A Running Start

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Lexington, KY
A Running Start

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A running community committed to encouraging, growing and helping new runners from challenged backgrounds get a fresh start in life!

10/31/2026

🖐️ Raise your hand if you saw a chicken and a T-Rex running down the road tonight. 🐔🦖

Yep. That was us. 😂

I was the chicken. Shane was the T-Rex. And let me tell you, running in an inflatable costume is its own kind of endurance training. Those little T-Rex arms did not help one bit, and I'm pretty sure the chicken set a new personal record for "most honks from passing cars."

But here's the heart ❤️ of it.

Holidays are hard when you're in recovery. They're hard when you're in jail or prison. They're hard when you're far from family, or when the people you love aren't speaking to you yet, or when the memories that come with the season are heavy ones. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, your birthday… it doesn't matter which one. Everybody else seems to be celebrating, and you're doing the hard work of just getting through the day.

So tonight we showed up with candy 🍬 and a couple of ridiculous costumes. That's it. Nothing fancy. But seeing these guys laugh, pose for pictures, and cheer on a chicken and a dinosaur reminded me that the little things are never really little. A costume, a bag of candy, a few minutes of being silly together can say, "You're not forgotten. You belong here. We're glad you're with us."

Recovery is serious work. But joy is part of healing too.

Proud of this crew, grateful for this community, and already plotting next year's costumes. 🧡💚

10/29/2026

Early recovery is a lot.

New routines. New people. New rules. Hard conversations you've been avoiding for years. Feeling everything at full volume without anything to numb it. Some days the stress and anxiety feel louder than the progress.

That's one of the biggest reasons we lace up.

When you're moving your body, your mind gets a break. One foot in front of the other. Breathe in, breathe out. For a few miles, you don't have to fix your whole life. You just have to get to the next corner. It's honestly one of the most peaceful, meditative things we know.

And the science backs it up:
🏃 In about 75% of studies reviewed, regular exercise during treatment was linked to reduced substance use.
🌳 As little as 15 minutes of walking among trees can lower anxiety and ease tension, anger, and fatigue.
🧠 A Stanford study found a walk in nature quieted rumination, that loop of negative thinking so many of us know too well.
💚 95% of people in recovery surveyed said they'd want an exercise program built for them, and most wanted to start in their first 3 months.

But here's what the studies can't measure: the fresh air, the laughs on a Friday night run, the encouragement from someone running right beside you who gets it. Good conversations. Good people. A shared finish line.

That's the shift from addict to athlete. One step, one mile, one day at a time.

Tuesdays, Thursdays & Fridays at 6pm. Come walk or run with us. 💚

10/27/2026

Tomorrow night is the Night of Hope for the Hope Center. 💚

Clients, staff, and volunteers will all gather at the Lexington Opera House, dressed up 👔 and ready to hear from our guest speaker. For some of our guys, it'll be the first time in their lives they've ever put on a coat and tie.

That might feel a little uncomfortable. Maybe a lot uncomfortable. But it's also new, and different, and exciting — and that's exactly what recovery is made of.

Sobriety isn't just about leaving an old life behind. It's about discovering how big, brilliant, and beautiful life can be on the other side. A first 5K. A first sunrise run. A first time looking in the mirror in a sharp jacket and seeing someone you're proud of.

Every new experience is a reminder: there's so much more out there than the life you used to know. And you belong in all of it.

We can't wait to celebrate this night together. Here's to hope, to courage, and to showing up — tie and all. 👔✨

10/22/2026

Tonight's Thursday run was a BIG one: 61 men showed up to run with us, and that's not even counting our volunteers! 🏃‍♂️💚

The guys at the Hope Center are on lockdown this week, and that's not a bad thing. Sometimes a reset is exactly what's needed. But here's what makes us proud: the Hope Center believes in A Running Start so much that they still let the guys come run with us, even during lockdown.

That brought out a lot of guys who probably wouldn't have laced up on a normal night. No TV, no other options… so they ran with us. 😄

And they loved it. More than one of them came up afterward to say how much they enjoyed it and how good they felt. That's the best thing we can hear.

Recovery is about being willing to try new things, even when you didn't plan to. Sometimes it takes a lockdown and having no other choice to find out you might be a runner after all. 👟

Thank you, Hope Center, for trusting us for 10 years and counting. To all 61 of you who showed up tonight: we're glad you came, and we hope to see you Friday!

From addict to athlete, one step at a time. 💚

10/14/2026

Tonight we run for Frank Couch. 💚

Frank was part of the A Running Start family, and our community is a little quieter without him. Tonight's miles are his. Every step, every hill, every "you've got this" shouted down the line, we're carrying him with us.

Frank's loss is a hard reminder that none of us are promised tomorrow. If you've been waiting for the right time to make a change, to reach out, to ask for help, to take that first step, this is it. The best day to start is today. He was definitely making the right choices and changes…but we aren’t promised a single minute. Rest easy, Frank. We'll take it from here. 🏃‍♂️💚

10/13/2026

Our A Running Start family is grieving.

On Monday, we lost one of our own. Frank Couch was killed in a car accident, and we're still trying to wrap our hearts around it.

Many of you knew Frank from the Hope Center, where he worked on the maintenance staff. He was the guy keeping things running for everyone else, and then lacing up to run alongside us.

Frank showed up. He put in the miles and did the hard work recovery asks of you every single day. He had a sponsor in one of our alumni walking right beside him, and he was making all the right changes in his life. You could see it in him. He was becoming the man he wanted to be.

We'll never understand why some people are taken so early. But we believe there's a greater meaning in this, even if we can't see it yet. Every run, every step forward, every choice Frank made to keep going mattered. It still does.

Losing someone this suddenly is something no family is ever ready for. Frank leaves behind 2 daughters and a son and loved ones who are now facing funeral costs and immediate needs they never saw coming. We have set up a GoFundMe to help carry some of that weight as they get through the hard days ahead.

If it's on your heart, please give what you can. No gift is too small, and every dollar makes a difference. If you can't give right now, please keep Frank's family in your prayers and share this post. Let's show them they are not walking this road alone.

👉 https://gofund.me/69aaf0f5c

Thank you for your kindness, your generosity, and your prayers. God bless each and every one of you.

Frank, thank you for running with us. We'll carry you every mile from here. 🤍

10/10/2026

❤️Rain couldn’t wash this one out. 🌧️⛰️

Today A Running Start headed to the Red River Gorge for our group hike. We started under blue skies and perfect fall weather… and by the afternoon we were soaked, muddy, and laughing harder than we had all day.

That’s recovery in a nutshell. Plans change. Storms roll in. You can let it ruin the day, or you can lace up and make the most of it. These men chose the second one.

For one of our guys, today was a whole list of firsts: his first hike and his first ride on a sky lift. Watching him face that height, push past the nerves 😬, and step way outside his comfort zone was one of my favorite moments of the year. Every one of them stretched a little today, whether it was a tough climb, a fear of heights, or just showing up somewhere new.

Here’s something I believe with my whole heart: recovery should be MORE fun 🤩 than the life you left behind. Real laughter. Real adventure. Real friendships. No hangover, no regrets, just muddy shoes and memories you’ll actually remember. 💚

A huge thank you to Heather Isaacs Hackett, Mike, and Ryan for coming along and being part of this day. And thank you to the Hope Center for continuing to support us and believe in these men.

The Red River Gorge never disappoints, rain 🌧️ or shine. We’ll be back!

10/09/2026

Tomorrow we're trading the track for the trails! 🥾🍂

A Running Start is heading to Red River Gorge for a full day of hiking, and it's honestly one of our favorite days of the whole year.

People hear "running group" and think it's all about miles and pace. It's not. It's about showing up for each other. The running and walking are just how we get there.

Here's something recovery teaches you fast: if you want to stay sober, you have to find things that are actually fun. You need places to laugh, people to lean on, and days that remind you life on the other side is worth it.

That's what tomorrow is. Fresh air, fall leaves 🍁, a few tough climbs, a lot of encouragement, and the kind of fellowship that only happens when you're out in nature together, cheering each other up the next hill.

No one does this alone. That's the whole point. 💚

10/07/2026

🏃‍♂️ **Finishing what he started.**

When we met Chris H on day one, we'll be honest — we weren't sure he'd make it through. He was quiet, guarded, and carrying a lot. Twelve weeks is a long commitment when you're fighting for your recovery every single day.

But Chris kept showing up. Tuesday. Thursday. Friday night. Rain, heat, sore legs, hard days — he was there for just about every single run.

Somewhere along the way, something shifted. The guy who stood at the back of the group started leading it. He began using those miles as part of his everyday recovery, and he's told us he plans to keep moving long after this program ends. That's the part that gets us. 💚

Chris is now moving into the extended care transitional housing near the Hope Center, which means he's staying close — and we get to keep cheering him on. 🙌

This is why we do what we do. People ask if programs like ours really work. Chris is your answer. We have success stories, and every one of them started with someone simply deciding to show up.

Congratulations, Chris. We're so proud of you. 🏅

09/24/2026

🤍Hey friends, it's Liz. I want to talk about something that's been on my heart.

We don't all start this race from the same line.

Some of us grew up with a safety net. A parent who could cover rent when things fell apart. Insurance that paid for treatment. A family name that opened doors, an education that gave us options, a lawyer when we needed one. When someone with those things falls into addiction, it's still devastating. But they often get a softer landing and a clearer path back.

Others grew up in homes where addiction was just part of life, passed down like old furniture. Where poverty wasn't a season, it was generations deep. Where nobody had ever been to college, rehab had a waiting list, and one bad mistake followed you on every job application for the rest of your life. Same disease. Very different odds.

I've been doing this work for almost 14 years, and I've watched both stories. Addiction doesn't care where you come from. Recovery, sadly, sometimes does.

So here's what I believe. We need empathy for everyone. Pain is pain, and nobody chooses this. But we also have to be honest that some people start miles ahead, and some are starting from a hole they didn't dig. If you've been given advantages, that's not something to feel guilty about. It's something to use. Share your table. Mentor someone. Hire someone with a record. Show up on a Tuesday night and run beside somebody who's never had anyone run beside them.

And if you came up the hard way, hear me: where you started is not where you have to finish. You are not your family's history. You are not your worst day. You can be the one who breaks the chain.

That's what A Running Start is about. Every one of us gets grace. Every one of us deserves a second chance, and sometimes a third and a fourth. We lace up together, we lift each other up, and we finish what we start. ❤️

From addict to athlete. From surviving to thriving. Together.

— Liz

Address

360 W Loudon Ave
Lexington, KY
40508

Telephone

859-333-9933

Website

http://www.arunningstart.run/

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