Hey Crew! Hope you all had a great weekend! So many fabulous races and long runs!! Our racing and long run weekends are what we work hard for all week and you guys killed it! 🙂

We’ve had a few days to let our abs recover from the workouts last week and now it’s time to get back to work on our Core!

Let’s rise up…get moving…and attack today with enthusiasm!

Day 6 exercises:

• Iron Strength Core Workout
• Low Side Plank with Crunch – :30 each side

Today is the first Iron Strength Core Workout and while the overall workout is new… the exercises are not. We’ve done these before…now it’s time to put them together for an awesome core workout! Rest between supersets but power through each set while being careful to do each move correctly.

Low side plank with crunch is below. Keep that core tight!

Bonus: #DailyAbs  – For an extra burn today bust out this #DailyAbs workout. You can do this right after Iron Strength or wait until later in the day to get those abs fired up again.

Thigh Challenge: Day 6

• 12 Fire Hydrants
• 25 Scissor Kicks
• 25 Inner Thigh Leg Lifts

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Running Drills and Speed Work: We took a break from Running Drills and Speed work last week to get acquainted with our new June Challenge but it’s time to put them back in the rotation this week!

Running Drill: Slow Skipping – This is one of my favorites! This move makes you feel like a kid again…and is great for building calf and foot strength.

Why: This drill helps develop calf and foot strength needed during the toe-off phase of the gait cycle while also stimulating neuromuscular timing for running with high cadence. It also accentuates the high-knee action of the lifted leg during a running stride.

How: Skip with a moderate leap off of one foot and return to the ground and immediately leap off the other foot, main- taining a compact arm swing as if you were running. This slow-action skipping drill should have a staccato rhythm. Do two or four 50-meter reps.

Speed Work:

• 8X 400M with 1-2 minute rest between sets

Let’s talk 400-meter repeats. One lap. You know, quarters. A 400-meter lap of the track is barely less than a quarter-mile, or 440 yards. Yes they are hard…but so valuable!

George Sheehan, the one time medical editor for Runner’s World magazine, whose slogans “Listen to your body,” and “We are each an experiment of one” said:  “Every runner must do quarters. If you’re a miler or-yes-a marathoner, doing quarters can develop dormant speed just waiting to go on display.”

Listen up though… If you are racing this weekend. You should be in TAPER MODE!

You should NOT be doing speed work the week of your race. So for all those doing Run for the Pies this weekend in Jax…or any other race this weekend….SKIP THE SPEED WORK!

If you do not have a track to do your speed work, these 400M (1/4 mile repeats) are fairly easy to do on the road. You can do them using interval workouts. Run a 1/4 mile HARD then walk or jog slowly to recover.

When it’s all said and done…and you are relaxing in front of the TV winding down for the day….grab some carpet and do your 7 Key Stretches for Runners!

Another fun week is upon us…Gwen is coming to Jax on Friday to do Run for the Pies with us Jax folks and we are having a pool party on Sunday! Can’t wait!!

It’s Monday…Rise up and attack the day with enthusiasm Core Crew!