Girls Gone Gazelle

Free all-girls running club

In 2015, Girls Gone Gazelle received the RICOH SPORT MAKES A DIFFERENCE AWARD.  And in 2016,  Women Active Nova Scotia awarded Girls Gone Gazelle Run Club their TRENDSETTER AWARD (Practices).  To be recognized by these amazing organizations is a true honor but it was this email that we recently received from a parent that made us the most proud of the work we do:

“I just wanted to take the time to thank you for the amazing work you do – not only with Girls Gone Gazelle but with all of the positive impacts you make within the community.  My daughter participated in this past session of Girls Gone Gazelle.  As soon as I heard about your program, I immediately wanted her to have this experience.  Confidence club!  Wow!  You have no idea how much I appreciate this!  As a girl and now a woman with confidence issues and social anxiety, I try to ensure that my daughter will be able to build the confidence and courage to be herself and stand up for what she believes in.  As a parent, this is something you can’t just hand to your child, and it takes special people like you and all of your coaches to help us along the way.”

Curious about what we are? Well, Girls Gone Gazelle is a not-for-profit, all-girls running club that began for pre-teens but from time to time does accept older girls. Members of the club can be found training on the indoor track at the Dartmouth Sportsplex, in Shubie Park and around the Halifax Commons. Each run club follows a learn-to-run program created by “Coach Stacy” Chesnutt that is designed for children and promotes confidence, body acceptance and socialization.

Girls Gone Gazelle Run Club gives girls an opportunity to participate in a non-competitive running group that creates an enjoyment of physical activity. We provide a safe and respectful environment that builds the girls’ self-esteem and knowledge of exercise, while learning to run up to 5K.

With childhood obesity on the rise, the goal of Girls Gone Gazelle Run Club is to help young girls become active before junior high. By incorporating regular cardiovascular activity between the ages of 8-12 we hope to increase the probability of them staying active through their teen years, thereby reducing the chance of weight related issues during puberty.

We believe that joining Girls Gone Gazelle Run Club will not only create memorable childhood experiences and life-long friendships, but also develop self-confidence and effective stress management techniques while connecting with positive role models in the form of adult female runners and guest speakers.