Friday, September 29, 2006

Coaching Services


Need some help with your own training program?

Hit The Road...Running is pleased to announce the launch of our Personal Coaching Services.

All our coaching services include:
- Goal Setting
- Program Consultation
- Training Advice
- Accountability
- Strategy Setting
- E-mail Q&A
- Motivational E-mails

All our programs are provided by certified personal trainers.

Basic Coaching Service - $60/month
Initial 30 minute consultation to determine your needs and goals and e-mail consultations.

Advanced Coaching Service - $100/month
Initial 30 minute consultation followed by weekly 1/2 hour phone sessions to keep you on track with your training.

Contact:
Tony Denford
Tony@hittheroadrunning.com
(647) 882 9755

Want even more? Check out our Performance Program.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Congratulations

Congratulations to everyone who ran at the Scotiabank Marathon, Half Marathon and 5K.

Some of my trainees had AMAZING personal bests. Check out all the results here.

Now it's time to set your next goal!

Friday, September 22, 2006

Upcoming Races

It's a busy time of year for races.

Here's a selection of upcoming races:

Sep 24 - Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon, Half Marathon and 5K

Sep 30 - Run for the Toad

Oct 1 - Run for the Cure - Various locations

Keep Running

Wednesday, September 20, 2006

Race Week

Well it's race week again for anyone taking part in the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon weekend.

It's important at this point of your training to take it easy, relax, get lots of sleep and not to screw up all the training you've done.

Another good tip is to stick to what you know. Don't try any new spicy foods in the last few days (especially the night before the race). Stay away from (or limit) the alcohol and caffeine.

Now is not a good time to switch to new running shoes or clothes either. You will be better to run in the same shirts and shorts you've done some of your longer training runs in.

Most importantly, just relax, have fun and celebrate your accomplishments.

Monday, September 18, 2006

Help Stop Childhood Cancer

It's not too late to sponsor me on-line for A Run for Liane this weekend at the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon.

All funds go to support the Childhood Cancer Research Centre at SickKids Hospital and donations online receive a tax receipt.

Click Here To pledge Your Support

Thankyou.

Want a little 'Me' time?

Here's an excellent article on the importance of taking care of yourself first.

Taking care of your own health makes it easier to take care of the rest of the things in your life.

Friday, September 15, 2006

The Amazing Pace

Enjoy the TV show 'The Amazing Race'?

The Amazing Pace is coming up on October 28th where teams of 4 compete in a number of challenges around Toronto using nothing more than their feet, public transit and their wits.

This will be a great event and if there's enough interest I'd like to put in a Hit The Road team into the event.

Check out all the details here and let me know by e-mail at tony@hittheroadrunning.com if you'd like to be part of the team.

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Goal Setting


Goal setting is probably the most important part of any fitness program. Without a goal there is no real incentive to do the work necessary to obtain optimal fitness. All goals should have three elements. They should be achievable, they should be specific and they should have a timeline.

Take a few minutes today to think about what your fitness goals are. Don't leave it until tomorrow as it won't get done any you will end up like a ship without a rudder. Think about what you would like to achieve and when you'd like to achieve it. Once you've done this ask yourself if it is specific enough. It's not good enough to say 'run faster' or 'lose weight'. You want to be specific like 'I want to knock 2 minutes off my best 5K time' or 'I want to lose 5 pounds'.

Now that you have a specific goal, with a specific timeline you can start to plan the things you need to do to get you there. If your goal is to run a faster time, you could plan some speed workouts. If your goal is to lose 5 pounds you could plan to cut out the ice cream cake or do some additional cardio work or both. If the timeline you have in mind is unrealistic, adjust it so that it can be achieved. You cannot lose 30 pounds in 10 days but you may be able to do it within six months.

Once you have a goal and a plan to achieve it you can start to work towards it but you need to also make a commitment to getting it done. If you have setbacks along the way you can always adjust your goals but if you don't have a goal in the first place, you are far less likely to achieve something great!

With runners I often suggest signing up for races early so that you commit to continuing your training. Without a goal race, it's easy to miss a workout or two and once you do that it becomes a slippery slope and becomes harder to get back into it. Even if you have missed some workouts it still better to work towards a goal than to give up.

Challenge yourself today to set a goal race. If you want some suggestions you could check out http://hittheroadrunning.com/ as we often post upcoming local races.

Thursday, September 07, 2006

Another Busy Weekend

Good luck to all of you who are out to complete the Weekend to End Breast Cancer this weekend. 60K over 2 days is a great challenge and it's all for a great cause.

Saturday is also the Albion Hills 5 Peaks race.

Sunday is the Longboat 10K on Toronto Island.

Only 2 more weeks 'til the Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon weekend so most of you will be heavily into your taper by now and probably going stir crazy but enjoy your extra free time and don't forget that at this point of your training it's quality that counts not quantity.

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Pledge to end Childhood Cancer



Help me raise funds for the Childhood Cancer Research Centre (CCRC) at the Hospital for Sick Children through the SickKids Foundation - Liane Forrester Fund.

100% of donations raised go to the CCRC, which is dedicated to preventing, fighting and curing cancer in children.

Click Here to pledge to my fundraising efforts.


To register yourself with the Run for Liane team, and/or set up your own online program to start collecting pledges, go to www.RememberLiane.com.

For more information, visit www.RememberLiane.com or contact them at 416.282.5023 or Run@RememberLiane.com.

Friday, September 01, 2006

Executive Fitness for All

Here's an interesting article on Corporate Fitness from the Belltown Messenger.

In athletics, overtraining means you either are doing too much hard training or too little in terms of recovery-not getting enough food, sleep, hydration, time off-so you end up running on reserves and your system starts putting out more energy than it can generate. Most top athletes now understand this, and design their training schedules to give them regular time away from their training.

Yet in the corporate world, far too many have not learned this lesson. The ethic in so many companies seems to be that overworking and over-scheduling must lead to over-achieving-when in truth it leads to poor health, burnout and lack of productivity.

The good news is that some executives are creating a new corporate paradigm for personal health with business success.

One longtime client, a member of Club Zum and CEO of one of Seattle's more renowned companies, says his workouts are a crucial component of his workday. "It keeps me more relaxed," he confides. "I'm less stressed, I think more clearly, and it's a key part of my strategy for leadership by example."

Some companies (Patagonia is one) create unstructured working environments that allow employees to go sailing in the middle of the day if the wind is right-trusting the crew to get the job done later. They know the good health of the employee begets a healthy company.

But such companies are still the exception. Most still equate over-training and overworking with corporate success. If on-the-job performance and productivity are critical to your career, you might want to think of yourself as an "executive athlete" and start training or living in a way that supports your end goal, much like high level athletes do. Sleeping five hours a night won't do it. And neither will burying your fitness regime under piles of paper.

The successful executives I work with make the time-no matter what-to exercise at least four or five days each week. The one comment I always hear from them is, "I have no choice really-it's a key part of my workday."

And yet it's funny because there are so many who still say, "I don't have any time." When I mentioned this to a highly successful CEO recently, he shot back, "You have time. You have to make time."

What's required is a desire to feel good, or at least enough good sense to choose activities that give you energy, and make your day easier as well as more productive.

Indeed, you do have a choice. I encourage you to evaluate what you do that gives you the physical energy you need to make your life and job easier. The basic components are sleep, stress, food, and exercise. Start with the latter and find ways to make it happen on a consistent basis, cutting yourself enough slack to handle life's inevitable ups and downs.

Work toward exercising most days of the week within six months. If you're glued to your chair now, start by walking three times a week for 30 minutes. Within six months, you might shoot for four to five days a week, including one day of yoga, one day of strength training and three for cardiovascular training-each for 45 minutes to an hour. Consider this: Five one-hour sessions a week means you'll be using about three percent of each week's total time to improve your health, fitness, and on the job performance.

Just start now!