From working with over 500 women in my Planned + Present e-course, I know that creating an exercise habit of some form is high on the priorities of many women. While there isn’t really a certain time when we should kick start this habit, there is something special about the fresh page that a new year begins.

So to help those of you who would like to kick start your exercise habit in the new year, I have teamed up with the fabulous Zoey from Operation Move to offer one lucky reader of Planning With Kids a spot in her Learn to Run program kicking off on January 7 2019!

I have written about Operation Move and Zoey’s amazing work many times on the blog and I am also lucky to be able to call Zoey a friend. Zoey is incredibly knowledgeable about all things running and has an amazing story of how she began her running journey. You can listen to it in her podcast episode here – Podcast: Episode 52 – What is your story? – hint she was the type of student who would prefer to take a sick day during high school so she could avoid cross country day (even though she loved school!)!

So if you are not the lucky winner of this giveaway, I highly recommend signing up to the program as it is worth every cent! (Zoey has great payment options – $279 as a one off payment or $29.95 per week or $54.95 per fortnight or $99.95 per month.)

Have you ever gotten three weeks into couch to 5k or a run program and got stuck? Maybe it was too demanding and you weren’t sure what to do next? Or maybe it was just repetitive and after a few good weeks your motivation bottomed out? Or maybe your body wasn’t coping as well as you’d like so you figured running just wasn’t for you.

Learn to Run is different from other programs, because you get a coach, not an app. I’m a firm believer that people don’t fail programs, programs fail people. Programs fail because they aren’t individual enough, because they don’t have the ability to adapt, because they lack variability and in general they just aren’t intelligent enough to understand that progress isn’t linear.

When you join Learn to Run, you get a coach who will adapt your program whenever necessary, give you advice on how to navigate the pitfalls of common injuries for new runners, check up on you when you hit any obstacles and help you with all the things that aren’t running but make running easier like breathing and technique and recovery.

I believe in creating runners for life, not just for 12 weeks. This is Jen, she started Learn to Run in September of 2014 and did it a second time before she was really able to incorporate it as a habit in her life. I have coached her one-on-one since 2016 and this year she ran her first marathon. She had this to say:

I’m so thrilled with my year of running – I met every goal. A sub 1:55 half, sub 4:30 marathon and sub 25:00 5k. I can’t thank you enough for all your support and coaching. I never dreamed running could really be a part of my life – and it is!!! I’m so excited to see what I can achieve in 2019 and you inspire me every step of the way. Running has now become an essential part of my self care. I genuinely look forward to my runs as the most wonderful form of me-time I know. I have my sights firmly set on a sub 4-hour marathon (hopefully in cooler weather) for 2019 and I have every confidence you and the support of the Op Move Sisterhood will get me there.