Run. Santa and Mrs. Claus visited patrons at the event. VIEW ORIGINAL
Running enthusiasts of all ages gathered on Fort Jackson, Dec. 9, to participate in the jolliest run of the season, the Jingle Bell Fitness Run - all while wearing small bells. The 3.1-mile course was peppered with various additional physical activities called breakout stations that featured exercises such as squats and the caterpillar crawl.
“Fitness and wellness become front and center at this time of year,” said Pam Long, fitness coordinator at the Directorate of Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation. “People are celebrating the holidays and getting together with family and friends, but in the back of their minds, they’re thinking of the opportunity to get healthy again. So, that’s where events like this make people come together and get active.”
The run, one of many annual running events planned by FMWR, kicked off at 8 a.m. at the NCO Club and invited the entire Fort Jackson community to participate.
10-year old runner, R.J. Bailey, one of the running enthusiasts, was excited to participate in the Jingle Bell Fitness Run and have the chance to beat the time of Lt. Col. Richard Bailey, 2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment commander, who also happens to be R.J.’s dad.
“I like that with running, you don’t need to be super-fast to do it,” R.J. said. “You just need to go long.”
Although he likes that you don’t have to be fast in endurance runs, his favorite part of the run was running downhill.
“You can just run, and you don’t have to worry about keeping your breath,” he said. “You can go as fast as you want.”
He continued to encourage all runners to come out because running is “awesome and you don’t have to be really good at it,” to participate.
R.J. was able to succeed at his goal of beating his father, by running a seven-minute mile.
“Our goal is to keep it light, keep it fun, keep it constant,” said Long, reinforcing R.J.’s excitement and enjoyment. “The consistency of wellness gives everyone the opportunity to always have something to do to enhance wellness.”
The true holiday believers were greeted with an exciting treat following the completion of the run, at the NCO Club – breakfast with Santa and Mrs. Claus.
The Jingle Bell Fitness Run was also the last Commander’s Cup event of the season. For future fitness and wellness activities on Fort Jackson, keep an eye on The Leader, call FMWR at 751-3700, or visit their website at https://jackson.armymwr.com/.
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