Meet James Woods — the guy who stood outside Toasted during lockdown, asked a few mates to run 5k, and accidentally sparked a community.
Let’s hear from James himself—what inspired him to start running, what keeps him motivated, and the journey from casual jogger to our first club coach.

How did you first get into running?
During Covid, like a lot of people, I needed something to get out of the house and meet people, and also needed to try and get fit! I wasn’t aware of any running clubs in the area, so contacted a few friends to see if they fancied meeting outside Toasted and running 5k. What started out as a few friends running together, became Toasted Running Club, later TheCRC, and then CRC!!!
What inspired you to become a coach?
That’s a long story over a pint or 2, but in short I wanted to take a couch to 5k and got some encouragement to become a coach to do this. At the time I booked on to the Lirf course with Athletics NI and was extremely touched when the other members of Toasted RC clubbed together behind my back and collected the money between them to reimburse my fee.
What’s your favorite running shoe or gear?
Oh, hard question! Probably my new Shokz! I love a bit of music for solo runs, and Shokz are great to be able to have some background music while still hearing what’s going on around you, and being able to chat!
What’s your next personal challenge or bucket-list event?
I have a couple of half marathons coming up, Donegal and Belfast, but the secret is I have signed up for the 2026 Belfast Marathon which would be my first marathon! But ssshhh, don’t tell anyone!!
What piece of advice do you have for new runners?
Try to avoid injuries by always stretching, and warming up whenever you can. Also if you ever lose your running mojo stick at it, and tell someone in the club so they can give you some encouragement.
Do you have a favorite running mantra or quote?
“Rain won’t kill you”, and “the first step over the door is always the hardest one!”.
