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The 360 YOU program from Women’s Running is a new way for women to experience life coaching and run coaching at the same time.
Each quarter we partner with athletes, coaches, mentors, and experts in their fields to go on a journey together. Our goal? To help you find your power as a woman and as a runner. Under the banner of Women’s Running, we give each athlete and woman the opportunity to learn from others using running as our vehicle for change. Running empowers women, it allows us to set bold goals, go for PRs, and at the same time show us there is more beyond the race.
As part of our O+ subscription, the 360 YOU program is your access to life coaching from Women’s Running; a chance to meet real women with real inspiration and real advice. Every three months we learn from our experts not only about training, but what ignites them as women and the pillars that guide their life journey.
For twelve weeks in 2022, we worked with run and life coach Kimberly Clark. Clark’s mission has always been one of positivity, preaching hard work while focusing on micro goals over unrealistic expectations. Through her TrackClubBabe community, she coaches runners to have a good relationship with the sport while giving them the tools to aspire to stretch goals.
How to Find Joy in Running
We each have unique reasons for running. It might be fitness or individual competitiveness, it could be for mental clarity, to serve a need for space, or hard core PRs. Whatever the reason we lace up our running shoes, running should and can spark joy. That joy can unlock our potential in racing, training, and beyond that spill over into other aspects of our lives.
Clark shared how her joy in running allowed her to unlock her potential and level up her performance.
Your Purpose and Your Run
If you’ve never contemplated your own personal ‘why,’ Simon Sinek’s TED talk ‘Start With Why’ is a great place to start. When it comes to running we looked at how Clark found her purpose in running and how it guides her life decisions.
If running is part of your ‘why’ and your goal is running for many years to come, it’s time to consider the long term. Clark shares how long-term success means focusing on your longevity over short-term results.
The Mind and the Run
The mind and body connection is well reported and running and the mind are no exception. It might manifest itself as a narrative in your head, or it might be a blow to the confidence from one off-hand comment from someone in your circle. Working on our mental game is constant; it’s not an area you can fix and forget. Kim Clark has done deep work on her own mental muscle through her journey in running and shared all her wisdom in 360 YOU.
Running, Pregnancy, and Motherhood
While Clark had ideas about what running while pregnant would look like, it turned out to be a very different experience. She shared the unpredictability of the journey of being pregnant and identifying with being a runner. Her personal account is a refreshing look at the reality of many women’s journeys. She shares practical advice per trimester of pregnancy acknowledging that every day brings a new experience.
Birth and postpartum is a topic we are dedicated to covering at Women’s Running. Every woman has a shared, yet different experience when it comes to their journey to motherhood. Clark challenges the narrative of bouncing back from childbirth head on by sharing her personal journey (spoiler alert: it was slow and deliberate). “I’ve realized I have more to lose by rushing the healing process than to gain by trying to limp along for a quick ‘comeback,’” she said in a postpartum message.
Fueling the Running Engine for Performance
Not all food is created equal and our bodies know it. Clark shared her practical advice on how fueling with quality food is your secret weapon to race day performance alongside reiterating the advice we all know, but might not always follow, fast times need good fuel.
Training Tips
Training is a significant part of every runner’s journey. You can either educate yourself, tap into the wisdom of others, or hire a coach. Throughout the 360 YOU program, Clark shared her experience as a coach as well as her own personal experience of improving her marathon time by two hours
As a coach, Clark is a huge advocate for training smart, and training with joy. Her collection covers the importance of speed training, cadence, and regularly evaluating running form. She uses her own personal examples demonstrating how she and others have benefitted from these pillars in training.
A reminder to us all, success in running is not rocket science; it’s hard work, consistency, and knowing when to go easy.
How to Serve Your Running Community
Running can give us so much; we feel strong, it benefits our health and well-being, it can channel our desire for competition and serve both as a career coach and as a career. However, the icing on the cake is when we give back to the community that has nurtured our own running journeys.
There has been research to show that happiness is linked to giving back and volunteering and so Clark shared many ways you can serve the running community around you. The personal satisfaction in helping others and adding value back and helping grow the running community is one that might be your sweetest finish line.
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