Paul and Every Run Counts

Bristrol GoodGymer Paul has raised £720 for GoodGym and won some fantastic prizes just by logging his runs with Every Run Counts. Here he tells us about the platform and how you can get involved to support GoodGym even further. Read to the end for an intro code to get your Run Coin collection started.

Late last year I was invited into a beta program with Every Run Counts (ERC). This free to use platform aims to encourage people to get active by rewarding running and walking with prizes and with donations to the charities that they select.

As of today, I've raised £720 simply by linking my runs to the platform and using them to 'buy' donations. Along the way I've also won several prizes and met lots of new running friends. Through this story I hope to share this with all of you too.

How does it work?

By connecting your fitness tracker like Garmin, FitBit or Googlefit, the website allows you to accumulate a virtual currency called 'RunCoin' that can be exchanged for charity donations. You also have the option of entering your runs and walks manually. Currently you can select from four primary charities - though I must admit I'm a 'little' biased towards GoodGym. There is also the ability to upload a link to your own charity page and many members are using this facility to win donations for their London marathon targets or other similar goals. Additional online games and competitions allow you to further supplement these donations - in one such competition a member was lucky enough to win £1000 towards their fundraising. I recently won a £100 contribution to my Mind UK page simply by entering the weekly photo contest.

Prizes!

In addition to contributing to charities, you also have the option to win prizes for yourself. There are several free-to-enter games available every day offering race places and kit from partners like happystride, WE RUN BRIGHT, Lucy Locket Loves, OMM, Harrier and Flanci. I've been lucky enough to win almost 20 marathon places towards my attempt at 52 marathons in 52 weeks later this year as well as a large discount on a new rain jacket from Harrier.

Online Community

ERC takes your privacy very seriously so it’s entirely possible to remain completely anonymous if you wish. Personally, I like to connect with other runners on the platform where I can. To do this it’s possible to join an ERC group and each month you are given some extra RunCoin to share with your friends. There is also a very active Facebook community that revolves around the competitions and helps new users to find their way around.

Racing around Great Britain (both virtually and in real events)

ERC sets out to be fully inclusive for all levels of activity, so whether you are just starting out on a Couch to 5K programme, recording your steps to the shops, or running a 100 mile ultra, you have the same ability to contribute to the charities and win prizes. Members don't compete against each other in terms of their mileage but as a further personal motivation you can see your mileage expressed as progress along well known national paths and trails and achieve virtual medals for your accomplishments. There is also an enormous database of almost 3,000 races and walks from all over the country so you can easily plan an event for your weekends away.

I'm currently working my way along the Transpennine Trail (nearly there!)

This gamification coupled with the online community can be a real motivator for people who have struggled to keep active in the past. Some members have managed to get their parents involved; recording their steps and seeing that translated into progress along the virtual trails. The link from this to charity donations gives that activity further purpose and a reason to keep active with regular exercise.

Getting Started

Hopefully this has given you a taste of what its like to be an ERC member. Why not give it a try? You can sign up here:

Every Run Counts

When you do, be sure to look out for the GG group - you can find it by clicking on the 'give' button on the left hand menu and searching the existing groups for 'GoodGym. I’ll look out for you over the next week or two and see if I can send some RunCoin your way!

To get you started, here is a code you can redeem for some introductory RunCoin: CSEGLM2V