Meet Aoibhinn Raleigh, founder of Dublin beginners run club, Sole Mates

Run clubs have surged in popularity here in Ireland over the past few months, and it’s no surprise. The perfect avenue to get your steps in, keep fit, and meet some new people, these community groups help to foster a feeling of togetherness towards a common goal (or finish line!). Joining a run club can, however, feel intimidating for those who may be just starting out on their fitness journey, or aren’t quite sure they’ll be able to keep up. That’s where Sole Mates comes in.

Specifically tailored towards beginners, slow runners, and everything in between, Sole Mates is a weekly run club that kicks off at 9.30am on a Saturday or Sunday from a different location each weekend. The average pace is 7-9 minutes per km, and there’s a walking group at the back so that no one is ever left behind.

Members are encouraged to run at their own pace and take as many breaks as needed. Plus, each session is followed by coffee and sweet treats, and you may even get a freebie or two from some gorgeous brands on the day. The community is all about getting out, getting moving and having a great time every weekend.

The brainchild of Aoibhinn, a 26-year-old from Leixlip, Sole Mates set off on its inaugural run back in April of this year, and in the past few months, it’s grown massively and has already cultivated a group of consistent participants coming along each week.

Here, we sit down with Aoibhinn to get the lowdown on where it all began, why you should join a run club, and the positive impact these groups can have on your mental health…

Let’s talk about Sole Mates. What inspired you to start this running club?

Sole Mates was born really for two reasons…

Firstly, I really wanted to meet some new people who had similar interests to me. A lot of my friends emigrated last year and I made the decision to stay here and follow my career. I also decided to quit drinking at the same time, which meant not only were my friends gone, but I lost one of the biggest aspects of socialising we do here in Ireland.

I personally am not in a position where I could still go to bars and clubs and just not drink, which left me feeling quite isolated. Fitness and wellness have always been my biggest passions in life and I knew if I could find the people within this community I could form some amazing connections. Even more so, I wanted to create a space where other people could come and form those connections as well and do something really positive every weekend that would just make them feel good about themselves and what they were doing.

Secondly, I was too scared to go to a run club and I knew other people must be too. When I started Sole Mates I wasn’t that confident in my own running and I also struggle with anxiety, so the thought of going to a run club alone and being left behind in the group stopped me from going every weekend. I was struggling to find a run club that really was beginner-friendly and would accommodate for a few cheeky breaks or a bit of a walk, and I thought other people must feel like that too. I know fitness in general can be such a scary space to join, especially for women because we can feel very self-conscious about starting out in the gym or running with someone for fear of judgement.

I really wanted to break that barrier and show people how amazing fitness is for both your mental and physical health, and to help people either start or fall in love with their fitness journey by creating a safe space to do that which accommodates everyone and is just a bit of a fun social outing with some running on the side.

On your TikTok, you’ve been very vulnerable with your followers and opened up about your mental health. Can you share a bit more about this? How has Sole Mates played a role?

I’ve struggled with anxiety since I can remember alongside various other issues with eating, depression etc. To be fully transparent, up until last year this was something I completely hid from even people closest to me because I always felt like there was just something wrong with me and I was so scared of what people would say. Last summer I hit rock bottom and didn’t know if I could do it anymore but I knew I had so much to live for if I could just get better. I decided to get sober and also get help which hasn’t been easy over the past year.

Once I started my ‘healing journey’ as people call it, I started to suffer badly from panic attacks, having probably 3-5 intense panic attacks per week which became debilitating for me. That is when I started leaning so heavily into running and fitness again because I really needed it.

The last year has probably been one of the toughest things I have ever done trying to deal with a lot of trauma that has happened over the past 10 years and actually face it head-on, but I really had no choice. I then made the decision to share my journey on TikTok which probably seems a bit mad but I know growing up, I wish there was someone online who had just been open about these things and more relatable. If I could help even one person feel like they’re not alone or that they are strong enough to go seek help by sharing my own struggles then I knew it was worth it.

To be honest I have found so much strength in sharing my story, highs, lows and a lot of ugly bits. Not only that but I get so many amazing messages from people who can relate or are like me that feel less alone now, who have gone to get help or saw my videos and decided to try to change and get sober  – or even just to come to run club. Helping people even in the tiniest way has meant so much to me and has honestly helped me so much in my journey over the last year.

I am definitely not better but the progress I have made in the last year has been incredible, and I owe a lot of that to my family, friends, fitness, my followers and to Sole Mates. I am now at a stage where things are not always amazing but panic attacks are rare (when they had been daily). I could come off medication, I am fully sober, and I am living a life that honestly I never dreamed I could have or deserved.

Sole Mates has honestly played such a massive role in this – not only from the physical benefits of running but also from getting to meet new people, make new friends, push me outside of my comfort zone, and be in such a positive community. Not only that but seeing how much joy and happiness it brings to others and how many people have fallen in love with running, finally gotten into it, or even just had the courage to push themselves, come along and try it has made such a massive difference to me. Giving back to this community has helped me in more ways than they will probably ever realise – it has genuinely changed my life.

The Sole Mates’ monthly schedule is available on their Instagram feed.

IMAGE Active is an exciting series of exercise-driven events, motivating meet-ups, and empowering content to help you achieve new levels of physical health, offering encouragement, support, and empowerment every step of the way. At its core, it is about coming together to form connections, cultivate healthy habits, and feel better than ever. So, stay tuned and check out our hub for regular updates on all upcoming events and content.