Slow and Steady:

Hara explains the duration and stages of today's run during warm up at George Wainborn Park.

In June 2023, Sydney Hara decided that Vancouver needed space to slow down. After attending another run club with a friend and getting left behind, the two felt that there was a new niche to fill in the city. Slow Girls Run Club was born with the idea of centring community and inclusion; a pressure-free space where girls could come out and meet other girls while staying active and getting outside.

“Honestly, the biggest run that we had the first summer was like five people, but it was so fun and it kind of kept me consistent. I've always had this attitude of like, I hate running, but I knew that if I was a part of a community I would really love it,” Hara said.

While Slow Girls took a while to get off the ground, it now sees consistent attendance of at least fifteen people every week. Hara credits the club’s rise to social media.

“I think I just have gotten a lot better and understood how to find my niche audience on social media. And so it's blown up on TikTok - by blown up, it's like 90 thousand views - it's blown up for a local community. In one week, we actually grew our follower count by 1000,” she said.

Slow Girls founder Sydney Hara

One major draw that Slow Girls has over other clubs is that it’s a space for female runners only.

“Being female-identifying only is like, women feel comfortable participating in exercise spaces when it's just women because I do think that there are lots of negative interactions that people have had traditionally in gyms, usually with males,” Hara said.

First-time attendee Margeaux Turk agreed. “Because [the club] was all women it kind of felt a bit more welcoming and at a pace that was more manageable. If it was with guys I’ve found that they can make it all faster,” she said.

Turk found the club through social media and said that she definitely plans to come back, the exact position second-time Slow Girls runner Emma Ludemann was in earlier this month. After feeling left behind at another run club, Ludemann decided to give Slow Girls a try.

“I have been wanting to do a longer run like a half marathon or a 10 k.m. for a while and this was like a really supportive group at a really good pace. So I thought coming back would be great for that,” she said.

Runners warm up before the 5 k.m interval run along Yaletown's seawall.

When Hara started Slow Girls, she had no expectations. The club was a way for her to get outside with friends and hold herself accountable to a consistent running schedule.

From left to right: Margeaux Turk, Jess Cope, Ali Cochran, Sydney Hara, and Alicia McDonald after a Slow Girls run.

Now, it’s its own community where girls come - mostly alone - to make friends and stay active in a supportive environment. Hara said community is at the heart of the club and as it continues to grow that’s what she wants to centre.

Runners cool down after completing the run and debrief about Slow Girls' upcoming events.

“I don't want [Slow Girls] to ever become something that people have to like pay to participate in or feel barriers to participating in,” Hara said. “I love community. I love meeting people. I'm really good at making connections with people. And so I was like, why not do that while doing something that I kind of hate, making it something that I love.”

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