Hi everyone! As you may have read in last week’s post (or noticed over the last few months), I’ve been taking some serious breaks from blogging. Mainly because for years this was a blog about running, and occasionally about other random things. But mostly running. I wrote about the good runs, the bad runs, the training runs, the races, and everything in between. But after my triathlon in May, my life turned upside down when I bought my first house and my adorable puppy Ridley. Between setting up the house and training Ridley to stop chewing everything in it, plus my nagging running injury, I wasn’t doing much running. And I’m still not. But my year was busy with lots of other things! I found myself spending all of my time hiking, kayaking, biking, and skiing and I loved every minute of it.
Because my blog name is Run Away With Me, I’ve always felt a bit weird posting about my non-running hobbies and adventures unless I’m talking about cross training. I’m not really running much anymore, but I am doing lots of fun things that I want to share on this blog. So I’ve decided that it’s time for a re-brand. I’m trying to come up with a new name for this space that reflects all of my hobbies, not just the one that I haven’t done in a while. But it’s seriously hard to try to come up with something awesome that hasn’t already been taken by someone else! I’ve currently got a long list of ideas, most of which get crossed out after a quick search on Instagram. I don’t remember how I originally picked my blog name, but I swear this time around is a lot harder!
I don’t plan on completely abandoning the running part of this blog. I think that someday I’ll be back at it on a regular basis, but I’m just not there right now. It’s been a long year when it comes to my injury. It seems to flare up when I’m stressed or when I do an intense workout (like barre class/basically any class at the gym), and I only have about a minute of slow and careful running before it flares up again. I realized over the summer that if I just stop trying to run, it goes away for a while. And the longer I go without running, the more I realize that there are lots of other fun activities out there that my body can handle. It’s literally been like a breakup! Taking a year off from running has been insanely hard, but really beneficial for me in the long run. It took me a long time to mourn the loss of my pre-injury lifestyle, but I think in the long run (haha) I’m actually learning a lot from this experience.
Running was the first real workout I ever tried, and it pushed me to new limits mentally and physically. It taught me that I’m capable of doing some “impossible” things. And those lessons have enabled me to get into so many new activities that I never would have tried before. I don’t think I’ll ever give up trying to get back to running, and in fact I plan on re-starting physical therapy in January (using a running-specific doctor this time). My goal is to one day be able to trail run pain-free. For now though, I want to be able to blog about every other thing that I love doing. So what should my new name be? Does anyone out there have experience with rebranding/renaming their blog and social media accounts? My goal is to make the transition before 2017 and I’ll make sure to give you all lots of warning before I do so!
Mom in the Mtns 
You’ll find your new name! I started as ‘blog2run’ and switched to my current one later. I like that my current name feels more like a person.
I love your blog name! I was always a pretty slow runner so I love that you’re embracing it.
Thanks 😊
Personally I don’t think you need a different blog name because “Run Away” has several different meanings. I love following your blog because of your Alaskan adventures and reading your posts has me vicariously “running away” from city life.
I never thought about it that way! This is making a very convincing argument to keep this name (and avoid the hassle of re-branding)…
I agree with a fast paced life. I don’t think you need to change. Run Away With Me doesn’t necessarily mean physical running even though I know when you created the blog that’s was the intention. To me, run away with me means adventure and you definitely have plenty of those while in Alaska and finding your way after injury.
Thank you for saying this! I never really thought about it in an adventure kind of way. When I created this blog name I was living a super boring life in Philly, and I had no idea that one day I’d be blogging from Alaska!
Hey! I have *some* experience with branding if you ever want to chat. I’ve also been thinking a lot about a new blog name for you since your last post came out too.. I’ve always really loved the rhyming aspect of your blog name, so I was trying to come up with something that still kept that… I haven’t found the right thing yet I don’t think, but I do have some ideas. You also have a lot to go on… maybe something along the lines of staying active, exploring AK, trying new things…. my favorite so far “Seizing the day with Kristen K..”
Haha I love this! Thanks so much for trying to help me out! My husband suggested “Trailing Away with Kristen K” so you’re not the only one trying to stick to the rhyming theme!
I really like your blog name and don’t think you need to change it. “Run Away” makes me think of adventure (ha just realized I basically copied other comments) and not just running. Besides, you’re still a runner even if you’re not running right now and I enjoy reading about the different workouts you do other than running.
Thanks so much for this comment! I feel like every time I have a non-running post no one will want to read it, so I’m glad that people still want me to blog even if I’m injured. I really need to get back to blogging regularly!
I also agree with a fast paced life and others here in that I don’t think you have to change your blog name. Run away with me can mean all kinds of things, not necessarily running-related. I like the name, personally and wouldn’t change it.
Thanks! I really never thought about my blog name having other meanings so I’m kind of relieved that it can still work for my current non-running life. I’ve got a lot to think about now!
Good luck!
I agree, those not into running will think about your title as a figure of speech. Don’t change it! Also, not changing will allow you to fight about running AND all your adventures. It may come full circle anyways.
Happy to come across your blog. I grew up in Scranton, PA and have a job opportunity in Alaska. Been trying to do as much research from others first hand and I’m curious… Knowing what you know now, would you do the move and relocation by yourself?
Oh I loooooove living here! We drove (I bet if you search my blog you can find those posts) in April 2014 and it was gorgeous but not safe for a solo person because the roads were crazy! I’d wait until June or July if you want to drive. Cost of living is expensive here but I definitely make more money here too. There’s a lot of transplants here from other states so it’s easy to meet people if you join groups. Winter is so dark that it physically hurts me (seasonal affective disorder) but the summers are amazing! If you love the outdoors it’s the best place to be. Would you be coming to Anchorage?
Personally, I wouldn’t change it. Run Away with Me could mean anything! Plus, your readers will still be here no matter what you’re posting about. Variety is the spice of life 🙂