Two girls have set up a running club in Oxford to make women feel safer exercising in the dark.
Megan Titterington of Bicester and Harriet Day of Wallingford both moved to Oxfordshire recently but missed having a social group to run with.
They chose to set up the Oxford Running Girls Club after meeting each other on the social media platform TikTok.
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“We believe that every person who identifies as a woman should feel safe when running alone at night,” said 23-year-old Miss Titterington .
“I would personally rather not run for three months in the winter than attempt to run in the dark by myself.”
Miss Day added: “48 per cent of women prefer not to be active outside in the dark and 60 per cent worry about the risk of harassment or intimidation when exercising in the dark.
“Knowing that women will drop their activity levels in the winter we wanted to provide a safe space for women to be able to run without fear.
“We not only wanted a run club where women felt safe but to also build a community of women.”
After meeting on TikTok, the two new friends then set up the club and went for their first run on Monday, February 5.
The group meets every Monday at 6pm before running past several Oxford landmarks and is free to attend.
“We meet at Joe & the Juice and do a run around the city centre making sure we take in all of Oxford's sites,” said 25-year-old Miss Day.
Miss Titterington added: “Oxford has some absolutely incredible sites to see and there is something magical about running by them at night.
“The best site we pass on our run has to be the Radcliffe Camera plus it is so nice to run around the city and the colleges at night because it is much less busy.
“The support so far has been huge and we are blown away.”
The benefits of running are endless according to the two fitness fanatics who have just launched monthly Sunday 5k and 10k runs in addition to the weekly Monday jaunts.
“I would say the biggest benefit I have felt from running is how much better I feel mentally, I get into such a rut when I am not exercising regularly and I notice straight away,” said Miss Titterington.
“Even if I am not happy when running, I am always happy at the end of it.”
Miss Day added: “It helps improve your bone health, cardiovascular fitness, sleep quality and reduces your risk of developing many chronic conditions.
“It’s not only good for your physical health but also your mental health boosting your mood and energy levels.”
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