Growth happens under stress—as long as you recover well. That’s a rule in life—and in exercise. When you challenge your body in new ways, it breaks down a little bit and becomes sore. When it has time to heal, it builds back stronger. This process begs the question: should you workout when sore? If you … Read more
If you’ve ever watched a track team practicing, you’ve probably seen runners sprinting with an exaggerated form, driving their knees up to their chest as they vigorously pump their arms. This challenging exercise, called high knees, can improve your fitness and help you become a faster runner. High knees can also be surprisingly fun, as … Read more
If you’re a runner, you’ve probably heard endless times that to improve your running performance and reduce your risk of injury, you must add strength training into your general training program. Running success is also a result of other important components such as dynamic stretching before running, static stretching after running, healthy nutrition, adequate sleep, … Read more
Whenever you establish a fitness routine, one of the most important considerations is what type of exercise you’ll do each day. Will it be a cardio workout like a run, HIIT workout, or spin class? Or a strength training workout like lifting weights at the gym? Establishing an effective exercise routine hinges upon balancing different … Read more
Have you ever stood at the starting line of a race and among the sea of bare legs, you spot beautifully-sculpted calves? Or perhaps you see guys or gals at your gym with calves that seem to pop out or bulge from the leg like when someone flexes their biceps. For some people, it seems … Read more
As runners, we have the tendency to have one particular view when it comes to cardio exercise: there’s running and then there’s everything else. In other words, from a run-centric point of view, running is always better than any other form of cardio like indoor cycling, rowing, and the elliptical. But, what if we put … Read more
Just a few years ago, it was very rare to hear of someone weighing the pros and cons of rowing vs. running. If you were walking around the cardio section at your gym or trying to decide what home exercise equipment to buy, chances were you were mostly browsing treadmills, ellipticals, and stationary bikes. However, … Read more
Running is a high-impact sport, plain and simple. The constant pounding on the asphalt takes a toll on our bodies, especially our joints. Most of us runners tend to overdo it as we become more and more addicted to our sport as time goes on. We want to train harder, longer, improve our speed, endurance, … Read more
Each of our training will vary significantly depending on our fitness level, goals, and availability. There are also endless distinct methods that trainers and coaches explore, research and use with their athletes. Training has turned into trial and error as each athlete performs and reacts differently. Consistent research has given us greater knowledge; however, makes … Read more
A stairs workout isn’t common to find on a runner’s schedule, especially when training for a marathon. But maybe it should be. After all, stair workouts provide a host of benefits for runners that may translate into better race performance. But doing a stair workout isn’t for the faint of heart (in fact it’s a … Read more
As running is a high-impact sport, it’s crucial we take extra good care of our bodies so we can enjoy running long into our futures. A well-integrated training plan will not only include your running workouts and training loads, but a number of other essential components to help us become well-rounded, strong, and healthy athletes. … Read more
The health benefits of running are hard to argue with: being a runner can improve your cardiovascular and muscular fitness, as well as make you live longer and improve your mental health. However, like everything in life, too much of one thing can lead to imbalances and weaknesses. Runners have a bad reputation for ignoring … Read more
Runners tend to get a – often deserved – bad wrap for ignoring cross-training. Today, we’re going to introduce you to plyometric exercises for runners: fast, explosive cross-training exercises designed to improve your endurance, strength, coordination, stability, and conditioning. By incorporating some of these exercises into your routine, you’ll switch things up – and note … Read more
Cross training for runners is an essential part of a sustainable, healthy, strong, and injury-free running journey. By mixing up your training plan with other activities – be it strength training, yoga, or swimming – cross training is important for helping you level up your running and hit new PRs. But when done incorrectly, cross … Read more
In this post, Amy Knutsen Whitson, M.D. talks through her experiences combining CrossFit and running: Have you ever wondered how much and what type of strength training to work into your running life? I am a lifelong athlete and a working mom training for my first marathon. Like many of you, as the mileage increases, … Read more