Advice for Runners, Walkers and Hikers

Everyone knows that exercise is good for you. The most enjoyable form of exercise, I think, is done outdoors surrounded by nature. For those of you who venture out and breath the fresh air, a word of caution: make sure you practice safety habits and also carry a self defense product!

Be aware of your surroundings and listen to any out of the ordinary sounds. Yes this means, don't put head phones on and expect to know if someone is following you! I know music makes it easier to keep a pace, but if you must listen to music, please make sure that you turn the volume down. Stay alert and try not to daydream. Enjoy the "now" of your routine, the scenery, the energizing feeling your body gets. If you can, take a buddy with you, human or pet. Make it a point to schedule your routine at different times of the day. This is a good practice because most attackers study their victims in advance and know their patterns. So, keeping a varied schedule is safer! If you have the ability to do your exercise in the afternoon or mornings, this is even better. If your exercise routine is hiking, the same advice applies. While hiking, you have to be especially careful of the surrounding trees, bushes, rocks, hills, etc. They make good hiding places for attackers!

Another important factor that runners, walkers and hikers must consider is the possibility of having to defend themselves against an attacker. Now, I know some of you might say that this will never happen to you or that you are strong enough to take care of yourself. But there is always the possibility of things not going in your favor, and other factors that you wouldn't have anticipated. It is better to be prepared for any situation. When you walk or run, you could unfortunately be assaulted by a stranger or a dog! If you hike, again you could be attacked by not only a human but you could be attacked by a bear! I guess it depends on where you hike! For all of these situations there is a self-defense product you can carry that will help prevent such attacks.

If you are near civilization you should carry a product such as pepper spray or mace. There are many types and sizes of pepper spray you can choose from on our website, WomenOnGuard.com. If you know that you are at a higher risk of being attacked by a dog, you can carry the Mace® brand Muzzle pepper spray. There is even a product that repels dogs using an ultrasonic sound wave; The Ultrasonic Dog Chaser. If you hike where bears might be present, you can carry Bear Spray by Mace.

Of course there are other products that you can carry depending on how comfortable you feel using them. There are stun gun and taser options as well as personal alarm options, all of which you can find on our website. Either way, it is better to carry something for self-defense than nothing at all!