To celebrate World Mental Health Day on 10th October, England Athletics encouraged many groups like ours to hold a #runandtalk session in order to improve mental well-being through running and to break down the stigma associated with mental health by getting people talking about it.

So on Wednesday 12th October, instead of our usual coached running session, we all headed out for a social group run and enjoyed the chance to chat whilst we ran. Furthermore we all donated our weekly training fee to the mental health charity ‘Mind’. Thanks to the generosity of the runners in the group we raised a fantastic amount of £55!

As runners we all appreciate how running benefits our mental health – running offers us all the chance to switch-off from the pressures of everyday life, enjoy a relaxed chat without distractions, or sound-off to our running buddies and get a problem off our chest. Added to that running in the fresh air, especially through beautiful countryside, is very therapeutic as it helps us to feel more connected to nature. And at the end of a run we all feel so much better as our bodies release those feel good endorphins!

If you would like to improve your mental well-being through running and would like to join us or want some help to get started, then please get in touch.