Here’s a cold water wake-up: All those new goals you created when the clock hit 12am, January 1? You’re already almost a week late on starting them. Ay-yi-yi. Don’t fret just yet, though. Bat City’s got a great deal of local clubs, groups, and gatherings that can help you hit all those to-dos of 2026.
If Your Resolution Is to Run a 5k
Turns out jogging is really more of a team sport than the lone-wolf workout it’s often viewed as. Nothing inspires the undermotivated athlete like a whole crowd of other huffing & puffing people runnin’ toward the finish line. Austin’s got a fair amount of run clubs open to all sorts, many of which have free to low-cost entry. Java hounds can drop into groups like Morning Jo’s (instagram.com/themorningjos) or Desnudo Run Club (instagram.com/desnudorunclubatx), where locally brewed bevs await attendees. Austin Front Runners (instagram.com/austinfrontrunners) is open to LGBTQ runners & walkers, and Strut with Local Queer ATX and OutWellness (instagram.com/localqueeratx) is super beginner-friendly as an all-walking speed option. There’s even Artist Run Club (northern-southern.com/artist-run-club), where every trek guides you to a different creative space around town.
If Your Resolution Is to Cook More Meals at Home
Your kitchen doesn’t have to be confidential (sorry, Anthony) when you learn from the talented foodies around Austin. All the secrets of sautéing, flambéing, and even egg-boiling get revealed every week in these culinary classrooms. Learn the ins and outs of lactose with Antonelli’s (antonellischeese.com) via private lessons or public workshops, or the slippery secrets of olive oil with Con’Olio’s various tasting experiences (conolios.com/public-classes). Sharp and sweet, the Prickly Pear Cooking Classes group (thepricklypearcookingclasses.com) is chef-owned and offers classes covering countries’ cuisines from Mexico to France as well as how to fire up a wood-fired pizza. Longtime local fave Thai Fresh (thai-fresh.com/cookingclass) continues to offer hands-on classes from head chef Jam with public and private lesson options all promising to teach all your Thai favorites.
If Your Resolution Is to Read a Boatload of Books
Setting sail on the literary high seas seems daunting after social media’s zapped most of our collective attention span, but hark! A solution approaches. Book clubs offer communal support whether you finish the month’s selection or struggle to reach page 1, and with almost every genre represented across Austin’s book-club spectrum, you’re sure to get back in the motion of the reading ocean. The biggest dog on deck is obviously our local library (library.austintexas.gov), which features clubs for tweens & teens, mystery mavens, romance lovers, and even folks who just like weird stuff. Austin’s also home to more than its fair share of indie outposts, like BookPeople (bookpeople.com/events), whose selection ranges from classics club Required Reading Revisited to the tipple-toting Happy Hour Book Club. Queer folks can sign up to flip pages with the Little Gay Shop’s Little Gay Book Club (instagram.com/thelittlegaybookclub), and anyone feeling that new woke wave crashing over ’em ought to check out feminist-forward BookWoman’s BookGroup (ebookwoman.com/events).
Looking for even more personal growth-inspiring gatherings? Check out our online listings, as the events flow plentifully at calendar.austinchronicle.com.
This article appears in January 9 • 2026.