Dipping Your Toes in Trail Running
Getting Started
By Alicja Pilarska · · Getting Started
A beginners guide to trail running…
If you’re reading this, you’re probably a road runner curious about trails or a hiker ready to kick things up a notch. Maybe it started with a friend last week, tossing out “trail running” like a mystical incantation. They didn’t say much, but the grin on their face, the filthy clothes that looked like they’d been dragged through the Wicklow Mountains, and the disheveled hair radiating mountain-goat energy said it all.
You’ve since tuned into the Trail Running Ireland Podcast, watched YouTube videos of mud-soaked runners sliding down hills with pizza and Coke in hand, and followed every trail-running influencer out there. You’re ready to try it, but the flood of info—gear, food, techniques—has you a bit overwhelmed.
Trail running isn’t quite road running or hiking. The terrain’s all over the place (obviously), the views are stunning (if you can spare a glance), and the adventure hits differently (especially when the weather flips). Toss in a technical descent, and you’ve got a day that’s equal parts epic and exhausting. Whether you’re a road-running pro or a hiking enthusiast, trails demand some adjustments. Let’s break it down—drawing from years of running since I was 16, with a few breaks when life threw curveballs, and plenty of time coaching others through the same transition.