If you’re anything like us, you woke up on Sunday bleary eyed at around midday with a fuzzy head and a feeling of self loathing. If you live in London too, that feeling of self loathing was amplified 10 fold the second you stepped onto a tube and were greeted with the sight of happy red-faced people clutching medals and energy drinks – in other words, the successful finishers of the 26 miles of the London marathon.
If that sight’s left you feeling more than a little guilty, we’ve found some races for you to sign up for that are definitely more doable than the marathon which are actually fun, too.
Definitely not one for those serious runners who only wear top of the range Stella McCartney workout gear. This one’s less about the actual exercise and more about getting covered from head-to-toe in powdered paint. It’s only 5k (you could fast-walk that on the first day of your period on three hours sleep – guaranteed). There’s runs in London, Manchester, Sunderland, Birmingham, Belfast and Brighton throughout the summer and, even better, there’s no winner or official times so no-one will know if you walk the thing.
Like Tough Mudder minus the bros, Mudderella is a 5-7 mile long obstacle course race that’ll see you clambering over logs, zipping down water chutes, heaving yourself up ropes, carrying other Mudderellas on your back and using balance to navigate hanging tyres. Oh, and as per the name, you’re going to get very muddy, too.
Ever wanted to run in a video game? Here’s your chance. Each run around the country has 5-7 ‘lands’ that look a whole like like levels from Mario Kart and feature giant neon lights, tunnels and inflatables. Apparently the runs can be seen from space. They’re only 5k and are happening in London, Manchester, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Less 10k run, more club night (or so we’re telling ourselves). This girls-only run takes place at night in London’s Victoria Park. (There’s also ones taking place in Paris, Berlin, Milan and Amsterdam if you’re international.) 10,000 women are getting involved, and you even get an actual Alex Monroe necklace at the end for participating. Nice one!
A run! In a zoo! Head past elephants, giraffes and cheetahs as you weave your way around London Zoo’s Whipsnade location. Choose between 10k and 2k and feel smug in the knowledge the the money you pay to enter (£30) goes to raising money for the zoo’s animals. Just beware the legions of kids’ participating in the 2k race. It’s frowned upon to knock them down.
In need of a little motivation to get you going on your run? How about loads of zombies chasing you down the road? Runners are equppied with three ‘life tags’ and the aim of the game is to get to the end of the 5k without having zombies steal all three. Although, apparently, if you do get them all stolen, they’ve got a special vaccination that reverses the effects of being bitten by a zombie at the finish line. Phew.
BONUS RUN!
In case you fancy taking your run overseas – and adding booze to the concept, this marathon in France involves WINE!
Follow Jess on Twitter @jess_commons
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.