Huge shout out to the Nike Run Club (NRC) App. Just love it. Very cool app and keeps track of progress and gives real time audio updates on various metrics such as time, distance and avg pace. Some of the other captured metrics include total miles, current pace, calories, cadence and the coolest of all elevation gained. This is intriguing. The app indicates so far, 126,795 ft- almost 2 times climbing up and down Mt Everest (29,032 ft) Is this true? To top it all, the fun pep quips in the app at the end of every run, from NRC head coach Bennett or coach Moe Fire. Some of my favorites : “this run is over; you are a better runner now than the one who started today’s run. That’s is the goal. Just to get a little better everyday” or “I hate to tell you- you are not only getting fit but you are getting flat out fast; keep it up”. And this one is everyone’s favorite Bennett’s quote: “Let every stride be about where you are running to and not where you are running from and you’ll end up running yourself somewhere better with every run.” Definitely a nice way to end a run. Also, the fun monthly 100K challenges- been in the top 10% among the 30-40k participants in all 12 months. The one thing I wish the app had: with all the features it displays, why not show the time (clock) as well. Will make my life easier to dial in/logon to meetings on time and outright not miss it (never missed meetings but had been late a few minutes a couple of times!! Haha!!)

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.