Encourage a mum to run this Mother's Day

Talking to mums across the country who have taken up running, it’s clear that a major reason why many mums run is to relax and have some ‘me time’ away from all the hustle and bustle.

Despite this being one of the main reasons, the benefits of running, especially for busy mums, are wide and varied. Running is one of the quickest and easiest ways to maintain an active lifestyle around challenges such as childcare – it requires very little specialist equipment and can be done straight from home.

Running is a great way to connect with the outdoors and get some fresh air, either with friends in a social environment or in peaceful solitude. Running can help you to feel good and can even help to fight mental health issues such as stress and depression.

So what better time to encourage more mums to get into running than Mother’s Day, which falls this Sunday 15 March. Perhaps you’re reading this as a mum yourself and have been thinking about being more active? Or perhaps you already run and know other mums who might like to get running too? Maybe you know a mum who might benefit from joining a beginners running group?

There are currently more than 2,500 registered Run England Groups across the country, which are welcoming to mums of all ages, abilities, shapes and sizes. In fact, many groups cater specifically for mums and offer solutions to the challenges that motherhood poses on keeping active, such as ‘buggy runs’, runs from the school gates and sessions which cater for both parents and children from the same venue.

Run England Groups are all led by qualified Group Leaders who are specifically trained in breaking down barriers to participation, and the rest of the group members provide company and encouragement along the way.

If you know a mum who you could encourage to give running a try, hit the ‘share’ icon in the top right of the video below to spread some inspiration and share your own running tweets, pics or even videos over the weekend using #WhyWeRun.

If you’re a running mum, Happy Mother’s Day for Sunday and we hope you have a wonderful day – don’t forget to treat yourself to a run!