Jarrod McGuinness

Thesis Name

Thesis Abstract

Recreational running is an enormously popular form of recreational physical activity, due to its wide accessibility and benefits to physical and psychological health. It has been demonstrated that participation in recreational running improves mental health outcomes and has a key protective effect against high-burden non-communicable diseases, including reducing the risk of cardiovascular, cancer, and all-cause mortality.

The specific health outcomes of participation in community-based running clubs have not been widely researched, nor have the motives, barriers, or facilitators for participation. What is known is that motives for running participation differs between runners who participate individually compared with those attending structured mass-participation recreational running events.

Given the demonstrated capacity for community-based running clubs to be established at low cost and in a wide variety of settings, these clubs have potential as key health-enhancing interventions. Understanding the motives, barriers, and facilitators for participation in recreational running clubs is important when considering the ideal design features of future running clubs to promote club success and accessibility. Further, understanding the potential health outcomes of community-running club participation is important when considering these setting as potential avenues for social prescribing.

The aim of this RHD is to explore the perspectives of male and female recreational runners across regional and metropolitan areas of Queensland regarding motives, barriers, and facilitators to participating in community-based run clubs, and the perceived outcomes of participation in community-based run clubs.