track or hill repeats?
- Do they partner with any local organizations?
- Do they receive any discounts through local running stores if you join them?
- Do they do a destination race together or is there a local race that many of the members train for together?
Look at the range of distances and frequency at which the group runs each week. Depending on your running experience, some groups may not meet you where you’re at the moment. That’s okay. Find the ones that serve your many different needs. In my fun run or offseason, I visit groups that are more laid back and put less emphasis on time. When I’m training for a race, I shift toward visiting groups that do a mix of track days, or even one that finishes their runs with a mini weight workout.
If you’re a foodie, there may be a group focusing on a new brewery (if that’s your thing) or restaurant location each week. During the fall marathon season, my running group organizes a monthly “long run and brunch” run of 10K or 10 miles in which we scout a new brunch place every time. Nothing like coming off your long run and ordering the freshest ground coffee, vegan taco, or pancake.
These are just a few ways to get started and build more social bonds into your life.
A frequenter of many community running groups and leader of his own community group in his home of Austin, Texas, PJ is an RRCA and UESCA certified running coach. Community and uplifting others are pillars that drive PJ while he supports RW+ members, leads friends to PRs, and chases his own race goals.