What are you doing this ‘Leap Day’?

The supposed tradition of women asking men to marry them – a reversal of the traditional European marriage proposal roles – on a Leap Day, the 29th February, is well known.

Here at Lonely Goat RC, we were wondering if there were any running traditions that could be reversed or altered on a Leap Day.

Here are some of our suggestions:

parkrun (or should that be ‘nurkrap’?)

Running a parkrun in reverse might be a terrible idea, as you would be battling against the flow of runners – especially on a multi-lap course – but how about a role reversal? If you usually run at your local parkrun, how about volunteering?

Or, if you’ve never run at your local parkrun, why not give it a go? Our parkrun article offers some pointers on how to do so.

In the spirit of mixing things up, what about trying a spot of parkrun tourism and run somewhere new?

And if you really want to run the route in reverse, do so before the main event, timing your run to finish just before the usual start time. Then, turn around and join everyone else to run it again the right way round!

Run with someone new

This might be tricky – we’re the Lonely Goat Running Club because many of us can’t or don’t want to run with others – but the 29th of February might be the day you choose to do so.

Do you have a friend or family member who really wants to run, but is unsure how to start? The Leap Day could be the day you help them on their running journey by accompanying them on their first run.

Have a look at our beginners’ running guide here.

Enter a different event

Stuck in a ‘race rut’? You may want to set aside some time on Saturday to look at upcoming running events and pick something you wouldn’t usually do?

Always go long? Pick something short and speedy, like a 5K, to look forward to.

Already a 5K addict? Why not push yourself by entering a 10K or something even longer – such as a marathon?

Get off road

Most of us do the majority of our running on road, or in urban areas. Just for a change, you could head off road and give trail running a go. If you’re unsure of how to do so, our article on trail running has advice for you.

Likewise, if you currently only run on trails, you may decide to run through a city instead.

Mix up your training

Many runners are creatures of habit. We like to follow our tried and tested training plans that we have done before and know well. This can be helpful, as consistency in training is one of the keys to being able to run further, faster, or more comfortably.

However, it is also important to include some variety, as different training stimuli prompt different responses from the body.

If you tend to do the same kind of runs over and over, and feel you might benefit from changing your training plan a little, then why not put your feet up this Leap Day, get out a pen and paper, and put together a new training plan?

Our growing series of training articles includes primers on long runs, intervals and speed work, and tempo runs, which can help you introduce some variety.

Let us know your suggestions

The ideas above are just some of the ideas that we thought of, but we would love to know your suggestions of new running traditions that could be invented, or old ones that can be altered, on a Leap Day.

Jump into the discussion in our Facebook Chat Group, our Strava club area, or on Instagram using the hashtags #lonelygoatrc or #lonelygoatrunningclub.

We can’t wait to see what you come up with.