Every Monday a group of Virginia Commonwealth University faculty and staff change into their sneakers at lunchtime and head to Monroe Park to train for the April 5 Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k.
Formerly the VCU Walking Club, the VCU 10k Training Team began preparing for the 6.2 mile popular Richmond road race — an event that draws more than 30,000 participants — in January.
“This way we could really push walking and have a goal,” said Denise Butler, CommonHealth@VCU coordinator. “I knew the Monument race was coming up and thought it was a good way to motivate others.”
CommonHealth@VCU provides wellness programs to employees to help them get healthy and stay fit. In 2005, Gov. Tim Kaine pushed the state initiative of Healthy Virginians and encouraged 15-minute walking breaks for state employees.
Butler gained interest from a number of employees to start a walking group for the 10k. She then set up a 10-week schedule that allows walkers to keep up with the training even if they miss the weekly VCU walk.
The group — a mix of VCU Monroe Park Campus faculty and staff — meets Mondays at 12:15 p.m. in Monroe Park. From there, they walk around the campus and beyond, varying the routes to keep the group motivated. The walkers increase the distance each week as the training enhances.
“It definitely gets them thinking about other factors of their health,” she said. “They are getting healthier and making healthier decisions other than just walking.”
Thirty walkers signed up for the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k while some join the group just to get some exercise, Butler explained.
“I’ve had at least five people tell me that this is their first race,” Butler said. “The purpose was to get people who have never participated in a race before to finish it.”
As the April 5 race nears, the walkers increase their individual expectations.
“They are now looking at themselves and their goal and really pushing that,” Butler said. “They are realizing they can do more than they thought.”
