Five Types of Summer Runners

31 Comments

As we enter the hotter and summer months, it’s guaranteed you’ll see more runners and characters on the road.  Whether you know the runner, or don’t you’ll begin to recognize many faces. Maybe you even fall into one of these categories (I know I do).

Five Types of Summer Runners

Here are a Few Types of Runners you Might See This Summer:

Sweating Sam

It doesn’t matter the temperature, but Sam sweats more than anyone you know.  You can typically follow their route due to the trail of water and salt they leave behind.

Did they just finish a swim or run?  The mystery is always there.

Treadmill Timothy:

Your training buddy practically disappears in the summer.  All summer, they aren’t seen once outside.  They are still running and training, however, Timothy chooses the treadmill all summer.

Why?

Maybe they want to catch up on the great reality TV in the summer.

Maybe they want to avoid getting sunburnt…

Whatever the case is they typically stay inside from about May to September.  They get their running in and shock your local running community when they come back with PRs in the fall.

Hydrated Hillary:

Hillary packs water bottles for her waterbottles.  Whether it’s a 1-mile run or 20, you can always count on her for being prepared with plenty of water.  Thank goodness because you’ve had to rely on her a couple of times more than you would care to admit…

Routine Rhonda:

Now that it’s the summer, Rhonda can be seen running her same route at roughly the same time.  It’s not the safest option, but you can see Rhonda around the same point in your run every day.  Whether Rhonda is walking a dog, running, biking or just out and about, you always look forward to the point where your paths cross.

Shirtless Steve:

From about May until September, Steve is never seen with a shirt.  Steve runs in as little as possible and tries to avoid any and all tan lines.  You’ve seen Steve during training runs, at races, and around town…but never with a shirt on.

Questions for you:

Do you share traits with any of these characters?

How do you prepare for summer running? 

31 Comments

  1. I’m more like routine Rhonda, because of work I run about the same time everyday 4 pm. no matter how hot. On the weekends I go out early, but during the work week I’ll run till I melt or catch on fire at the exact same time.

    Brian
    @cledawgs on Twitter and briansrunningadventures.com

  2. i’m definitely shirtless most of the summer –trying to even out god awful tan lines, even though it’s completely a lost cause. and very rarely will you find me on the treadmill, i live for the warmer months!

  3. Run next to me and you are sure to be covered in my sweat. My friend Kelly coined the phase “Summer Gene” to describe this phenomenon. Not too much fun for me either as it also is the start of chafing season. Thank god for body glide.

  4. Hahaha I’m probably sweating sam 😉 It’s SO hot and humid here in Richmond but I’m not a fan of treadmill running! I signed up for a 5K in Ohio this weekend so I’m hoping for nice weather!

  5. LOL! I guess I’m a little mixture of all of them, except the Shirtless Steve. You will never see me running in just a bra. Not happening.

  6. During the week probably a bit like Routine Rhonda at least in terms of time, just because of work; weekends really vary a lot depending on when I can drag myself out of bed.

    1. I’m the same, I’m the same way on my days off. It can definitely be hard to drag yourself out of bed.

  7. so sweatyyyy haha. I wish it wasn’t the case, but what are you gonna do haha. this makes me a treadmill girl often if it’s too hot. plus, since I’m so pale, if I don’t get out first thing in the morning it’s indoors all day haha.

  8. How funny! This cracked me up. I am pretty sure I know one of each of those. I’m not sure which one I identify with, expect for perhaps Sweaty Sam, but mainly because my name is Sam. LOL.

  9. Usually, during the summer I just get up super early to avoid the heat. Getting up at 4:00am beats running in 95 degree weather any day! But this year, I know that my Ironman marathon is going to be in the heat of the day, so I *have* to run in the heat to acclimate myself to it. It’s supposed to be 88 this afternoon when I go for my run. 🙁

  10. Ha! So fun. I’m closest to Routine Rhonda . I leave at roughly the same time but I change up my route a lot. And I’m the opposite of Treadmill Timothy. The hotter the better in my book so as soon as summer hits, I’m OUT of the gym.

  14. I’m all of above, exept treadmill and water bottle…
    It hard to prepare for summer run I try to run in the morning if not around 4pm but it still hot out.
    Happy running hollie.
    Good funny blog…

  15. I have no idea what I am. I usually cut back on mileage over the summer and don’t train for anything, but this summer is completely different as I am training for a couple of races — I guess I’ll find out what I am this summer!

  16. Definitely jealous of Shirtless Sam… I’ll do that when it’s above 80, but not May to September. Even though it’s a real treat for the neighbors.

  17. OMG love this! I guess I’d be Sweating Sam! It’s SO HOT here in Texas and I still choose to go running at 12 or 4pm some days (peak heat) for no apparent reason. So, Texas summer = soaked in sweat 🙂

  18. Umm yeah I am shirtless Steve. For sure. I live in Charleston. What do you expect!!?? It’s like 1000% humidity here.

    1. Ha! I understand that, growing up in VA, it was just as humid. It’s like running through a swamp in the middle of summer!

  23. I am definitely the sweaty one. But you will also catch me sweating it out of the treadmill in my sauna of the gym when I need a netflix fix!

  24. I think that I am a little bit of a mix of Timothy and Rhonda, but that’s mostly when I am short on time or running on my own. Safety first! Haha!

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