Whether you’re a professional or just getting into it, running can be hard. Working up the motivation to get yourself up, put on your running gear and get out the door for a run can be a daunting task. Run clubs can make it easier though. Gathering with like-minded runners to take on the journey together can sometimes be all the encouragement you need — plus, you get to meet some great new potential friends.
Run clubs are not a new idea, but their popularity has exploded in Calgary over the last few years. Run clubs can vary in terms of experience levels, times and distances they run, but in general, they tend to focus on wellness, exercise and community.
Here are a few of Calgary’s many run clubs you can check out.
Calgary Roadrunners
When it meets: Sundays at 8:30 a.m. Plus, other monthly and yearly events
Calgary Roadrunners is one of Calgary’s most long-standing run clubs, promoting all types of running from just for fun to competitions. This run club holds various weekly and monthly events, including a Sunday morning group run that meets every Sunday at various spots around the city and usually ends at a café or breakfast spot for a bite to eat afterwards. A Calgary Roadrunners membership is $30 per year.
YYCRunCrew
When it meets: Tuesdays at 6 p.m. and Sundays at 9 a.m.
YYCRunCrew is a free-to-join run club where you just show up and run. Runners of all experience levels can join in. On Tuesdays, the run begins at 6 p.m. at Eighty-Eight Brewing Co. for a 5.76 kilometre journey that loops through Inglewood and ends back at the brewery (post-run pint, anyone?). On Sundays at 9:30 a.m., YYCRuncrew meets at The Simmons Building, with a choice of four, seven, 11 and 21-kilometre runs. Those runs end with a tradition of meeting for coffee and pastries from Phil & Sebastian and Sidewalk Citizen.
BIPOC Run Club
When it meets: Thursdays at 6:30 p.m.
The BIPOC Run Club encourages health, wellness and connection for BIPOC communities and allies through running. This run club meets Thursdays at the Simmons Building and runs a five-kilometre loop along the Bow River. People of all experience levels are invited to join.
Sole Run Club
When it meets: Saturdays at 9 a.m.
Sole Run Club is based in Bridgeland and meets every Saturday morning at Murdoch Park for a five-kilometre run towards the Bow River, through St. Patrick’s Island and back again. No sign-up is needed, just show up and join in the run. Sole Run Club will occasionally hold pop-up events, as well.
Offline Wellness Club
When it meets: Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m.
Offline Wellness Club aims to help people form meaningful, real-world connections in their community. The run club meets every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m at River Hall YYC. It also holds other monthly social events like rock climbing and pickleball meetups. The team behind the run club also recently opened a full wellness facility complete with a sauna, cold plunge tubs and social areas.