Collegiate Times

(Left) Nate Brandt and (right) Renee Von Guggenberg begin their weekly run with the Champs Running Club outside McComas Hall.

As temperatures remain high, students are hitting the streets — wearing tennis shoes, that is.

With beach season right around the corner, people are more likely to revisit their New Year’s resolutions by taking up
running. 

Running is a rigorous cardio workout that builds muscle and burns fat. 

In Blacksburg, all runners — beginners and advanced — are provided two methods to rack up their mileage per week, through Champs Running Club and the Running Club at Virginia Tech.

Champs Running Club

The Champs Running Club gives people a casual outlet to get into running. The group meets behind the McComas Hall gym every Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. before running approximately a 5K.

The club is relaxed — so its members range in ability, and the structure of its runs are flexible. Kevin England, a senior engineering science and mechanics major, recently joined the club and makes an effort to attend many of the weekly runs.

England can attest to the club’s laid back attitude. 

“It’s easy for people who aren’t necessarily runners to go out and get started,” he said. “We run every week, and you can go at your own pace. You can stop and walk as you want because we all end up and meet up back at the same place.”

For England, the club has pushed him to commit to running.

“It’s easy to come home from class, just crash in your apartment and lose the motivation to go running, but I think Champs is a lot better for people just getting started,” England said.

As an extra incentive to come out and run, Champs Running Club offers members a free T-shirt and membership card to receive 20 percent off of meals at Champs Cafe after they have completed their third group run.

The club welcomes those of all running levels, and members often branch off into small groups based on ability, allowing for every runner to have a custom workout.

“It’s always fun because usually you run with different people almost every week,” England said.

Running Club at Virginia Tech

The Running Club at Virginia Tech meets more frequently than the Champs Running Club — members meet outside War Memorial every day at 5 p.m. to go for runs of varying difficulty and length.

Aaron Richardson, a junior industrial systems engineering major, said because the club meets so often, its members are able to get to know each other well.

“With us it’s about unity really. We’re like a team and we run every day,” Richardson said. “Our main goal was just to have a club anyone can join. You don’t have to feel the pressure of being fast.”

Members run along various paths, including the Huckleberry and the Cross Country trails.

Aaron Richardson, a junior industrial systems engineering major, said the Running Club’s runs can be more challenging than those of Champs. 

Richardson ran with Champs his freshman year, but became involved in the Running Club’s expansion last year and is now the vice president.

“We’re the only available club that if you actually want a regiment and place to go every day we will be there,” Richardson said.

Members also have the opportunity to take their running to the next level — by participating in races and competitions.

Although Tech doesn’t fund the races, members of the Running Club join events based on ability and scheduling. For instance, a group of four or five members may get together to run a marathon on a given weekend.

While some members may be on the marathon-running level, runners of differing abilities come to practices. Therefore, most — if not all — members have someone of equal caliber to run with.

A version of this article appeared in the Apr 5 issue of the Collegiate Times.