How We Support Each Other on a Her Trails Group Run
Trail Notes | Her Trails Community
we move together
How We Support
Each Other on the Trail.
A Her Trails group run is more than a collection of women completing the same route at the same time.
It is a shared experience where women can arrive as they are, confident or unsure, fast or finding their feet, chatty or quiet, and still feel that they belong. Every runner contributes to that sense of safety, connection and belonging.
You do not need to be the fastest runner, a coach or a qualified first aider to contribute. Often, support looks much simpler: waiting at a junction, checking in without judgement, making space for someone to move at her own effort or noticing when a runner is no longer connected to the group.
In short
Supporting someone on a Her Trails group run is about more than keeping the group physically together. It is about helping create a space where women feel safe to be themselves, move at the effort that is right for them, speak up when something does not feel right and know they will not be judged for needing something different that day.
Belonging here is not something you earn through pace, fitness, experience or confidence.
Support means paying attention, communicating clearly and making room for different bodies, personalities, experiences, paces and ways of showing up.
Before the run
Support Begins Before Anyone Starts Moving
Arrive with enough time to meet the leader, listen to the briefing and understand the route. The briefing may include the expected distance, terrain, regrouping points, weather considerations and what to do if you need to turn back.
If you are managing an injury, returning after illness, new to trails or uncertain about completing the route, speak privately with the group leader before the run.
You do not need to share private medical details with the group. Give the leader enough relevant information to help with practical decisions about the route and group. A group leader is not a substitute for individual medical advice where that is needed.
On the trail
Stay Connected to the Group
Group trail running does not require everyone to run side by side. The group will naturally stretch across hills and technical terrain. What matters is maintaining connection through agreed regrouping points, clear communication and awareness of the runners around you.
Wait at junctions
Never assume the runner behind knows which direction to take. At an unclear turn, wait until the next person has seen you and knows where the route continues.
Tell someone before stopping
If you need to adjust clothing, use the bathroom, take medication or stop for any reason, tell the leader or another runner. Do not silently step away from the group.
Do not leave without communicating
If you need to shorten the route or return to the start, speak with the leader first where possible. The leader can help work out the safest option and whether another runner should accompany you.
Respect the regroup
When the back of the group arrives, allow those runners time to breathe, drink or eat before moving again. A regroup should create a pause for everyone, not only those who arrived first.
Different experiences
Support Without Making Pace the Story
Walking a climb, slowing on technical terrain or taking longer at a regroup does not require an apology. Trail running naturally involves changing pace in response to terrain, effort, experience and how the body feels that day.
Avoid assuming that a woman moving at the back needs rescuing, coaching or constant encouragement. She may be moving at exactly the right effort for her. Sometimes the most supportive thing we can offer is the freedom to move without being made to feel that her pace needs explaining.
Try asking: “Would you like company, practical help or some quiet space?”
Support may mean sharing the next section together. It may also mean giving someone room to find her rhythm while remaining connected to the group.
Connection
Connection Does Not Require Performance
A connected group is not one where everyone behaves the same way. Some women will talk for most of the run. Others will enjoy long stretches of quiet. Some arrive confident. Others may spend their first few runs wondering whether they belong.
Women should be able to say, “I need to walk”, “I'm struggling today”, “I don't want advice”, “Can someone stay with me?” or “I need a little space” without feeling that they have disappointed the group.
That is part of what safety means to us. Not only knowing the route or what to do in an emergency, but being part of a community where you do not have to disguise what you need in order to fit in.
Belonging before performance
You do not have to perform belonging here. You are allowed to arrive as yourself.
When someone is struggling
Pause, Check and Communicate
A runner may become quiet, tearful, unusually breathless, unsteady or confused. She may also simply tell you that something does not feel right.
Do not minimise what she is experiencing or pressure her to continue. Stop somewhere safe and notify the group leader. If the situation appears serious, life-threatening or time-critical, contact emergency services rather than waiting for the group to resolve it.
A simple support sequence
Pause: Move away from immediate hazards and stop the effort.
Ask: “What are you feeling?” and “What do you need right now?”
Listen: Do not assume that encouragement, advice or continuing is what she wants.
Notify: Tell the group leader rather than managing the situation alone.
Support: Help with warmth, shade, food, fluid or equipment where appropriate and within the person's wishes.
Reassess: Continuing, shortening the route or seeking further help should be based on the situation, not pressure to finish.
Emotional support
Not Every Difficult Moment Is Physical
Running can sometimes create space for emotions that have been held together elsewhere. A runner may become overwhelmed, anxious or tearful without needing the group to solve what is happening in her life.
Stay calm. Ask whether she wants company, a slower walk, a quiet pause or the group leader. Avoid asking for personal details in front of others.
Emotional safety also means not requiring someone to explain herself before she is allowed to belong. A woman can be quiet, emotional, uncertain, slower than usual or simply not feel like talking. Connection is not created by asking her to perform comfort for the group. It is created by making room for her as she is.
You can be kind and present without becoming someone's counsellor, clinician or rescuer.
Safety and emergencies
Know When Support Needs to Escalate
Community support does not replace professional medical assistance. In Australia, call Triple Zero (000) for a life-threatening or time-critical emergency requiring police, fire or ambulance. If you are running elsewhere, use the local emergency number.
If something serious happens
- Stop the activity and move away from immediate hazards if it is safe to do so
- Notify the group leader where possible
- Provide first aid only within your level of training
- Call Triple Zero (000) in Australia for a life-threatening or time-critical emergency
- Tell the operator what has happened and provide the clearest location information available
- Use a trail name, nearby landmark, coordinates or emergency-marker code where one exists
- Stay on the line and follow the emergency operator's instructions
After the run
Finish With Care
Check that the runner you spent time with has returned safely and has what she needs. If someone became unwell or distressed, allow the group leader to follow up through the appropriate Her Trails process.
Do not turn another runner's difficult moment into group conversation afterwards. Her experience belongs to her.
If you noticed a route hazard, near miss or safety concern, tell the group leader before leaving.
Her Trails coaching cue
Look ahead for the trail, beside you for connection and behind you for the person who may no longer be there. A supported group is built through small acts of awareness across the whole run.
We do not need every woman to move in the same way to move together.
We need awareness, communication and a shared commitment to making room for one another. That means different paces and bodies, different personalities, different experiences and different ways of showing up.
come as you are. we move together.
Written by Her Trails
Our community runs create spaces for women to move, connect and build confidence on the trail, without needing to be a particular kind of runner first.
This guide provides general community and safety information. It does not replace first-aid training, medical advice, emergency-service instructions or directions given by a Her Trails group leader.
