In the past couple of weeks, I’ve talked about 6 important tips for staying safe while navigating the often safe, but sometimes dangerous roads. So far in Week 1, I covered wearing proper ID, being visible and being memorable. Last week, I talked more about planning and communicating your routes, taking proper advantage of your social circles and listening to your instincts.
This week’s tips take it a step further
7. Vary the time, days and places you run: I don’t mean that you need to always run in a completely different area at a completely different time every time you lace up but it is a good practice to not always leave at 6:30 to run your identical 5 mile route. Even leaving 30 minutes earlier or later can deter someone who may be trying to follow you or prevent you from catching the attention of someone you don’t want to catch the attention of. This can be a bit contradictory to week one’s tip about being visible because you may find that you see the same people on your routes all the time and greet them as you pass each other by. This is fine. I would exercise this tip more if you run in remote areas or at a time of day when there are fewer people around.
8. If possible, run in a group: This is a hard one because not everyone can be or even wants to be part of a running club. I’m a prime example of someone who can’t find a running partner to save me. Unless I have a sitter so that my hubby and I can run together, I run solo. All the more reason I do my best to practice what I’m preaching about. For those who have the option, there is safety in numbers so if you can, do. It makes the run go by a lot faster when you have someone to keep you company too!
9. Keep the music to a minimum: I love to listen to music when I run. I pretty much need it in order to survive the run. I’m big on needing distraction but not so much that I don’t know what’s happening around me. I keep the volume down and if necessary, I take one ear bud out and tuck it under my sports bra. It’s so imperative to be aware of your surroundings. Not only for a potential predator but for a car that may not see you on the road or a cyclist coming around the corner. It’s easy to not be seen when you’re running and a distracted driver is a slow to react driver. Same thing goes with a distracted runner.
10. Watch the Social Media: I love posting pics of my workouts, tweeting out when I’m going for a run because I need the support and accountability but I do my best to not always give away where I am, where I’m going etc. You just never know who might be reading your feed, recognizing your locations, pictures etc. There’s nothing wrong with sharing but exercise some caution in doing it.
Next week, we tackle staying healthy on the run. Stay tuned!
Love to see you’re educating people on how to actually be safe while running. Most blogs would simply offer running technique and how to avoid injuries while doing so. You’ve obviously chose to go a little deeper and offer a different take. Completely agree with you on all of these tips, especially keeping the music volume somewhat low. I find most people will run at night 6-10pm, so because your vision will be diminished, you’ll have to rely on other senses, like hearing. Looking forward to the upcoming posts. Thanks!