In Motion

On a gray Saturday in February, DC Road Runners Club members leave the Iwo Jima parking lot for a long run. (Photos By Len Spoden For The Washington Post)

Weary of indoor workouts but wary of facing winter winds alone? Joining a running club can boost your exercise routine -- and your social life. When David Kapson of Arlington begins a 15-mile run on a Saturday morning, at least 50 others start with him. "Let's put it this way," he says, "I'd find it a lot harder to get going without them."

The Washington area abounds with running clubs, from those with a few dozen participants to the 1,500-member DC Road Runners Club, which Kapson joined two years ago to offset the health trap (too many rich meals, too little exercise) of what he calls the "traveling consultant lifestyle." A branch of the Road Runners Club of America, the local group connects members from the District, Maryland and Virginia through regular runs and races, a weekly e-mail and a quarterly online newsletter. Members can be as active as they want in the all-volunteer group. They might choose to run only in races or to help organize an event such as a fundraiser for last year's hurricane victims or, like Kapson, oversee an activity. "Many runners become friends over time," Kapson says, characterizing the branch, founded 44 years ago, as a "running community rather than a club."

For about a year, Kapson has coordinated the Saturday Long Run, a five-year morning staple of the club. Come rain, snow, sleet or shine, runners meet at 7:45 at the Iwo Jima Memorial parking lot in Arlington and are off and running at 8. Distances vary depending on the season, but the average is about 15 miles. Routes also vary weekly, letting participants experience seasonal changes in different parts of Washington. Attendance varies, too, according to Kapson, with a core group of 50 that can shrink to 30 in winter and blossom to 150 in late spring and summer.

"Probably the greatest strength of the club itself is its diversity," Kapson says. "There are runners of all ages and abilities," such as 87-year-old Al Guttag and babies in jogging strollers included in family memberships. For those eager for shorter and slower-paced Saturday runs, last month the club began offering a six-mile alternative route that starts at the same time and place as the long run.

Adding companionship can add pep to your run and so can training toward a goal, such as a race, says Susan Hage, club president (and wife of longtime member Jim Hage, Washington Post sports editor and columnist). With dollar entry fees, these races are "the best bargain around," Hage says. Marathons, 2K fun runs and lengths in between can provide the racing thrill to runners of all levels. District workers might even squeeze in a race during lunch hour, thanks to the monthly Tidal Basin 3K.

A running club can help you stick to your New Year's resolutions of better health and a plumper wallet, even into dreary February. As for more fun and new friends, consider them a bonus.

DC ROAD RUNNERS CLUB 703-241-0395 (events listing and message center).http://www.dcroadrunners.org. $12 per year, $17 for family and $7 for student. Download membership forms on Web site. The site provides a schedule of runs, races and other activities; the newsletter; route maps for the Saturday Long Run; and links to many other local running clubs. E-mailpresident@dcroadrunners.orgwith questions about the club andslrguy@dcroadrunners.orgwith questions about Saturday Long Runs.

To find out about other running clubs, visithttp://www.runningnetwork.comfor a list of clubs by state or check Weekend's Sports list on this page.