Mental Well-Being
Mental Health Awareness Month
To honor Mental Health Awareness Month, New York Road Runners will host a variety of in-person activities, including the second-annual NYRR Mindful 5K; plan virtual challenges; and offer digital resources to encourage New Yorkers of all ages to participate and improve their mental well-being. Nearly one in four adult New Yorkers experience a mental health disability according to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.
Running isn't just for physical health anymore. We have seen a huge increase in the number of people who say they're running because of the impact it has on their mental well-being as well. We’re proud to bring people of all ages and abilities together through a shared love of movement 365 days a year.
With one in three Americans experiencing loneliness, New York Road Runners adult and youth races, community events, and free programming across the five boroughs are designed to foster social connections that reduce stress, anxiety, depression, and the risk of heart disease, stroke, and dementia.
New York Road Runners’ vision is to build healthier lives and stronger communities through the transformative power of running. Exercise is a natural mood-enhancer and stress reliever, boosts endorphins and self-esteem, and can reduce the risk of major depression by up to 26 percent with just 15 minutes of running or walking a day.
This Mental Health Awareness Month we invite you to find your community at one of our in-person events or virtual challenges.
In-Person Events
MAY 28: The Transformative Power of Running on Mental Well-being Panel
Join New York Road Runners and NAMI-NYC in a discussion about the mind and body connection. Panelists Zac Clark (Founder, Release Recovery), Carla Murray (Support Groups Manager, NAMI-NYC), and Darleen Santiago (therapist and social worker) will provide insights into how running and physical activity have transformed their lives and helped them cope, excel, and persevere. The conversation will be moderated by NYRR CEO Rob Simmelkjaer .
MAY 29: Member-Exclusive Yoga Sessions
Join us at the NYRR RUNCENTER featuring the New Balance Run Hub on Thursday, May 29, for a special member-exclusive yoga series in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. Unwind and recharge with two 45-minute classes offered at 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Space is limited—reserve your spot and take a mindful step toward well-being!
MAY 17: Virtual Zen Zone at the RBC Brooklyn Half
The Virtual Zen Zone helps runners mentally prepare for the race ahead with self-guided audio recordings. Look out for banners with the QR code leading to guided meditations at the RBC Brooklyn Half Start area.
MAY 3: Stop By the Zen Zone at the NYRR Mindful 5K
NYRR has partnered with NAMI-NYC to offer a “Zen Zone”, a serene space for meditation and mindfulness located at Race-Day Central. For those already registered for and running the NYRR Mindful 5K, join us at the NYRR Zen Zone to mentally prepare for the upcoming race with live sessions and self-guided audio recordings.
View the race-day photo gallery!
Community Events
Open Run for an Open Mind – Everyone is Welcome!
Join us at a special NYRR Open Run events dedicated to mental well-being. The final event will feature representatives from NAMI-NYC leading conversations about running and mental health. Open Run for an Open Mind event series:
- Sunday, May 4, 9:00 a.m. NYRR Open Run at Marine Park, Brooklyn
- Saturday, May 10, 9:00 a.m. NYRR Open Run at Soundview Park, Bronx
- Sunday, May 18, 9:00 a.m. NYRR Open Run at Cunningham Park, Queens
- Saturday, May 31, 9:00 a.m. NYRR Open Run with NAMI-NYC at Morningside Park, Manhattan
NYRR Striders Featuring Mental Well-Being for Older Adults
The NYRR Striders walking, running, and fitness program helps older adults, who are most at risk of social isolation, stay active and build community through free in-person sessions. Throughout May several Striders sites will participate in a friendly walking challenge. Mental health resources from NAMI-NYC will also be available.
- Wednesday, May 7, 10:00 a.m. NYRR Striders at RAIN Parkchester Senior Center, Bronx
- Monday, May 12, 9:00 a.m. NYRR Striders at Rochdale Village Senior Center, Queens
- Thursday, May 22, 9:30 a.m. NYRR Striders at Anderson Neighborhood Senior Center, Staten Island
- Wednesday, May 28, 10:00 a.m. NYRR Striders at Columbus Circle, Manhattan
- Thursday, May 29, 10:00 a.m. NYRR Striders at Wyckoff Senior Center, Brooklyn
Virtual Activities
MAY 1 - 31: Make Your Miles Count, Anywhere in the World
Run into wellness this month by joining the Virtual NYRR Mental Health Awareness Month Challenge. This invigorating challenge inspires everyone to seize the profound benefits that running provides for your mental well-being. Get moving and complete a total of 31 miles on Strava at your own pace, anytime and anywhere, from May 1 to May 31.
MAY 1 - 31: Encourage Kids to Join the Free Rising NYRR Mindful Virtual Run
Motivate the young runners in your life to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month with a fun, flexible, and free virtual run. By registering, kids commit to run or walk any distance between May 1 and May 31. Kids can choose a course outdoors, indoors, or even on a treadmill. There’s no need to track their time—just have fun! Make it extra special with a printable bib and an official Rising New York Road Runners finisher certificate.
Digital Content
Set the Pace Presented by Peloton Recognizes Mental Health Awareness Month
Peloton instructor Kirra Michel discusses yoga and mindfulness for runners. She leads listeners on a guided meditation and offers advice on integrating moments of mindfulness and stillness into your training. Listen now!
Also coming to Set the Pace in May:
- May 8: A special Mother’s Day episode featuring the story of Carey Socol, one mom who found solace and healing through running.
- May 22: Olympian and TCS New York City Marathon champion Meb Keflezighi’s personal advice on how to manage the post-marathon and half marathon blues.
New York Road Runners Invites You to Move and “Win the Day”
In a recent op-ed for the New York Daily News, NYRR CEO Rob Simmelkjaer highlights the organization's commitment to mental health awareness, emphasizing the positive impact running can have on mental well-being. He shares personal insights and encourages runners to prioritize their mental health and utilize the support systems available through NYRR.
Running Through Grief: Finding Mindfulness Through Movement
Meet NYRR marketing strategist, certified mindfulness and meditation teacher, and runner Kristina Lopez. Read her story on our blog as she shares how running and meditation have been vital to her grieving process since losing her grandmother last year .
Free Resources
NAMI-NYC
Mental illness affects us all. One in five New Yorkers struggle with mental illness and The Other 4™ are family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors. For over 40 years, the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York City (NAMI-NYC) has offered life-changing support, education, and advocacy to families and individuals affected by mental illness. NAMI-NYC offers mental health classes, 40 support and social groups, family mentoring, a Helpline in 180+ languages, and much more.
All programs and services are completely free and available regardless of income, insurance, or immigration status. NAMI-NYC is the only nonprofit providing direct support to family members who have a loved one with mental illness. If you or someone you know is struggling, call the Helpline at 212-684-3264 or visit https://naminycmetro.org/helpline/.
Programs For:
- Individuals Living with a Mental Health Condition
- NEW! Teens Ages 14-18
- Family Members and Friends
- Schools
- Companies
You may also be interested in:
- NAMIWalks NYC + Mental Health Street Fest on Sunday, May 18
- NAMI-NYC Community Run, and 40 other support & social groups
For Young People
NAMI-NYC now offers free mental health programs for teens 14-18.
- Chat with Our Helpline: Teens ages 14–18 can reach out to our Helpline to talk with peers close to their age who truly understand. Ask your mental health questions and share what’s on your mind—our Helpline is here to listen.
- Join Connection Corner (Teen Support Group): Our new virtual teen support group is facilitated by peers close in age, offering a space to connect and find community. Join us weekly on Zoom. Sessions are free and no registration is required.
- Bring Mental Health Awareness to Your School: Request our Ending the Silence presentation to learn about mental health, how to help your friends, and ask for help when you need it. Funded in part by The Connor Sheehan Fund.
- Join Our Youth Advisory Group: Share your lived experience with mental health challenges and shape NAMI-NYC’s programs for teens. Meets monthly.
NYRR Free Resources for Youth
While Rising New York Road Runners develops kids’ movement skills through running-based activities, it is just as important to teach kids how to calm their minds and bodies. The videos below guide kids through breathing exercises and light movement to help them return to a resting state or to take a moment to pause and reset.
- Feeling Breaths and Sounding Breaths
- Stop the Rock and Balloon Breath
- Movement and Breathing Inspired by Nature
- Sensory Poem and Sensory Breathing
Maybelline New York – Brave Together
As part of Maybelline New York’s global initiative, Brave Together, to support everyone experiencing anxiety and depression, the brand has created support tools to help navigate everything from spotting the signs, to how to practice self-care, to exploring resources.
In 2025, Maybelline launched the digital version of Brave Talk, a training to further amplify the brand’s mission to make one-to-one support for anxiety and depression accessible to all.
Through the five easy-to-remember B.R.A.V.E. steps of Brave Talk, users can learn how to start a conversation with a friend, support them, and lead them to care in less than 10 minutes. Along the way, users will gain helpful information and tools from the training and decide how they would approach each situation. The aim is to gather the five B.R.A.V.E. letters representing the steps for supporting a struggling friend, thereby completing Brave Talk:
- Be Present
- Right Setting
- Ask Questions
- Validate Feelings
- Encourage Action
Through the Brave Together program, Maybelline New York has a goal of helping 10 million people access one-to-one mental health support and donating $20 million to this cause by 2030 so no one has to struggle alone.
To access the new Brave Talk digital training or to learn more about Maybelline New York's Brave Together program you can visit www.maybelline.com/brave-talk-training .
Community Stories
At 79, Mildred Baker Runs Her First Half Marathon
A longtime NYC resident, Mildred was looking to get more physically active. She loves the walking and fitness activities, but Striders means more to her. “It’s made me more open, more friendly” she said. “Wherein I did not communicate or talk to anyone, now it seems like they have pulled the good out of me. [Fellow Striders] are like a family to me.”
Fireside Chat with Molly Seidel
On May 2, 2023, to kick off Mental Health Awareness Month, NYRR CEO Rob Simmelkjaer sat down with Olympian Molly Seidel at the NYRR RUNCENTER featuring the New Balance Run Hub to discuss her mental health challenges over the course of her career. Catch the highlights below or watch the Full Fireside Chat.
Running and Meditating with Mariana Fernandez
We dedicated an episode of Set the Pace, the official podcast of New York Road Runners, in honor of Mental Health Awareness Month. Peloton yoga instructor Mariana Fernandez shared her experiences growing up in a Latinx family of athletes and highlights how her mother has been a source of inspiration. Mariana also guides you through a short calming meditation.
"Running Has Been Invaluable for My Mental Health"
College lacrosse player Cailin Bracken spoke out about the pressures facing student-athletes and the impact on their mental health. Running long distances has brought her solace, and on May 20, 2023 she lined up for her first-ever race, the RBC Brooklyn Half.
For Danny Barcia, the Physical and Mental Benefits of Running Go Hand in Hand
During Mental Health Awareness Month, he's celebrating a return to his NYRR Open Run community and the sport he loves.
Running Toward Emotional Health
Zaida Espinoza ran her first RBC Brooklyn Half on May 20, 2023. Running has helped her heal from the trauma associated with her deployment during the Iraq War.
Tips to Help with the Post-Marathon Blues
Training for a marathon takes months of discipline and hard work, logging mile after mile week after week. When race day finally arrives it’s a 26.2-mile celebration of all the work you've put in to get to the starting line. But after the excitement of race day fades, some runners may feel down, unfocused, and unmotivated.
The Mental Health Benefits of Exercise
NYRR’s youth and community programs bring free running and fitness opportunities to communities all over NYC. The benefits of exercise go beyond the physical to include mental health benefits too. We hear from program participants on how exercise impacts their mental health.
RBC Brooklyn Half Runners Are Part of an Amazing Local Community
Two runners with strong ties to Brooklyn, like many others in the 26,000-runner field, have overcome challenges and drawn on community connections to be a part of this year’s race.
Jackie Quan: Running to Feel Alive and Strong
Jackie Quan started running NYRR races in 2020, after surgery and the death of her sister. For Jackie, running was a way out of pain and was there to preserve her mental health.
"I’m Proud of Myself for Continuing to Just Move in the Midst of a Horrible Tragedy"
Olivia Witherite at the United Airlines NYC Half, Picture"I’m Proud of Myself for Continuing to Just Move in the Midst of a Horrible Tragedy"
In the spring of 2023, Olivia Witherite went from being a casual runner who occasionally ran races to deciding she would get serious about training for the 2023 RBC Brooklyn Half. She said she ran the race and “felt really great about what was next."
Molly Seidel Openly Shares Her Mental Health Challenges
Molly Seidel is an Olympic medalist and one of America's top distance runners. She has been transparent about her struggles with obsessive-compulsive disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and eating disorders.