Our club is rooted in and is a reflection of the wider south Belfast community. We like to think we play an important role in helping to foster a healthy environment for young people as they represent the club in all codes and across both genders. Our ambition is to spread that Healthy Community policy and with that in mind we undertook the first Naomh Brid Couch to 5K (c25k) running programme which culminated last weekend when 13 club members and associates graduated with a 5k run at the weekly Queens parkrun at the Dub pavillion.
More than 25 runners initially signed up for the 8 week programme with the group meeting each Wednesday evening and early on a Saturday morning. Injuries, illness and other scheduling commitments did get in the way for some participants understandably but there was always a solid cohort of more than a dozen runners in each training session. The group started with a gentle (promise!) walk run session which got longer each week, building slowly and steadily. The programme was overseen by our own Brendan Mulgrew who is also a member of Belfast Running Club and he was joined at the coaching sessions by a number of volunteers including Martin McCarney, Phoebe Lewis from City of Lisburn Athletic Club, Peter Mulgrew, Maria McAllister Mulgrew, Nicky Leonard and occasionally by other members of BRC and COLAC. We are grateful to them all.
The biggest compliment however goes to our runners, some of whom had never run at all, some who had previously played with the G4MO group and for all of whom 5K was a major challenge. All the women – and they were all women this time round! – who graduated last Saturday put in a huge effort. The camaraderie built up over the 8 week programme was infectious and there were celebratory scenes last weekend, amidst the cake and prosecco! Already the runners are planning to keep at it and have organised their own midweek run, independent of the C25K programme.
Demand was high for the inaugral programme and we hope to run a second iteration later in the year. And be aware, men can run as well!
Well done to all, and remember, gaels like us….we were born to run!
