I have despised running all my life. It was never my cup of tea when it came to working out. Yet despite my disdain for running, I would occasionally go on runs in hopes of becoming more fond of the sport due to its many health benefits. Unfortunately after running half a mile I would already be out of breath and just unhappy. Now I realize that’s because I was starting out too fast and I wasn’t running with the right purpose (according to Coach Bennett on the Nike + run app, these are two common mistakes that runner can make). On July 1st of 2020 I decided to give running yet another shot, but this time I opened my Nike+ run app and did the “first run” guided run. By listening to Coach Bennett’s instructions I was able to run for twenty straight minutes without a break, which had previously been an unheard of feat in my life. Coming from a girl who was usually winded by .50 miles, I was baffled to see my screen read a distance of 1.70 miles! To some, these numbers will seem meager. But that is the beauty of running, you don’t need to compare yourself to others. It’s all about making yourself a better athlete with each run. I have already improved upon my pace and distance and it’s only the middle of July!! Anyway, all of this is to say that the Nike+run app has helped turn an activity that I have dreaded all of my life into one of my favorite things to do. Now I look forward to running because it clears my head and challenges me to push myself in a positive way!! 10/10 recommend!!

Let me back up my words with a little story, I used to always want to be a good runner. However, I never had enough motivation to do it more than three times in a month (if even that). I tried the guided runs and they were great but I never felt motivated enough to run the next day. However, through the Nike Run Club app you can connect with your friends and create challenges and set distance goals. My good friend on the app created a run challenge for 60 miles in a month last April and I really wanted to finish it and be able to say that I did it but I only managed to log two miles before losing motivation. This year he created the same challenge and I told myself that I had to finish it. 60 miles isn’t much for a lot of people but for me, a beginning runner who has never logged more than 15 miles in a month, it seemed nearly impossible. With that being said, I ended up forcing myself to run 2.2 miles everyday for the first two weeks but after that I felt this crazy motivation to run more. In that one month, I went from running my first 5k to running my first 10k. The competitive atmosphere among my friends and I pushed me to finish the challenge in only 22 days. Thanks to the Nike Run Club’s challenge feature, I am now running more than I could’ve ever imagined. This month (May) I’ve managed to run my first 10 mile run (which was AMAZING) and also run 80 miles in this month. When you are looking for a running app to get you from being a beginner to becoming a great runner, I highly recommend the Nike Run Club app for your every need.

Whether you’re just starting to run or you’ve run for years this is an incredible app to have. Not only does it track where you go but as soon as you finish you are able to report how easy or hard the run was and it tracks your every pace from start to finish. Every day you are able to look back on your progress and throughout the week the Nike Dun Club Trainers give you confidence boosters to encourage and to support your efforts. The guided runs are very helpful and are exactly what you need if your just starting out and don’t know where or how to start or if you want to get better and are looking for that support. Not only are you able to look back on everything you do but you are also given awards every time you run a little bit longer or however many times you run that week. With every mile stone you are given a new category just to remind you how far you’ve come. Not only is it an organized and very efficient app but if you like music while you run it offers to connect with your preferred music app or if you don’t have one it offers to give you their playlist to help keep you upbeat and running. I started this app because when Covid-19 had begun and I was forced to go back home and end our lacrosse season early. It was our coaches that wanted to keep us together and encouraged us to get the app so we could join a yards for yearly program and to run 1 million yards in one month, this was back in April 2020 and we did it until May. Even though that has ended I’ve been consistently using this app every day and I plan to use it so long as I can walk.