Annie Rhoades is only 12, but already she’s been running half her life. She started in kindergarten, when her mom, who at the time was a volunteer coach for Girls on the Run, brought Annie along to practices in University City’s Flynn Park.
Since 2002, Girls on the Run-St. Louis, a local chapter of the international nonprofit, has served more than 20,000 area girls. The program culminates in a 5K run and seeks to foster confidence, independent thinking and social, emotional, mental and physical skills in girls in third through eighth grades. “It’s like a second home,” Annie says. “You go after school and see all your friends. We
learn lessons about things like gossiping or believing in yourself and, afterward, you get to run, which keeps you fit and is fun.”
Annie has since completed the Girls on the Run program and this fall, she acted as junior coach, attending at least one practice per week to help out the younger girls and answer any questions they might have. She hopes to resume her junior coaching duties this spring. “I wanted to be a junior coach because I love Flynn Park and I love seeing the girls who participate going through the same experiences I had with Girls on the Run,” she says.
To get her running fix, Annie attends a few regular social runs, including a weekly run organized through Big River Running Company and a weekly neighborhood run organized by a friend. Although she mostly runs with others, she is drawn to the meditation-like introspection the activity affords. “It allows you a lot of time to think about yourself and your friends,” she says.
Most athletes have a feat, game or victory they are most proud of, and Annie is no different. “I was about halfway through a Girls on the Run race, and there’s a big hill you have to climb, so it was very painful,” she says. “I was hurting, but I didn’t give up and ended up getting my best time yet.”
Someday, Annie hopes to run a marathon. She already has participated in several 5K races, and plans on being involved with track or cross-country in high school.
[the routine]
warm-up
I stretch, take a few breathers, and tell myself, You can do this.
routine
On Mondays I run 3 miles with Big River Running Company. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, when I junior coach for Girls on the Run, I run 1 to 2 miles. On Wednesdays I run 2 to 3 miles with my neighborhood group. I take Fridays off, and sometimes run races on the weekends.
cool down
I stop, stand still for five minutes, and drink a lot of water.
By Stephanie Zeilenga
Photo by Charles Barnes
Pictured: Annie Rhoades
