Why Running As A Team Can Help You Achieve Your Goals For The CIBC Run For The Cure

Whether you've already registered for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation's CIBC Run For The Cure event or not (what are you waiting for - click here!), I hope you've been able to join a team or plan on recruiting some friends or family to participate with you.

Register now!

Here are my top five reasons why you need a team:

5.  If you registered your team of 10+ by September 20, you get team t-shirts!  If you missed that deadline, you’ll still get a 2013 t-shirt.  As I mentioned here, I got a t-shirt last year and it makes me proud to wear it.
4.  Things are always more fun when you are doing it with friends.
3.  Healthy competition!  Your team will push you to fundraise just a little bit more, run just a bit faster or        stop you from walking the last 0.25km when you've already come so far.
2.  More people on your team means more people taking the time to do something good for themselves.  Leading an active lifestyle is one of the ways we can prevent cancer.
1. Frankly, the more people we have supporting and raising awareness and funds for the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, the better.  1 in 9 women is expected to develop breast cancer in her life time.

Did you know that you can even register a team on the day of the event?  There is still lots of time to get some people together and do your part to create a future without breast cancer!

When the momstown Oakville team ran last year, we were a group of women who all had many different reasons to run and were at various stages in our lives.  Some brought their little ones in strollers, some walked the route, some were running for a 5km personal best time, and some (like me) were doing it in an effort to challenge myself and to start to make time for fitness again after having two children in the last few years.  Some had lost a family member to cancer, some were supporting a loved currently living with the disease and all of us were running to reduce the number of women that ever have to say 'I have breast cancer'.

So, who's making the list of people you are going to reach out to with an invitation to join you on Sunday, October 6th for the CIBC Run for the Cure?

Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation CIBC Run For The Cure Needs Your Support

On Sunday, October 6th the annual Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation CIBC Run For The Cure will be taking place in communities across Canada.  Last year was my first time participating.  I'd recently had a momstown colleague diagnosed with breast cancer and our momstown community rallied together to run for her and the many other women affected by this disease.

When someone you know is diagnosed with breast cancer you can't help but have the 'what if that were me' thoughts float through your mind.  Who would be there to help?  How would I explain things to my kids (even writing that sentence made my stomach drop)?  Research suggests that one in nine women is expected to develop breast cancer in her lifetime.  That is not a great statistic. Its time we all do our part to change the negative impact that breast cancer is having on the lives of women, men, children and families.

So what can you do to make a difference?

• Make sure to visit the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation CIBC Run For The Cure website and get the details of the event in your community.  
• Register for the event.. There is a 1KM and a 5KM option and many people we saw last year did it as a family with little ones in strollers.  What a great, active way to spend a morning as a family!  
• Make a team and then recruit friends, extended family, co-workers and neighbours to join you.  All teams with the minimum of 10 people will qualify for a t-shirt printed with your personalized team name.  I wear my t-shirt from last year frequently and it reminds of my 5KM race accomplishment (was my first!) and of how it important it is to continue to support this cause that can make such a positive difference in the lives of women.  

The run is about 5 weeks away which is still lots of time to train and prepare.  There are lots of great 5KM training resources online or visit the Running Room website for tips.  You can do it!

momstown Oakville's 2012 Run For The Cure Team

If you aren't able to participate in the run, there are still lots of other ways you can help.  To find out more about volunteering for the event, click here.  Ask around to find out if you have friends or family participation and make a donation to support them!  And finally, head down to the event on Sunday, October 6th and cheer on those who are running.  It was very motivating to have people with signs cheering and encouraging us as we ran the route last year, especially when we only had a 1KM to go and were feeling tired.  The community really came together and it was inspiring to see.

Women seem to have a really hard time putting themselves first (guilty!) and participating in this event is another step in the right direction for making healthy living a priority.  Exercise makes you feel good on so many levels (and is one of the key ways to reduce your risk of breast cancer) and how great would it be for your kids to see you run across that finish line?  And of course, as we band together to support those who have experienced breast cancer or are currently living with the disease, make sure you are regularly doing self breast examinations and are regularly being checked by a doctor. If you are in your forties, nearing them, or 50+  and not currently being screened for breast cancer, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation encourages you to learn about your breast health, breast cancer risk, ways to reduce your risk, and the benefits and limitations of breast cancer screening.  Please visit the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation website for more information and be sure to visit their Facebook page and follow them on Twitter to join the conversation about women's health and breast cancer.

Mark the date for Sunday, October 6th and help wipe out breast cancer!