One of the initiatives of England Athletics that we support as Bracknell Forest Runners, is #runandtalk. It is a program that was created with the aim of improving mental health through running and is supported by Mind, the mental health charity.

We know that many of you suffer, have suffered or will suffer from a mental health issue and we want BFR to be a safe haven for everyone. Running helps our mental health. Talking helps our mental health. Combining them can only be positive.

Just as there are different ways to run (fast, slow, tempo, sprint, intervals, forwards, backwards, etc), there are different ways to talk:

• Chat and laugh with a friend about something that happened today
• Discuss plans for the weekend
• Jog and analyse your Sunday long run with someone who was there
• Just listen
• Be honest
• Ask someone if they are ok and support them whatever the response is
• Have a deep and meaningful conversation
• Put the world to rights
• Talk about the weather (if all else fails!)

At BFR we are all runners. We have at least one thing in common with all other members – running – we can all talk about running. Let’s use this common ground to initiate conversations and improve the mental health of our club.

When? @Track before announcements, we want to encourage people to jog round the track and chat to someone. Someone you know, someone you don’t. Just run, chat and keep each other healthy.