Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Making time to care for yourself - join us for a run!

I had mentioned several weeks ago in a post that I had begun working out as part of a new year's resolution with the hope of beginning to run again. Since that time I have in fact continued my training twice a week with the TRX (did I mention that I really love using this to work out with - it makes for such a smooth, fast, full body workout that you can take anywhere!) as well as running again.

I had forgotten how much I really enjoyed running and the energy it leaves me with for the rest of the day. My goal is to work up to a 10km and so I have signed up for several races to keep me motivated over the next 6 months. I am presently registered for the Manotick 5km run in a few weeks, the Spartan race in June, and a 10km run in the Fall - there are actually races almost every weekend - it kind of gets addictive! As you can see once again, I have trouble doing anything in moderation and I tend go to the extremes with new interests -  I actually almost signed myself up for a triathlon! But balance - I am trying to keep a sense of balance without letting any one thing take over all of my time.

With my new found motivation to run I have also been chatting with Katie from Fit Mom in Barrhaven and we are throwing around the idea of a free 5km group run on Tuesday afternoons beginning at 1:15pm - yes, I said FREE. You will also have the option to drop off your child (3 years and up) at A Gym Tale while you go for your run - if there are younger children you are more than welcome to use a jogging stroller and bring them along - there is nothing better than living an active lifestyle in front of your children. The Drop Off Play will be $8 per child and they will have the opportunity to be active themselves on the Castle and Pirate ship while you go for your run.

The tentative start date would be Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013. The run would begin at 1:15 and the Drop Off program would open at 1pm if you are in need of care during the run. We are proposing a 5km route and experienced runners or new runners are more than welcome to join us. Katie is a wealth of running and fitness knowledge and will work specifically with the new runners -  no one will be left to run on their own. My hope is that being around other runners will inspire and motivate more parents to continue leading an active lifestyle or to encourage people to try running as a new form of exercise and to show their children how they are leading active lifestyles themselves. I am also really looking forward to getting out and meeting some new running friends!

If you think this may be of interest to you or someone you know please comment or send me an email - this is a free community event that Katie and I are looking to host so we are trying to get a sense if the interest and timing is right before we finalize the plans.


7 comments:

  1. First of all really proud of you for keeping up with the TRX! Love that :) I also love that you are signing up for races to keep motivated. Like you said its so great for our little ones to see their parents being active, nothing better then your kids cheering for you at the finish line! They truly think your wonder woman and get caught up in the excitement of it all.

    I'm so excited to start a little run group. Some of my favourite goose bump moments have come from watching other women reach their firsts...longest run, longest distance, best time etc. We will be there to encourage you and help you....and of course lots of laughter along the way.

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  2. A friend of mine forwarded this blog post to me. I'd be interested in running with you. I also signed up for spartan race and need to start running

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    1. I have to admit, I am a little afraid of the Spartan Race - we can train for it together!

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  3. I'm just completing a 5 week learn to run 5k program and would be interested in joining in. I've been pushing my 10 month old in her stroller... I need to explore what this TRX thing is.

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    1. I would love to meet you and your little one! The TRX really is amazing. Katie introduced me to it, so either of us would love to gush about how much we love it!

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  4. Hi! I'm really interested in this! I saw the post on the Facebook Barrhaven moms group. I think it's so great that you can drop off older kids! My only concern is the cost of $8. That seems like a lot to me if you're going to be going every week. I mean how long does it take to run 5K? 30-50 min depending on how fast you are. Maybe you could convince A Gym Tale to reduce the cost :)

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    1. Hi Amanda, I have carefully thought out the Drop Off rate of $8 and unfortunately it is the very best that I can do. It is $2 less than the Drop In rate which does require an adult to stay and for this program you can leave your child with two ECE staff for 1.5 hours. This time is for warming up, doing the run and then cooling down afterwards. Myself and Katie are volunteering our time to create a free community event, but I am bringing in two qualified staff members to care for the children and I cannot take a loss on this program when staff wages are taken into consideration. But, several families did bring their children along with them this week, either walking with them or in strollers, so it is only a convenience option that I am presenting with regards to the drop off program, not a requirement. I do hope you are able to join us, we really had a wonderful time this week:)

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