GROUP together
Working out in a group is the best way to get fit and make new friends, writes AILIN QUINLAN
‘We’ve had people from ages five to 85 participate’
It’s summer, and the perfect time to join an outdoor group fitness programme and make it a habit which you’ll hopefully keep up all year round. There’s no downside to being physically active — any kind of exercise is good for you — but research shows that exercising in a group can give you that extra edge.
A small study published last year
in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association, which investigated the improvement in stress levels and quality of life of group exercisers, found a drop in the stress levels of members and significant improvements in their quality of life after just 12 weeks.
Group exercise is also proven to help people stick to their fitness routine and achieve their goals. And it’s good for your mental health too: there’s a greater release of endorphins — the so-called ‘feel-good hormones’ — when people exercise together.
The benefits of group exercise is not news to John Walsh, Events Director of the massively successful Bere Island parkrun. He helped set up the parkrun four years ago in a bid to keep islanders fit and healthy.
Since its establishment on the picturesque island just off the West Cork coast, the event has become a renowned ‘trophy parkrun’.
Participants take a ferry to the island, and then a special bus to the starting point, and after the run there’s a sociable get-together over home-baking and coffee in the island cafe.
“The benefits of the parkrun is that it’s a free activity on a regular basis in the heart of the community,” says John.
“We have people from all over the world coming to take part,” he says, adding that most Saturdays the Bere Island parkrun attracts an average of 45 people running and walking, although, reveals John, “we have had up to 181 participating on the day!”
The natural surroundings through which runners, joggers and walkers stretch their legs on the 5km parkrun are spectacular, and the workout takes place in an atmosphere of camaraderie, says John.
Afterwards, runners and walkers mingle in a pleasant get-together in the local Bakehouse Cafe. “There’s a great welcome from the island people,” he declares. “For me, the best thing about it is that it’s inclusive and everyone takes part.
“We’ve had people from ages five to 85 — two weeks ago we had somebody in a wheelchair who participated,” he reveals. In fact, many parkruns are now offering a guide for
people with visual impairment to help them complete the route.
The Bere Island parkrun was set up to maintain the momentum for physical activity on the island after a group of local residents participated in RTE’s Operation Transformation.
“After it ended I wanted to keep up the momentum. I’d heard about the parkrun and decided to go for it,” says John, adding that his idea quickly gained the support of organisations like the Cork Sports Partnership, the HSE and Cork County Council.
“The advantage is that it’s extremely friendly here, and also the parkrun offers a very accessible route to exercise.”
Setting up a parkrun on Bere Island was quite straightforward
for John, who says an organising committee from the Island worked with parkrun Ireland.
First they had to find a core group of enthusiastic participants in place, followed by a suitable venue. Next a
risk assessment had to be carried out on the course, says John, who adds that it cost €3,000 in total to set up the run and purchase the necessary equipment and software.
“We got this through some fundraising
as well as through supports from Cork County Council, the Cork Sports Partnership and the HSE.”
There are no downsides to a parkrun, he believes.
“It’s simple to set up once you have a core group and a venue and, in our case, parkrun Ireland and the Cork Sports Partnership were very helpful.”
Siobhan Kearney, her husband Kevin and their three teenage boys Oisin (14), Liam (17) and Ronan (19) all regularly run the Tralee parkrun.
Siobhan is director of the event which she set up nearly four years ago and which now has more than 4,500 people registered. Average attendance on a Saturday morning is between 200 and 250.
“Our runs are very well attended,” says Siobhan, who rarely misses a Saturday morning and is a strong advocate of the physical and mental benefits of regular outdoor exercise.
With the support of the Kerry Sports Partnership, the HSE and Kerry County Council, Siobhan set up the parkrun in Tralee town park nearly four years ago after participating in the Westport parkrun:
“All park runs are five kilometres, so every park run takes place in parks or areas where there are no roads. They are completely free and you just register on parkrun.ie,” she explains.
For Siobhan, besides the obvious benefits of exercising in the fresh air, the advantages to the parkrun are primarily about turning up every Saturday morning to meet with a group of friendly people who all have the same exercise goal: “One of the nice things about parkrun is that it is non-competitive — it’s a run, not a race so it is very inclusive and people who are not fast runners are welcome.
“Joggers and walkers are welcome and we now have a two-kilometre
Junior parkrun for ages four to 14 on Sunday mornings.
Another major element of the Tralee parkrun is its emphasis on providing “community orientated activity”.
Participants are encouraged to meet for coffee after the run at a local cafe and many friendships have been made along the way.
“The feeling of friendship is overwhelming,” says Siobhan, “and we’re a growing community of people”.
Parkrun is one of the flagship initiatives that Healthy Ireland is delighted to support. Kate O’Flaherty, of Healthy Ireland, said: “The local and community spirit of volunteering is visibly alive and the numbers of people getting out across the country demonstrates a great appetite of moving towards a healthier Ireland. Earlier this year we reached the onemillionth parkrun milestone which was a fantastic achievement for everyone. Getting out together in a group and being physically active in whatever way interests you is a great way to help make a healthy change.”