Everyday Road to Healthy

  • Home
  • Healthy Eating
    • Recipes
  • Health & Fitness
    • Goal Trackers
  • Self Care
  • Home Care
  • ERTH Finds
  • About Us
    • Our Cancer Stories
    • ERTH Family
    • Contact Us
    • Copyright
    • Privacy Policy

November 22, 2011 ·

Girls on the Run

Health & Fitness· Self Care

This weekend I was honored to be a volunteer for the Northern Virginia Girls on the Run 5K.  The run started at 8:30AM and was held at Jiffy Lube Live.  The closeness of the  location to my house, made it a little easier for getting up at 5:30AM on a Sunday morning  to ensure that I was on the grounds of the pavilion by 6:30.  The decision to volunteer for the event was a last minute decision but once I read about the program I couldn’t say “no”.

Girls on the Run is national after school program that works with girls ages 8 to 13.  Girls on the Run  ties running and self-esteem together using various activities.  It is a 10 week program that is led by female coaches.  The coaches teach specific life lessons such as dealing with body image and the media, resisting peer-pressure, making healthy decisions, and contributing to the community. And along the way, the girls train together to walk or run in a 5K  event.  You can view a sample lesson from their curriculum here.

According to their national website, Girls on the Run’s core values are as follows:

  1. Recognize our power and responsibility to be intentional in our decision making
  2. Embrace our differences and find strength in our connectedness
  3. Express joy, optimism and gratitude through our words,  thoughts and actions
  4. Nurture our physical, emotional and spiritual health
  5. Lead with an open heart and assume positive intent
  6. Stand up for ourselves and others

Based on those alone how could I not want to help out at their event.  So, back to my Girls on the Run event experience:

Starting around 6:30AM I was given my tasks of helping runners, parents, and buddy runners locate and get to their starting corrals.  Once they arrived at their corrals they would meet up with their coaches and the rest of their team to get their race shirts and bib numbers.   There was a DJ playing Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez songs while the girls and their race buddy prepared for their race.  ( Each girl has a race buddy, an older sibling or parent, assigned to them to run the course.).

Pre-Run Corrals

Around 8:10, my job along with the other volunteers working the corrals was to get the 7,500 runners moving out of their start corrals and down to the official start line (which was about 1/4 mile from where we were located).  Once the girls took off running, my job then moved to congratulating them as they came through the finish line, and providing them with food and water.

Start and Finish Line for the Run

My favorite part of the event was just seeing the changes in the girls from start to finish.  You could just feel the nervous energy as they were waiting with their teams prior to the race.  And when they crossed the finish line, red faced and slightly winded… you could see their sense of accomplishment.  Everyone I spent time with at the race was polite and thankful…  Having ran quite a few races this isn’t always the case.  I loved being a part of the experience and hope to have a chance to work with them again.

Me in my pink Girls on the Run volunteer hat

I don’t have any girls, life instead blessed me with a house full of boys.  And while there have been numerous times I have “threatened” to trade them in for girls.. I wouldn’t trade them for the world.  However, if I did have a pre-teen or teenage girl this is definitely a program that I would want them to be a part of.  I loved not only seeing the girls succeed in finishing their race, but also watching them cheering and coaching their team members behind them.  I can think of no better lessons that the feeling of self-confidence and team building (knowing that you are an integral piece of something larger).

Slideshow of the Girls on the Run 5K (email subscribers will need to go to our website to view)

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin
0 Shares

Don’t miss out!

Previous Post: « Meat Free Monday: Black Bean-Quinoa Burgers
Next Post: Random Acts of Christmas Kindness Advent Calendar »

Footer

LET’S GET SOCIAL

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter

everydayroadtohealthy

Happy holidays to the delivery drivers who make Ch Happy holidays to the delivery drivers who make Christmas morning possible. 🎄📦

Download you own {FREE} Printable at:

everydayroadtohealthy.com/holiday-thank-you-to-delivery-drivers/

#everydayroadtohealthy #holidaypackages #thankyoudeliverydrivers #christmasdelivery
Thai Basil Chicken, it’s what’s for dinner! It Thai Basil Chicken, it’s what’s for dinner! It smells so good and is simple and quick. Search “Thai Basil Chicken” at everydayroadtohealthy.com or go to everydayroadtohealthy.com/thai-basil-chicken/

#everydayroadtohealthy #healthydinner #healthyfood #foodreels #dinnerrecipes #easydinner
Happy Thanksgiving 🦃 and Happy Black Friday Eve Happy Thanksgiving 🦃 and Happy Black Friday Eve! While you’re prepping and cooking for Thanksgiving dinner, here’s our 2023 Holiday Gift Guide with some ideas to add to your shopping list. Most brands have their deals active now, so you could even add to cart 🛒today in between baking the sweet potatoes and boiling the green beans. ☺️ The link can be found in our profile @everydayroadtohealthy or by going to our website, everydayroadtohealthy.com.

We are grateful for all of you and hope everyone has a wonderful day with family and friends! 🤎🧡

#everydayroadtohealthy #holidaygiftguide #blackfriday #blackfridayeve #christmaswishlist
Love this creamer! It’s dairy-free, sugar-free a Love this creamer! It’s dairy-free, sugar-free and only 10 calories per serving (1Tbs). Plus look how well it froths. 😋☕️

#everydayroadtohealthy #nutpods #coffee #butfirstcoffee #coffeecreamer
Who's with me? 🙋🏻‍♀️ I've talked about Who's with me? 🙋🏻‍♀️ I've talked about clean skincare many times on here before, but I thought I'd dive a little deeper into what to look for when switching to non-toxic products, as well as sharing a few of my favorite brands. 🌿 Read ALL ABOUT CLEAN SKINCARE at everydayroadtohealthy.com/all-about-clean-skincare/ or go to the link in our profile @everydayroadtohealthy and, as always, stay healthy! 💚🤎⁠
⁠
#everydayroadtohealthy #healthyliving #cleanliving #healthandwellness #healthandfitness #pushing50
That’s me, I was the 1 in 8. This month it has That’s me, I was the 1 in 8. 

This month it has been 15 years, and that time of my life feels like a very distant memory. So much so that I’ve become somewhat complacent about it, forgetting about everything I went through to be where I am today. 

In just the last 2 weeks I have met 28 other survivors while participating in a charity fashion show, and have connected personally with 2 women who were recently diagnosed. It has been a good reminder of just how fortunate I am and how far I’ve come. Swipe to see some of the amazing women I had the honor of walking the runway with, some still actively fighting the disease. 🩷 
📸: Chip McCrea Photography

Go to the link in our profile @everydayroadtohealthy to read more about my breast cancer journey. 

#everydayroadtohealthy #breastcancersurvivor #breastcancerawareness #breastcancerawarenessmonth #healthandwellness #runwaytothecure
Coffee hack: use your protein drink as a creamer! Coffee hack: use your protein drink as a creamer! It froths up nice and thick and adds protein and a delicious cold foam layer to your coffee. Fancy! ☕️

#everydayroadtohealthy #coffeehack #butfirstcoffee #proteincoffee #fairlife
Hello October! I think fall is my favorite season. Hello October! I think fall is my favorite season. I love the colors, the smells, the tastes, and the holidays of fall. 🤎🧡💛October is also full of pink, and while I disliked pink during breast cancer treatment and for a while after, I’ve come to like it again. I will especially embrace all the pink this month in celebration of being a 15 year breast cancer survivor on 10/21! Yeehaw! 💖

#breastcancersurvivor #breastcancerawarenessmonth #hellooctober #welcomeoctober #itsfallyall #hellofall
Good morning! My morning is fueled by: ☀️sunl Good morning! My morning is fueled by:

☀️sunlight
🌳fresh air
☕️coffee

#everydayroadtohealthy #healthylifestyle #goodmorning #pushing50 #healthandwellness #selfcare
Load More... Follow on Instagram