How to Start a Running Club

There are many benefits of getting regular exercise, including improved mental health, sleep, and skin. Running is a great way to incorporate more exercise into your lifestyle. Since all you need are running shoes and motivation, it’s one of the most accessible forms of exercise.

However, it can be hard to find that motivation. Many people struggle to will themselves to run, especially because the sport can feel isolating when done alone. Starting a running club can help you build a community of runners who will get you off your couch to exercise and allow you to make new friends.

While running clubs are popular across the country, you might not have one near you. Take initiative and start a running club yourself!

To kick off your efforts, explore our top actionable tips:

Where to Start a Running Club
Our Favorite Running Club Idea
Ideas for Getting Your Running Club Off the Ground
Ways to Engage Your Running Club
How to Have Fun with Your Running Club

The process can be fun when you start your running club with an open mind and plenty of well-thought-out ideas. These clubs encourage companionship and living a healthy lifestyle, helping you reach your fitness goals while developing connections with like-minded people. Let’s dive in!

Where to Start a Running Club

The great thing about running clubs? They can be started almost anywhere! You don’t have to join a gym (although you can) to get connected with a community of passionate runners. Instead, leverage your existing relationships to start a running club right where you are.

Don’t be afraid to think outside the box as you decide where to assemble your running club. Of course, your approach to starting one will depend on the chosen location. However, regardless of where you decide to start one, they offer invaluable opportunities to deepen existing connections. For example, you could start your running club in the following communities:

School

Elementary, middle, high school, and even college campuses are perfect places to start a running club. As students progress toward key developmental milestones, exercise is a must. School running clubs also offer the opportunity for students to make friendships outside of class or even prepare for cross country or track during the off-season.

For students attending larger universities, running clubs is an effective way to get to know more people quickly. They can easily be started within dorm room communities, fraternities, sorority houses, or other clubs and organizations. This way, students can build a greater community while avoiding burnout.

Work

Start a running club community at your office! Especially if you only work in person sporadically, a running club can bring better team cohesion and help motivate employees by fostering a positive environment. Here are some tips to get started:

Gauge interest. Depending on your coworkers, some may or may not be interested in joining. Keep in mind that you could always start small and invite more participants from other circles to join in.
Create an informed schedule. Make a schedule that honors personal and professional goals. For example, you might choose to run during lunch breaks, before work, or every other weekend.
Select accessible routes. Look for running paths that are close to your office or accessible to all members. This will ensure that start and end times can easily be established for each meeting.

Consider aligning your running schedule with major races happening in your area. This way, you can plan training sessions leading up to the big race.

Residential

Gather your neighbors and start a running club right by your house! Look for a local park or community center in your area to get started.

You can assess interest by bringing up the topic at your next HOA meeting or by simply chatting with your neighbors as they come and go. Put together a neighborhood running group chat to select times and locations that work best for everyone. You could even suggest that neighbors bring their dogs along to kill two birds with one stone.

Virtually

Now that the world is digitally connected, you can use it to your advantage and start a virtual run club. These also work well if you live in an isolated location or if you haven’t found any interest in other social circles. Here’s how to start a virtual running club:

Choose a platform. Choose a fitness app or website to act as the central platform for your online running community. Look for one that can easily track miles and maybe even earn rewards.
Build an online presence. Use social media accounts or create your own website to get your club off the ground and offer a centralized hub of information for beginners.
Plan virtual runs. Organize runs where members can participate anywhere. These can be weekly distance challenges, themed runs, or time-based events.

As you build your online community, look for other ways to engage your runners. For instance, you might decide to join charity runs together, host virtual training sessions, or plan casual meetups to foster new relationships.

Below, we’ve listed some other fun and actionable ideas to connect with your running club, starting with a running shoe drive fundraiser!

Our Favorite Running Club Idea

Run for a Cause with Running Shoe Drive Fundraisers

Keeping members engaged in your running club is key to cultivating long-term support and loyal friendships. What better way to build those values than to fundraise for good? Whether you need to boost funds or want to increase your runners’ motivation, raising money as a team can be an excellent way to engage members by promoting teamwork and responsibility.

Running shoe drive fundraisers are an excellent way to generate funds while supporting a worthy cause. When you partner with a fundraising coordinator like Sneakers4Good, a running shoe drive is made easy with just a few simple steps:

Step 1: Ask your running club’s members to work together to collect gently worn, used and new athletic shoes.
Step 2: Place the sneakers in the prepaid shipping bag provided by the fundraising coordinator.
Step 3: Ship your bag to Sneakers4Good from the nearest UPS store.
Step 4: After the running shoes are processed, your club will receive a check in the mail.
Step 5: Donate the proceeds to a charity or community group of your team’s choice.

The athletic shoes your club collected then get passed on to small business owners in developing nations where job opportunities may be scarce. Because many people, especially runners, have running shoes lying around their homes that they’re willing to part with, this fundraiser makes it easy for your running club to get involved.

Instead of letting those unwanted sneakers wind up in a landfill, give them a new purpose, encourage teamwork, and generate some funds all at once. For example, you could launch a competition to see who in your club can wear out an old pair of running shoes the fastest!

Ready to explore how Sneakers4Good can help your running club?

Ideas for Getting Your Running Club Off the Ground

Kicking off your running club starts with effective marketing and generating vital startup funds. These tips can help you get started on the path to accomplishing these goals and growing your club.

Community Marketing

It can be hard for any club to expand by finding recruits. It’s even more challenging for a brand new running club without an existing network of supporters in place. As a young organization, you’ll need to put substantial time and effort into spreading the word about your cause to encourage new membership.

Here are some ways you can spread the word about your running club to recruit new members:

Post flyers on community bulletin boards explaining the club, when and where you’ll meet, and how prospective members can get involved.
Connect with potential members through email and social media to reach larger audiences.
Rely on word-of-mouth marketing from interested runners to create some buzz.

These ideas are cost-effective and relatively simple to do. Remember that they will require an investment of your time to produce positive results. To reap the benefits of community marketing, be prepared and fully dedicated to making your dreams a reality.

Running Store Partnership

Partnerships are a practical idea to generate funds and spread the word about your running club. Pitch the idea to a local running or sporting goods store, and don’t forget to mention the benefits they might see, like introducing a new pool of customers to their store.

Here are a few of the benefits your club could see from partnering with a running store:

Regular percentage nights. By setting up a percentage night with your local running store, the store will give your club a percentage of a specific evening’s profits. These nights are a great way for your club to earn some extra funding, and they help the store out by driving additional foot traffic. If your percentage night is a big success, the running store might ask to make it a monthly event!
Reaching new runners. A partnership can help you spread the word about your club to customers unaware of it. It’s an easy, cost-effective way to reach out to new audiences and grow your organization’s membership. You can make the most of the time investing in your running club by knocking out two crucial goals: gaining funds and new members.
Deep relationships with your community. In addition to earning more funds and members, you can foster relationships with important figures in your area’s running community. Working with leaders like the owner of your local running store helps you expand your network of club connections. Not only can you rely on these connections down the road, but they could introduce you to more members of the local running community and help grow your club.

Once you’ve established a solid relationship, your club can leverage your partnership to host a running shoe drive fundraiser at the business. All you need to do is pick a fundraising coordinator (like Sneakers4Good) and set up the bins in the store.

Membership Drive

To build on the momentum of other recruiting events, consider hosting a membership drive. Because you likely won’t charge membership fees in the early days of your running club, offer potential members incentives to join instead. These incentives could include a free water bottle or running shirt featuring your club’s logo and slogan.

Free merchandise serves a triple purpose: free items for runners, a boost in membership, and free advertising! Even as your running club grows, you can host membership drives when member acquisition slows down.

5K Race

As your club gains traction in your community, you’ll need funds to cover certain expenses. For example, maybe you need to purchase insurance to cover any potential running injuries. Or perhaps you want to buy uniforms or shirts. Whatever the case, an annual 5K is an excellent way to garner the additional funding you need!

Here are the basic steps you’ll need to take to set up a 5K:

Step 1: Book a location.
Step 2: Select an engaging theme like a color run.
Step 3: Line up local vendors and arrange entertainment.
Step 4: Encourage registration and ask your members to spread the word with incentives like registration discounts.
Step 5: Host your 5K, recruit new members, and fundraise!

Add some additional fundraising opportunities like a sneaker drive fundraiser to maximize revenue. Be sure to advertise this opportunity early so runners know to bring an extra pair of running shoes. Your club can also sell branded merch like t-shirts at the event. Then, when runners wear your race t-shirt around town, it may spark conversations with others about your club. For more tips for hosting a race, explore our actionable 5K guide.

Door-to-Door Campaigning

Whether you’re fundraising or aiming to boost membership, door-to-door campaigns are a great way to promote your running club.

To launch one of these campaigns, split your members into groups. Then, assign each team to one or two neighborhoods in your community. Provide your members with eye-catching flyers to make their job easier. They’ll hop from house to house to rally support for your club.

If your goal is to raise money, you can do more than just ask for generous donations. Take your campaign to the next level with a running shoe drive fundraiser!

Give your members materials to collect the running shoes and instruct them to ask for any gently worn, used and new athletic shoes people may have collecting dust in their closets. Since supporters won’t have to leave the comfort of their homes, you’ll likely generate more revenue and receive more sneakers than you would during an event paired with a running shoe drive fundraiser. Best of all, this gives supporters who can’t contribute financially a way to support your club.

Ways to Engage Your Running Club

One of the top reasons people join running clubs is to gain a sense of community in what can be an isolating sport. To meet your members’ needs, you’ll need to create a warm, welcoming environment for runners of all speeds and abilities. Whether they’re a first-time runner or a four-time marathoner, be inclusive to all of your members.

The more welcoming your club is, the more successful it will be. To encourage inclusivity and togetherness, explore the following actionable running club ideas.

Social Media

Social media should be your go-to platform for updating supporters and recruiting new members.

Whether you’re getting your feet off the ground or are already well established, social media can help you take your club’s fundraising strategy to the next level, spread awareness, and expand membership. Announce important updates, highlight runners with enthusiastic spirits, and feature group photos and action shots. Don’t forget to encourage members to share your posts so you can reach prospective members on their social networks!

Make sure you’re linking to your running club’s website, too! For example, entice supporters to visit your site by sharing links to blog posts about a recent race the club participated in as a group on your social media accounts. Share just enough of the post to pique their interest but not so much that it gives away the whole story. If your post interests your audience, they’ll visit your site and share your content on social media. You’ll drive website traffic, reach new audiences, and share your runners’ fun!

Monthly Get-Togethers

Hosting monthly get-togethers that don’t involve running can help you form stronger bonds with your club members. Runners will enjoy seeing each other in a social context while they’re not out of breath or drenched in sweat. To kick off your monthly get-togethers, consider one of the following:

Host a backyard barbecue
Attend a local concert
Hold a movie night
Meet up for dinner at a local restaurant

If you’re feeling stumped about what get-together you should host, poll your members to generate some new ideas. They’ll be excited to have the opportunity to give their input and will be much more likely to attend if the activity is something of interest.

Group Training Plans

To motivate your runners to train hard, give your club something to work toward, like a race. Having an end goal gives them something concrete to work towards, which can be a great motivator. Group training plans are a fantastic way to bring your club together.

Put a fitness plan in place to help everyone train for the race. Make sure to offer several training plans so everyone can join in on the fun. To cut costs, rely on your most athletic runners to lead the groups. Everyone will enjoy the extra push to get fit together.

The group effort doesn’t have to end after the race concludes. Design a marathon recovery plan together to reinforce how important recovery is to the training process. You can make this a fun bonding experience by planning ways to rest together, like meeting up for ice cream and a movie.

Branded Merchandise

Not only does branded merchandise connect your runners, but it’s also an effective marketing strategy. By creating sleek designs with your club’s name and logo that your members will want to wear or display, you can create free advertising opportunities that give back every time runners wear a branded hat or shirt. Include the price of these items in your membership fees so no one’s deterred. Consider offering:

Club t-shirts
Branded hats
Custom water bottles
Stickers

The possibilities are endless! All you have to do is get creative. Host a design competition to engage your members and create merchandise they truly love. The winner should receive the merchandise for free, so reimburse them by reducing their next membership fee. Sell any leftover items to those who aren’t part of your club. For instance, you could sell them at fundraising events like your annual 5K.

Online Blogging

Blogging is a simple, cost-effective way to connect with and motivate your runners. You can feature tips for better fitness to help runners learn more about how to prevent running injuries, highlight your most active runners, share race recaps, and provide workouts for every skill level. All you need is a website builder with blogging capabilities, and you’re all set! The only limit to your blog is your imagination.

Have runners who also enjoy writing? Encourage them to lend their voice by creating guest posts. That way, you can get them involved and feature diverse perspectives on your blog.

How to Have Fun with Your Running Club

Once you’ve established a solid foundation for your running club, you’ll need to work hard to keep runners engaged. Sure, everyone will enjoy regular meetups, but you’ll need to change your routine every now and then to generate enthusiasm and keep members excited to show up and try something new. Let’s take a look at a few ways to spice things up and keep runners interested!

Fitness Challenges

Foster a spirit of friendly competition with a fitness challenge. Create a challenge that pushes runners but is still doable, like a virtual road race. Set a timeline of around four to six weeks. During that time frame, participants should run as far as they can. That way, club members will feel challenged without getting burned out.

As members rack up their miles, they should post their progress. Encourage them to document their mileage using a fitness app or personal pedometer. Offer prizes to your most active members (like free merchandise or gift certificates) to incentivize participation. Watch as more and more runners participate each time you host a new challenge.

Obstacle Course

Give runners a full-body workout with a fun obstacle course. This fun, team fundraising idea gets your members active and helps deepen your relationship with members. Get creative with your challenges! Here are just a few ideas for obstacles to consider:

Monkey bars
Rope climb
Mud pit
Hurdles
Tunnels

To get the ball rolling for this running club idea, you’ll need funds for the supplies needed to create obstacles. To raise money for these obstacles, host an athletic shoe drive fundraiser. Collect gently worn, used and new running shoes from the community. Then, send the athletic shoes off to the fundraising coordinator, receive your check, and purchase your obstacles!

Remember that you should have everyone sign online waivers kicking off your obstacle course just in case someone gets injured.

Circuit Challenge

Finding a workout that works for everyone is a tall order—especially when your runners are at different places in their fitness journey. Consider putting on a circuit challenge for your next run to break out of your club’s typical routine.

A circuit challenge combines running with other exercises to encourage strength training, flexibility, and endurance. Here’s how you can set up your circuit challenge:

Step 1: Create a route that passes a few unique landmarks.
Step 2: Organize a date and time to complete the run with your members.
Step 3: At each designated checkpoint, select an exercise like squats or planks for your runners to finish.
Step 4: Continue the training until everyone reaches the checkpoint.
Step 5: Regroup and take off for the next landmark together!
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This activity is a great way to exercise as a group while including members of any fitness level. Not only will you bring members together, but you will ensure that everyone feels a sense of belonging in the club.

Chain Run

To hold a chain run, have runners line up in a single-file line, take off, and maintain a consistent pace. Then, the last person in line steps out and increases their speed to pass everyone else, eventually becoming the leader of the pack and resuming the original pace. At this point, the new caboose steps out of line and speeds up to take over as the pack leader. This cycle continues until everyone has been the line leader at least once.

The goal of a chain run is to maintain an average speed everyone is comfortable doing. Once everyone has been the leader, the group temporarily increases the intensity of their workout. These runs can make interval training more bearable and serve as a fun, team-building activity.

Out-and-Back Run

If you’re feeling locked into a stagnant workout routine, try holding an out-and-back run. These runs are a simple but effective way to run as a group while meeting members’ unique fitness needs.

After planning a route and selecting a meet-up time, everyone will start the group run at once, going at their own pace. Instead of running to a particular landmark, they’ll turn around after a set period. The group will naturally spread out as members run at their own pace, but that’s okay! The faster runners will have more ground to cover on the way back, bringing the group back together at the finish.

Explore more exercise ideas for your running club with this list of creative group workouts. Runners of all skill levels will love the change in pace and routine!

Fitness Classes

Your members love running but don’t rule out all other workouts. Try something new every once in a while by attending a fitness class together. This can help break up stale workout routines and keep your members engaged.

Partner with a local gym or fitness studio to find a class your members will enjoy. If you’re not sure what to look for, poll members to find out which types of classes they’d enjoy taking. While the costs for this idea might be higher than free or low-cost activities, group rates are easily negotiable to get the most value for your money. Remember to keep this idea in your back pocket for the rainy or cold seasons when running outdoors isn’t very appealing.

Additional Resources

Starting a running club is a great way to build a local community of fellow runners. Holding regular group initiatives like running shoe drive fundraisers can help you connect with club members, raise funds, and contribute to a good cause. Get started with Sneakers4Good today to kick off your own athletic shoe drive fundraiser!

Ready to learn more about what you can do with your gently worn, used and new athletic shoes? Check out these additional resources:

What to Do with Older Running Shoes: 18 Eco-Friendly Ideas. Every 300 to 500 miles, you’ll need to replace your running shoes. Instead of throwing your sneakers away, give them new life using one (or more) of these ideas!
Donate Running Shoes: The Step-by-Step Fundraising Guide. Looking for more information about how you can host a running shoe drive fundraiser? This guide includes detailed steps for putting on your own fundraiser.
Repurpose Running Shoes (and Raise Money!): The How-To Guide. There are much more sustainable ways to clear out your closet than filling up trash bags with your unwanted athletic shoes. Check out this guide to learn how you can recycle your running shoes.

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