LCC RUNNERS: First Run & Planning Meetup @ Wormwood Scrubs [BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY]

Hello all and welcome to the next chapter in our never-ending quest to achieve maximum fun forever: the inaugural meetup of LCC's Urban Trail Runners Group!

The data is in: London's running clubs are the trend. Glowing profiles in haute outlets like the FT paint the picture. It seems like running "crews" are everywhere these days, their ranks swelled with the KPMG lads and flexible workers drawn from London's densely-populated creative sector. The 'gram page for east London's own Your Friendly Runners, which regularly draws over 100 people on weekends, is plastered with high-end running brand collabs. And there are plenty of smaller crews dedicated to women, LGBT communities and more. So why does our capital need another one of these?

Because all of these beautiful people are out there clogging up canal towpaths and Square Mile backstreets. To whom do you turn if you want to feel the crunch of dirt beneath your feet, like running was meant to feel? Up til now, no one. That's why LCC is hitting the trail.

Humans evolved to run and sprint; no wonder then that when we do it regularly (within moderation and with plenty of rest days), our brains as well as bodies thank us. Running has recently been shown to improve neuroplasticity, heal brain damage in affected individuals, and foster better mental health including elevated mood at rest and enhanced task-switching ability. Doing all this in nature, as opposed to busy London roads dodging commuters and street cleaners, also helps deliver the well-known benefits of time spent in nature to mood, anxiety levels, cognition and memory. All these things matter a great deal in an age where burnout and exhaustion are a constant presence either in our own lives or those of the people we care about [who you should totally invite along]. It matters especially for people trying to eke out a percentage of their time and mental capacity for transformative social and political organising: the better we feel, the more we'll be able to do.

Trail running doesn't come naturally to urban environments like London, but in my own rather extensive experience putting one foot very quickly in front of the other, I've turned up a long list of local locations suitable for trail runners and trail-running hopefuls at all levels of ability, speed and experience. It won't be Yorkshire fell running, a pastime I enjoyed while living in Leeds, but with time and practice, it will set you apart from the wearers of £300 HOKAs.

In a nutshell, running is great for you and you should do it. Trail running is even better. Best of all is doing all this with a supportive group of comrades, especially one which includes knowledgeable folks who can provide some structure to what can be a puzzling sport to get started with if building up to something, like a 10k or half marathon, is your goal. Part of our running group's programming will be building a series of events aimed at building people up, slowly but surely, towards specific goals, using progressive programmes similar to the NHS's Couch to 5k system.

Enough preamble. For our inaugural meetup we'll do a quick 30-45 minute lap around the lovely Wormwood Scrubs Open Space in near-west London, situated just off the Central Line from East Acton Station. This historic piece of ancient scrubland, somewhat maligned by the carceral associations with its name (HMP Wormwood Scrubs is nearby - don't be alarmed if we zip past it, you won't be mistaken for an escapee and sniped at, this is a popular location for organised sports), is a beautiful place for a flat, easy starter run to set us off with. Most people like to run with music, and you're welcome to wear headphones, but I'll also bring a speaker along which we can use to solidify the vibe for those who want to forgo headphones.

Afterwards depending on weather we'll either chill in the park round the foresty bits for a picnic-slash-strategy session or head to a nearby pub to collaboratively discuss the next steps involved in this project. I'm flying blind organising one of these, so I definitely want to hear what people think about how we can make this the best most welcoming running group going.

Despite the best efforts of the luxury sportswear industry, running is still a pretty cheap sport to get into. All you really need are some breathable clothing and the right shoes. The shoes can be the barrier to entry. A cheap pair won't set you back too far. For this meetup folks will have to bring their own, but in future one thing I've like to make a part of this project is an element of fundraising to buy used running shoes in different sizes which we can lend out to help people get started who wouldn't be able to otherwise. LCC events will always be free, but small contributions to the running group's gear fund will always be accepted and spent responsibly. I've got some extra bits I can offer people including an armband for phones and a couple spare running windbreakers, something which could come in handy depending on the day's weather, so just message me beforehand if you'd like me to bring those along or anything else I might be able to turn up.

Take care and see you on the trails!