Sunday, February 20, 2011

Form + Function = Smart Training and a Strong Body for the Multi-Sport Athlete

There are numerous components to living a healthy lifestyle: exercise, eating well, and vitamin supplementation just to name a few.  A component that is oftentimes overlooked, especially by women is strength training.

Why strength train?  Strength training has numerous benefits, as does all exercise. Combining strength training with Yoga and a variety of cardio workouts is your formula for overall success when it comes to toning, weight loss, balance, flexibility and most importantly overall wellness.

Form is one of the most important elements when it comes to strength training.  Form includes controlling the movement, range of motion, and the speed of motion.  Controlling a movement means you are taking your time while conducting a specific movement and you are not cheating yourself out of working that targeted muscle group.  The range of motion refers to utilizing the full extension while conducting an exercise.  This will work all the fibers and portions of the muscle necessary to build strength.  The speed of motion refers to the level of speed you use while exercising a particular muscle.  The slower you contract the more tension you develop and the more tension equals better results!

It is far more important to perfect your form, which may mean lifting lighter weights, or doing less repititions .  Your workout will be more effective and productive.  If you do not pay attention to good form, you will get hurt sooner or later despite your best efforts.




Article contributed by Vanessa Spiller, Certified Nutritionist and Certified Personal Trainer.  Vanessa is also certified in the TRX Suspension Strength Training System.  Visit her health and wellness website at www.gethealthywithvanessa.com.  Vanessa teaches TRX classes in Gainesville, VA at Balans Studio.  Check out their complete listing of classes offered at www.balansstudio.com.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Week of 2/14/11 - 2/20/11

This past Sunday the Rogue Racers set several PR's in the Rock 'n' Roll Mardi Gras Marathon and Half Marathon in New Orleans, LA. Check out the results page of our website to see just how well everyone ran!

For anyone running the Parkway Classic 10 Miler, this is week #8 on the training schedule, which means that Saturday's long run is a 10 miler at long tempo pace + 10 sec/mile (YIKES... we will definitely earn our Starbucks this week).  If you are interesting in registering for the Parkway Classic, make sure to sign up soon since the race is currently at 90% capacity.

Lastly, we are ready to put in our order for race singlets and T-shirts.  The goal is to have the new singlets by the Parkway classic (so we can all wear them), so I'd like to aim for Saturday 2/26/11 as the order cut off date.  Please respond to this post letting me know exactly what you would like (1. T-shirt/singlet  2. mens/womens  3. size  4. quantity).  Please see the links below for examples:

Women's Sprint Singlet in Maroon/White (color #640) - approximate price with screen printing ($23)
Men's Sprint Singlet in Maroon/White (color $640) - approximate price with screen printing ($23) 
Women's Technical Tee in Maroon/White (color #033) - approximate price with screen printing ($35)
Men's Technical Tee in Maroon/White (color #033) - approximate price with screen printing ($35)

The costs listed above are estimates, but I do not anticipate the shirts costing more than the prices listed above. I will let you know the final costs once we know how many shirts we are ordering.

Schedule updates for this week:
2/15/11 - Tuesday 12:30pm track workout at Washington-Lee HS - meeting as scheduled
2/15/11 - Tuesday 6:30pm track workout at Chantilly HS - meeting as scheduled
2/19/11 - Saturday 8am long run at W&OD trail - meeting as scheduled

Happy training, 

Holly

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Week of 2/7/11 - 2/13/11

Hi Rogue Racers, 

This coming Sunday, February 13, 2011 several Rogue Racers are participating in the Love The Run You're With 5K and the Rock 'n' Roll Mardi Gras Marathon and Half Marathon.  Although many people will be out of town or resting for the Sunday races, I have heard through the grapevine that several people are still interested in meeting for the Saturday AM long run at the W&OD trail.  If you are interested in doing this, it might be best to comment on this post and let other people know that you plan on running (so you know who you are looking for at the trail).  

I will post the results for the Sunday, February 13, 2011 races on the Rogue Racers results page as soon as they are posted.  If anyone sets a PR, please make sure to let me know so that I can put that next to your time!

We currently have 12 Rogue Racers running the Parkway Classic 10 Miler, so I have downloaded the Furman FIRST 10 mile training program and posted it to the Rogue Racers training page (along with the appropriate pace charts).  This week (week of 2/7/11 - 2/13/11) is week #9 on the training schedule, which means that Saturday's long run is a 13 miler at long tempo pace + 20 sec/mile.  If you are interesting in registering for the Parkway Classic, make sure to sign up soon since they anticipate the race selling out in the next week or so.

Schedule updates for this week:
2/8/11 - Tuesday 12:30pm track workout at Washington-Lee HS - CANCELLED
2/8/11 - Tuesday 6:30pm track workout at Chantilly HS - meeting as scheduled
2/12/11 - Saturday 8am long run at W&OD trail - meeting as scheduled

Happy training, 

Holly