"What in the world is a 'run date', Elyse?".

"Only my favorite kind," I replied.

I was chatting with a friend during an easy jog, and as what frequently happens in the world of a twenty-something single female, the topic of dating came up. For me, running is my life. I work in run, I run for fun, and I train competitively. So, by default, I meet a lot of runners. Hence, the run date is no stress, a lot of fun, and keeps me right in my element.

No matter how running fits into your life, I find the run date to be a perfect and practical first date. What could be better than a few miles to chat and get to know one another? I guarantee that during the run there will be far less awkward pauses than meeting up for drinks or dinner. Additionally, you will both be in running clothes, so there will never be a question of "how dressed up should I be?" And, if anything, you will have gotten your workout in.

Neither person has to be a hardcore runner, but even for a casual jogger nothing can beat a run date. The most important thing is to keep it simple. At the end of the run, grab protein shakes, coffee, or brunch. Save your excruciating post-run ab routine for the second date!

Here are some guidelines for the run date:

1. Route: Plan out a route in advance. Decide before how many miles you are going to cover. I like to let the guy to pick a route, but I will always have a back-up in mind, in case we need it.

2. Pace: This isn’t a race. It is a casual run and conversation. Run a pace that is comfortable for both of you. You should run next to each other. One person should not be a few steps ahead of the other. If this is happening, not a good run date! Save the racing and speed work for serious training sessions. Resist the temptation to compare times and race stats.

3. Attire: Yes, it is a date, but you still need to be able to run comfortably. Avoid a lot of jewelry, unless you normally run with it (some of us can’t run without our pearls), and wear functional running clothes that you are comfortable being active in. And don’t wear perfume or cologne…sweat, running, and designer scents don’t mix.

4. Have fun: You are doing what you love, running, and you are sharing that with someone else, who probably loves running too. Keep the pressure off and enjoy being outside and each other’s company.

See if there is a running group in your community to meet fellow runners and let us know about the roadside romance!

The Wheel of Life is a really neat exercise I came across in a workshop on boosting energy. It gets you to break up the various areas of your life and then rate them, so you can see your overall satisfaction for each section. The portions that you rate highly bring you joy and the lower rated ones bring stress and drain your energy.

Here is a Wheel of Life from Startup Princess you can use. Fill out each section as you desire, then draw a line across the portion of pie. You will notice the variation of levels and how they don't always line up entirely. I found the best labels for each section were:

• Career

• Physical environment (e.g. your home)

• Money / finances

• Health (this includes mental, physical, diet, exercise etc.)

• Friends and family

• Romance / significant other

• Personal growth / development (learning, study, training etc)

• Fun (recreation, things you love doing!)

At the time I was first doing this exercise, I lived in a small shoebox of an apartment with three other girls and I rated my "environment" as fairly low, like a 3. That was pretty easy to see, but what I didn’t really take note of, was that the apartment was where I spent a lot of my time. The lack of personal space brought stress into my life. As soon as this clicked, I did something about it. Now live in a gorgeous open apartment with an amazing view of Whistler Mountain. Gosh, does this give me a good place to come home to now!

I realized that it's great to have those few areas on your wheel at their peak, but you really need to stop ignoring those areas of your life that you aren’t so thrilled about. They aren't going anywhere. And they are just going to keep draining you till you look them in the eye and straighten them out.