Coaching Girls on the Run has been a really amazing experience. It made me realize how much I actually like children (the urge to procreate is strong, in case you are wondering!). 
I also learned some other important lessons:
1) If you’re going to bring cupcakes for 16 girls, make sure all of the cupcakes look exactly alike or they will fight over the “special one.”
2) Speaking of bringing cupcakes, you should also bring napkins or else you’ll be rubbing frosting out of hair for thirty minutes.
3) Exploding red marker does, in fact, look a lot like blood. Try not to panic.
4) Kids understand Photoshopping better if you print out examples and play “Spot the Difference.”
5) The game Octopus can keep kids entertained for hours.
6) They don’t call it “Indian style” anymore. Now, it’s criss-cross applesauce.
7) Dodgeball has been outlawed at many elementary schools, despite it’s “character-building” benefits.
8 ) If a kid in the deep South asks you what you do on Sunday mornings, they are expecting you to say, “church,” not “sleep in and run.”
9) Nothing feels as good as a hug.
10) Almost anyone can train to run a 5K in 16 weeks – even an 8 year old.
Today’s 5K was SO much fun. Our team of 16 girls all did very well, finishing in 28 to 50 minutes!
I had a long drive to the race, so I ate Greek yogurt, oatmeal, and banana in the car:
Then, I found Coach Jen in the busy parking lot. It was really fun coaching with Jen this season!
We located our 15 girls and set to pinning the bib numbers on their shirts, putting reindeer ears on their heads, and drawing Rudolph noses with lipstick.
Reindeer antler fighting ensued.
As did lots of jumping around and Congo dancing to stay warm.
And then… it was time to race!
I ran with Angela, and our goal was to run as much as possible.
We had lots of fun during the first half of the race, singing songs and cheering to spectators. We powered up a few hills without any problems. At the first (and only) water stop, we took a break to drink a big cup of water and then continued on our merry way. Angela kept her spirits up the entire race and only complained once (“My legs hurt!” around Mile 2.5). We ended up taking two really short walking breaks, but we were sure to decide when we would start running again (“At that tree, we’re going to run again”).
We ended up crossing the finish line in 41 minutes or so, which is about 4 minutes faster than she ran the practice 5K!
We waited for the rest of the girls to finish, and then I hugged everyone and said goodbye. It was bittersweet. How do teachers do this every year?!
A big thank you to all my girls for making the last 16 weeks so special for me.
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{ 116 comments… read them below or add one }
So sweet! Looks like it turned out to be a great time – glad you didn’t get rained on!!!
Aww I love this post, so inspirational/motivational! Makes me
That Sunday morning question is a trick–you also need to say which church you attend
Ahhh so exciting! Congrats! Can’t wait to do this! I miss working with kids terribly.
this is SO awesome, Caitlin! <3
What a great great program! I’m hoping to get an Anchorage area GOTR going in the next year or so- it’s just such an amazing thing for the girls. Glad the race went well today. I hope mine does too!
I hated dodgeball in grade school. It was awful. I always got hit in the face, and it broke my glasses at least once.
This looks amazing though! I love GoTR! What adorable pictures.
So cute. One of my roommates just finished a semester of student teaching in a 1st grade class and brought home a giant pile of homemade thankyou cards… We were going through them and practically crapping our pants, they were so sweet.
Your experience is so inspiring! As a PE teacher, I absolutely LOVE the GOTR program and can’t wait to become a SoleMate! I learned the “Indian” style thing during my student teaching last year, and I didn’t realize how important it was to change it until I started teaching at a school that is predominantly Indian (from India) students!
Aw this looks like such a great time. Yay for all the girls!!
Sounds like such a rewarding experience…I definitely want to look into coaching here in St. Louis!
I love the advice about making sure the cupcakes are exactly alike. I’m making mini-cupcakes for a potluck at work on Monday. I should take that advice too… just in case adults aren’t immune to wanting the special one.
Caitlin, I’m sure you are an excellent coach!! I too ran my first 5K today (although I’m a wee bit older than 16
I did the Mistletoe 5K in Winston-Salem. My sister and I practically ran the entire race with girls and coaches from Girls on the Run and there were so many spectators cheering for them. I kept telling myself … “If these kids can power through, so can I.” Thanks for all the hard work you put into helping these kids be strong healthy girls!
Wow I’m so glad I read this…
…I had NO IDEA it was called criss-cross applesauce.
Just kidding.
It’s awesome that you’ve touched these girls’ lives so much, Caitlin. You should be proud.
So sweet! I wonder if there’s a GOTR in my area. My 11 year old niece is part of a similar program called “Girls on Track” and she came out for a 5 mile run with me last week. Amazing!
I just teared up a bit that is so sweet! Congrats to you and the girls!
This melts my heart. Great job!!
P.S. When you’re doing the “butterfly stretch” with kids (sitting on the ground, legs bent, bottoms of your feet together) they think it’s funny when you tell them “flap your wings!” and move your knees up and down.
If they are having trouble keeping their hands to themselves you can say, “Criss-cross applesauce! Hands in your basket!” (i.e., hands folded in your lap) Hurray for sweet little girls! Great work Coach Caitlin.
P.P.S An 8 year old ran a 5K in 28 MINUTES?!?! Holy cow!!!! That’s so awesome!
I coach for GOTR in the St Louis area – one of our girls won the 8 year old division in 25 minutes! They are pretty amazing!
That is so amazing, Caitlin! What a great program to be a part of
Awesome pics and what an awesome thing you are doing.
That is so true about kids! ESPECIALLY when they are 2-5ish. Everything must be exactly the same! And my nephew always says “criss-cross applesauce, put your hands in your lap” Which is I guess what they always say at his preschool.
How sweet <3 Little girls are so fun!
xx
I know what you mean about the bittersweet feeling! I got so attached to the students in my classes when I student taught and long term subbed!
GotR looks like such an amazing organization! I think that’s something in which I’m going to have to get involved! Congrats and well done to your GotR group!!
How sweet!!!
this seems like such an amazing organization. I love the cards – I would have probably cried my eyes out!
There really is nothing like making an impact on the life of a child … it’s so easy to see you’ve done just that. Treasure those cards!
That is so sweet. Congratulations on your coaching and race! I laughed at the list of things you learned.
GOTR is such a great organization! I loved reading about the experiences you had coaching those girls
Sounds like the race was super sweet, I’m sure you have made a huge impact on every one of their lives.
Good job to all the girls! I work at a summer camp as a counselor, and I love playing games with the kids. It’s true Octopus and other games can keep kids entertained for hours, and I love seeing the kids succeed and have fun. I love hearing all your GOTR stories – you sound like a great coach!
it’s still called indian style. dont be fooled!
gotr makes me smile and feel warm inside.
Haha so true about the cupcakes! Kids will fight over anything.
Congrats to all your girls today!
This is so cute! What a great program. Kudos to you for spreading the word, Caitlin! Looks like the girls really love you.
if you say criss cross applesauce hands in the ___ sauce it’s extra funny (hands in the ketchup sauce! hands in the potato sauce! hands in the toothpaste sauce! anything you think of)
and save the notes! i have a big ol’ box with the best notes and pictures i’ve gotten. they’re awesome to look at if you’re having a bad day.
oh i will remember the hands part for next season
This is so awesome Caitlin. I LOVE that you are teaching the girls about photoshopping (the #1 worst thing magazines do for women’s body image EVER!). You are such good inspiration for them.
I here it called sitting criss-crossed all the time now, but the applesauce part is funny, never heard that!
is “indian style” not politically correct anymore?
That looks so wonderful
It is making me all warm and fuzzy inside.
My desire to procreate is very strong too. Yesterday I tried to buy a baby hat that looked like a lamb at Target. I got all the way to the register before my boyfriend stopped me.
Ah, I remember working for the Girl Scouts in NC several summers ago, and having 4 15 year old girls all talk about their church before turning to me and asking, “So what’s the church like that you go to in England?”
I mumbled something about going to church once for a wedding and then was like, “Well, you know, the great thing about coming to camp is that you meet all kinds of people with all kinds of interests and beliefs. Isn’t that cool!? So, it’s like, totally ok that I don’t go to church, right? Because, you’re, like, totally excited to learn about different kinds of people….Who wants s’mores!?”
That’s pretty much what I said. She still looked at me like I was a heathen though
Yeah, one of my campers sent me a tract from her (very conservative) southern Baptist church once camp was over, and said it would “an honor” if I’d go with her. Obviously my diversity pep talk didn’t work.
They call it “criss cross applesauce”? No kidding!
That entire Girls on the Run experience sounds so amazing and fun.
A special experience. Do they know about your blog?
I have had a job where I wasn’t working with kids since junior high! I teach elementary kids with autism and nanny in my spare time to make $ plus i love the kiddies- the urge to procreate is rediculous. I love kids! But I’m unmarried at 24- not the best time haha… I am waiting though!
I went off birth control around the same time you did, after being on it for 7 years. After learning that it can take up to a year to get a period after being on birth control I wanted to go off and see how long it took me to get “normal” again. It only took me a month and a half to get a period and I’m happy off BCP and I’m great about using condoms w my serious boyfriend but I feel like I “think” aka dream haha about having kids so much more now then I did when I was on BCP. Did you find this happened to you?
The urge to procreate has been strong for me for about a year – I don’t think BCP pills impacted it either way! I am so impatient!!!
How special! That is very cool and I am so proud of those girls- and I don’t even know them! I can only imagine how proud you feel after all that work and training.
They are too cute!
I’m so glad you’re working with GOTR – there’s a good article in this month’s Runners World about a person who has already had a successful running career with fast records, and has decided to pass the torch & use her skills to help others succeed, it reminded me of you! And it’s so cool to see little kids in 5Ks – they keep me motivated!
Haha this post made me laugh. The “special” thing applies to absolutely everything. My kindergarten class is currently in a daily battle for who will get the special “expo” marker because my school changed white board markers so we now have 2 kids in the bin. IT’S A WHITEBOARD MARKER! lol.
It is bittersweet saying bye to the kids at the end of the year, some times more bitter and sometimes more sweet
I always like saying bye at 3 in the afternoon though- not ready for kids yet at all!
Hi Caitlin,
LOVE the work you’ve been doing with GOTR! So important and impactful!
Just a thought about the super cute pics from today… do you have permission from parents or families to post the pics? If not, you might want to consider removing identifying information (i.e. any names of girls, their school, when you had practice) for their privacy.
Keep up the great work!
Yup! The girls sign media releases and I called the
gOTR headquarters to verify.
Aww, what an inspiring group of young ladies! Congrats to them all!
Love this post. I have been wanting to start a running group with the younger girls where I teach for quite some time now.
How do teachers do it? We feel exactly the same way as you. Once a student has entered my classroom, they are my “child” forever. I treat them all like my own….forever.
You are an epic teacher!
I LOVE this! I want to volunteer like this too!
That card must have just made your day. I also coach, and I know that as much as the coach-athlete relationship means to you, it means even more to them.
This is amazing! I am hoping and crossing my fingers that I am selected to be a coach this coming spring!
(Also, Fort Mill, SC? I did a show at the community theatre there a few years ago when I went to Winthrop University my freshman year of college!)
Aww Caitlin this is so inspiring–congrats to your gal Angela! I want to see if GOTR is in my area
Precious pictures, precious card, and I agree nothing feels better than a hug
Sooooo cute! What an awesome event!
That looks like so much fun.
I bet the girls had an absolute blast!!
Oh, and with the cupcake thing..I STILL have to do that when baking for my friends! They pick the one that’s unlike the rest or will sit there scanning the pile finding the “best” one..and then get in fights over it! haha
Does the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster count?
I’m a member of that on Facebook. LOL
I just wanted to commend you for being involved with GOTR. I look back and wish I had this sort of opportunity when I was younger. You guys are teaching them good exercise habits – something many of them will take with them for their whole lives and you guys are giving them confidence. Just really wonderful and inspiring
I wish I had GOTR when I was 8, too!
That is so neat! Congrats to you and the girls.
You motivated me to run in the cold (and turns out that it looked colder than it felt). 6 miles!
Leaving the kiddos is the hardest, as a teacher. They can bring so much joy, in the end.
Glad you had a great time!
You will never understand the impact you made on these girls Caitlin. Keep those cards. They will life you up at tough times.
I just had a student from when I taught middle school contact me. That was 6 years ago. Made me smile.
What a great day! It looks like you all had lots of fun running with the girls. I so wish there was a Girls on the Run near me – I would love to be involved. Good luck being a head coach next season!
That looks like such a great experience for the girls. To have run a 5K at the grand old age of 8 has got to make running seem very do-able. Hopefully they take that away with them as they get older. I think you’re incredibly priveliged, Caitlin, to have been a part of this. And you totally rock for it!
I ran a 5k today too (my first actually!) It’s so great you work with these young girls. It would have made such a difference if I had started running at a young age (well, I’m only 24 but you know what I mean) and had a strong woman to coach me! So awesome Caitlin!
Congrats on your first 5k!!!
Thank you!
This is so sweet!
I have a post idea for you-I think I remember you writing about how you and your husband were going to turn into a one car family and I think you’ve written a little update that you did. If so, can you do a whole post about what it is like to be a 1 car family? I am interested in the pros/cons. If not, disregard
Thank you for reminding me about this!!! I have been wanting to do this forever. Will blog about shortly.
TOO CUTE! Love the antlers and red noses! I had to laugh at the church comment
Hey, my college boyfriend was from Fort Mill!! Random comment, sorry– it’s just been a while since I’ve thought about that town!
haha yay FM!
OMG too cute. This is fantastic!
oh wow, i bet you can’t wait to coach kids next year!
also remember these kids are grown, they don’t come out like that. (sadly)
That card is so sweet
ahhh so friggin cute!!
That note is so cute!
Way to go Coach Caitlin! Aren’t you just bursting with pride for all those girls and their accomplishment today? GOTR is awesome.
That note… that made me cry. Wow.
And yep, it’s criss-cross applesauce! Which is so funny, because “cross-legged” would do just fine
Congrats on the race! I am the GOTR coach at my school for the spring and I have never done this before so I am looking forward to working with the girls and hoping to inspire them to love running as much as I do, plus it’s good spring training for my fall marathon.
this just warms my heart! i would love to do something like this! do they have GOTR everywhere?
Lots of places for sure! They have a map on their website.
That’s awesome you coached GOTR. I am a teacher in Atlanta and several of my kids ran in one in November. I actually ran in my first one in Nov, too. I loved it! It is so hard to say goodbye to your students each year… You get so attached!
I am so curious about this “Indian Style” and “criss-cross applesauce”. What is this!? I don’t recall anything called that growing up. I grew up in Saskatchewan, Canada, and currently live in Australia… so it’s probably a regional thing, I’m pretty far from the southern states!
I’m dying to know what I’ve missed!
It means sitting cross legged!
hehehe
It’s true, you learn something new every single day!
Thanks so much!
Sigh, how I wished we had GOTR whilst growing up! This is so fun! I want to begin volunteering again after a short hiatus
This is so sweet! I know what you mean by teachers – I participated in Community Service for our school in my first quarter, where we went and taught kids in a local school. I didn’t do it the second quarter (I do not know why at all!) and then yesterday I received two notes from kids I taught in my class asking me when I was going back. The people who didn’t quit for the second quarter had told them I was sick… I can’t believe they remembered me. It’s little things like these that make the world go round
Oh my goodness what a great experience! I had to LOL at your lessons learned. Yes, in the deep south, “sleeping in and running” is not the expected Sunday answer. So glad you were able to volunteer!
My 2 year old niece taught me criss cross applesauce legs a few months ago! What a weird new name for “Indian style”!
Girls on the Run Northern Virginia gave your blog a shout out via twitter. I’m so happy you and your girls had such a fun race. Our race was yesterday, as well, and boy was it cold. I’m so proud of my buddy (age 12), she ran the entire first mile without stopping to walk, which is a huge accomplishment for her. My daughter (age 8) ran with my husband and she finished in around 29 minutes. Such a great time! Despite our frozen fingers and toes.
ack! That should be ‘my daughter, age 8.’ Not sure why I made a smiley?
Your daughter is epic! What a finishing time.
She is epic. Thanks!
It really sounds like coaching GOTR was a wonderful experience for you. Are you going to keep doing it?
of course!
This is a really cute post! This is such a great program. I see so much childhood obesity as a teacher and it’s just so sad. I think I am going to look into this program in my area. Oh, and as a teacher, being with the kids 7 hours a day 5 days a week it’s a little easier to say goodbye at the end of the year:). Plus it’s only first grade so it’s not really goodbye its just “I’ll see you in the hall every day instead of in my class every day”.
So glad you had fun. It was 27 degrees when we woke up at 5:30 for our race. Sadly, I was just too sick to run, but went and was the “catcher” for our team. I caught them each at the end and gave them their medal and I was on call w/ cell in case there were probs. My daughter ran w/ our coach. 6500 runners! AMAZING. What a GREAT program I say as I hack away at the keyboard
as a teacher its a little different. There are a handful of kids I am so sad are moving on but then there are some that its like “FINALLY!” being with them 7 hours a day is different than being the fun running coach lol! But, it is still hard at the end of the year.
I must be hormonal or something, ’cause I just cried looking at that hand-written card. Jeesh, precious overload!
A group of my friends and I are doing the DC Girls on the Run this Sunday, I signed up to be a running buddy but I haven’t heard back yet. I can’t wait!
So sweet, this made me cry! (just a little, I promise.)
I’m an assistant coach with GOTR New Jersey. It was such a great experience and I definitely cried on our last practice day. The girls taught me how to just laugh and smile and just be silly again. I can’t wait for next season.
I’m an assistant coach with GOTR New Jersey. It was such a great experience and I definitely cried on our last practice day. The girls taught me how to just laugh and smile and just be silly again. I can’t wait for next season.
I first heard about GOTR on this website and it sounded so cool. So when I met a woman who was a coach I pounced on her and asked her so many questions she asked if I wanted to be a buddy runner. I got to do the Reindeer Romp on Saturday and had a lot of fun with my buddy and her friends. I LOVE the race atmosphere and it was great seeing so many people complete their first race.
Haha I heard “Criss-Cross Applesauce” on Tosh.0 when he said he was going to sit “Native American” style lol.
How cool. One of the best race recaps.
What a great race recap! The girls looked like they had a lot of fun!
I have to say…GOOD to dodgeball being outlawed. I hurt my knee (torn meniscus and other fun things)for the first time playing that stupid game.
Great now I’m crying! lol I’m so happy for all the girls! They did wonderful! Kudos to you for helping them with such a great goal!