This week, the results of Part II of the Running USA/RRCA “State of the Sport” report was released and the news was terrific, though probably not surprising to most of you.  Women’s distance running has now outpaced men’s participation in the sport, 52% to 48%! It gets even more amazing.

The study identified the demographics of “core runners” – men and women who;

          ·       Enter running events

          ·       Buy 3 pairs of running shoes a year

          ·       Run on the roads or trails

          ·       Frequent specialty running stores

          ·       Read Runner’s World magazine

The study estimates that there are now 10 million core runners in America!

OK, I am a marketer by trade, so I admit I get more excited than the average person about data.  But here’s some stuff you may find interesting:

Reasons Women Started to Run

Weight concerns	22.9%
Family/friend encouragement	19.6%
Competed in school and didn’t stop	12.0%
To relieve stress	11.3%
Health concerns other than weight	8.0%
To get in shape for another sport	5.7%
To prepare for a charity running event	4.7%

 

I was surprised that the charity thing wasn’t higher, but not surprised about the weight statistic.  But what happens when we become regular runners?  I’ve put the men’s responses to the right…interesting, eh?

Reasons Women Continue to Run

	Women	Men
Staying healthy	86.2%	81.3%
Staying in shape	86.1%	83.1%
Relieving stress	74.2%	64.2%
Meeting a personal challenge	69.5%	59.0%
Controlling my weight	68.8%	56.8%
Achieving a goal	68.3%	61.1%
Improving my state of mind	64.5%	41.5%
Having fun	61.2%	61.3%
Improving speed or endurance	54.0%	43.9%
Appreciating nature	52.7%	41.0%
Being by myself for awhile	48.7%	36.7%
Socializing with friends/other participants	48.1%	60.0%
Competing against others	26.4%	52.9%

 

Do you find any of this surprising?  Look at the stats on personal challenge, improving state of mind, and achieving a goal. And what about the socializing with others question?  It’s kind of counter-intuitive, right? Clearly, many women see their running as “me time.”

Then of course, there’s the competition question.  Men seem to equate having fun with being competitive! 

And how do we see ourselves as runners?

When asked how they “see themselves as runners,” 23% of men saw themselves as competitive runners, while only 11% of the female sample saw themselves as such!  Yet, 68% of the women respondents reported having entered at least 20 running events as an adult as opposed to 62% of the men! The competition debate rages on!

Here’s some fun lifestyle statistics of the “Typical Woman Runner” sample:

Women Runners’ last running shoes purchased:

Asics: 32%
Nike: 14%
Brooks: 13%

Women’s Internet Usage:

Internet used at least 7 hours/wk: 65%

Favorite Running Related Websites:

Active.com 59%

RunnersWorld 58.5%

Cool Running 24%

Traxee.com 62%   OK, I made that last one up ;-)

 

Demographics:

Age: 39.4
Married: 62%, 28% never married
No children: 64%, 27.5% have at least 2 children
79% have a college degree
42% have a post-graduate degree

Happy running “typical woman runner!”

 

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Tags: running statistics, RRCA, Running USA, national runner survey, women runners, why we run, demographics, research

You know, you're probably right, I never thought about that. Posted by: bmoore on Aug 22, 2008 at 01:56 PM

I think women have a tendency to play down their goals to other people. So, while they may say they are not competitive runners...i think most most definitely are, its just personal...we like to smile inside. Posted by: Karen on Aug 21, 2008 at 04:22 PM

OOhh. me too, I love numbers. Very interesting. Thanks! Posted by: Sarah on Aug 21, 2008 at 03:42 PM