Many women find in winter that getting out for a run can be tough. It’s often easier to stay in and forgo a workout when extra considerations need to be made. Is my route safe? Is it well lit? Will there be people around? In an ideal world, we would all feel safe to run, at any time of day or night. However, that simply isn’t the case for many women, who often feel that Winter brings with it an ‘invisible curfew.’ Recent statistics from Sport England show that ‘Almost three-quarters (72%) of women in the UK change their outdoor activity routines during winter’. That lovely loop around the park that you did in the summer months? It’s now pitch black, so you need to switch your route. Those peaceful streets that previously allowed time for you to process your thoughts during those dusky summer evenings? They’re now poorly lit roads that feel eerily quiet. These issues are especially true if you live in more rural areas without street lighting, as going for a run in the darker months can often mean needing to drive to a running club/well-lit place.
Winter is a time when we often need to exercise the most; it’s vital in supporting our immune system, and those post-run endorphins act as an excellent buffer against seasonal affective disorder, as well as general Winter fatigue. Let’s also not forget that the colder months often bring with them many more opportunities to indulge in a treat or two (Baileys season anyone?!), so being able to carry on exercising is vital for our well-being.
This is why England Athletics launched the Let’s Lift the Curfew campaign in October 2023, in collaboration with Sport England’s ‘This girl can’ initiative. Raising awareness and promoting a safer environment for women to engage in physical activities, Lift the Curfew highlights the concerns that many women face in the darker months, as well as encouraging wider involvement in society to create safer spaces for women to get active outdoors. You can get involved in various ways, including turning an existing event into a Lift the Curfew event, inviting women in your wider networks to join in activities, and using social media and Strava (when safe to do so) to highlight the campaign (using the hashtag #letsliftthecurfew).
So, what can we do as runners to stay safe in the darker months? Run with a friend if possible and always tell someone where you’re going. Joining a local running group can be an excellent way to get out in the dark and cold months. It’s not just safety that comes in numbers, but motivation too!! For those of us in the Bristol area, a link to some local running groups can be found here. For those of you further afield, you can search local running groups on the Lift the Curfew website here.
If possible, stick to well-lit areas and routes. Wearing extra visibility clothing, as well as a headtorch/chest light for poorly lit areas is also crucial. Runners World have produced a guide to running in the dark, which can be found here. This covers important topics such as training tips, safety, and choosing the correct lights. At Kinisi Run Hub we stock a range of headlights, chest lights and hi visibility clothing, which can all be found here.
Keep your phone with you at all times. Whether you keep it in your pocket, in a running vest/belt or in a phone pocket, it’s important to stay safe. We have a range of options suitable for keeping your phone safe, which can all be found here.
Echoing the sentiment from ‘This girl can’ website, women deserve to feel confident, strong, and safe when they’re getting active, day or night, and we won’t stop until that becomes the reality. And if you’re a friend, boyfriend, husband, brother, father or concerned ally, then GoodGym have published ‘Women’s Night Training Safety for Men.’ These are guidelines designed to highlight the issues women face when out exercising at night, and how you can help make women feel safer. This can be found here.
With 24% of women changing their routes, 23% avoiding certain areas altogether, and 20% glancing behind them to ensure they’re not followed, running in the darker months can be disruptive, challenging and potentially dangerous. But with initiatives such as Let’s Lift the Curfew highlighting these issues, and how they can be solved, we’re undoubtedly heading in the right direction. Running should be accessible, fun and available to all, so let’s all make an effort to keep it that way.
