I thought I'd share my story...
I joined run to be in September 2016. I was very nervous and even though the advert said it was for beginners, I thought yeh but you've not met me. I really can't run... not even for a bus or to chase a £10 note down the street but I thought hay I'll give it a go and what can one week hurt... I'll just see what it's like and then drop out.
I still wasn’t sure even once I’d signed up and many times in the week before considered dropping out as I thought everyone there was going to be really “sporty” and just have me tagging behind them in a complete sweaty mess.
So anyway, I turned up on night one feeling really sick and thinking what the hell have I done! There were lots of lovely people there to greet me and talk to me making me feel instantly at ease. As all of the other participants started to turn up they were all feeling the same and I was very pleased to hear that most of them hadn’t run since the dreaded PE lessons at school and they too weren’t sure if this was the right group for them.
So we had a little introduction from the founder of the course Lindsey and the coach Beverley and then we were asked to “run”.
RUN!!! I though hang on, I’ve only just turned up but I did and it was from then on that the Run To Be magic really began.
There was laughter, fun and lots of lovely conversations. Amongst the runners there were some lovely mentors who spoke to all of us, making sure that we were happy and ensuring that none of us were left behind.
Nobody was pushed to go faster than they could and any pace that you could do was the right pace and often we were asked to slow down as Run To Be know how to get everyone running and ultimately to the goal of 5k!
Throughout the 8 weeks I had lots of experiences and runs and through each one I was supported by one of the Run To Be team, along with an amazing bunch of friends that I made during the course.
All of the way through I felt like I had the support I needed in order to finish each run and I really started to look forward to my Thursday night sessions. Actually enjoying going for a run!
During week 4 a group of us decided to sign up to a 5k race in support of the British Legion. I signed up but secretly thought I’d never make it and I would be one person who failed the course but I didn’t. With the support of the groups, I went onto to complete the course and the week before this I completed my first 5k run.
It was very emotional as I couldn’t believe that in 7 weeks I really had gone from 0-5k, the girl who thought that running 5 metres was impossible.
If anyone is thinking about signing up to one of the courses, stop thinking about doing it and do it now. It is not something you will regret!!!
Laura Louise