RunFit Mechanics

- Core, Arms, Abs, Stretch -

Section #1 - Introduction “the Why?”

Section #2 - Program Calendar: “the When”

Section #3 - Glossary of Movement “the How!”
(includes written description & Pictures)

Section #4 - Hip Mobility

Scroll down for each listed section

Section ONE: RunFit Introduction

WHY - Welcome to RunFit, a complete guide to help Waconia XC athletes create and sustain their running machine. Yes, we run and our year involved releantlesst pounding of miles upon miles.

Section Two: RunFit Calendar

WHEN - RunFit is based on a 4 week schedule that can be repeated by our athletes throughout the year. It is not a “ramp up”, but more of a constant strength/stretch program to help our athletes gain and retain running muscle and mobility.

Section Three: Glossary of Movement

HOW - below is an alphabetized “how to” of EACH & EVERY move that is a part of the RunFit program. Whether its a stretch or a strength movement, an athletes MUST be doing the action in the correct manner in order to reap the benefit and not to create an injury. ALL movements within RunFit need to be done with a purpose…not rushed and always completed correctly. #LETSGO

Glossary of Movement

Alternating Single Leg V-Up - Lie face up in a hollow position, with your arms and legs extended, and your biceps by your ears. Lift one arm and the opposite leg off the floor to form a V, bringing them as close together as possible at the top. Slowly lower back down. Keep your body and limbs as straight as possible. Maintain tension in your abs throughout, and keep your head in a neutral position.

Bird Dog - Begin on all fours with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips. Don't lock your elbows. Maintain a continuous breath. Movement: Move slowly and smoothly. Shoulders: Keep your shoulders directly above your wrists. Upper body: Watch your upper body to ensure your chest doesn't sag. Legs: Keep your toes tucked under to engage your transversus abdominis. Balance: Try to stay as still as possible. Gaze: Fix your gaze on a point on the ground in front of you.

Couch Stretch - Keep the abs and glutes tight. Drive the hips forward to initiate a strong hip stretch. Drive the hips forward and then lift up to pull the stretch deeper into the quad. Change positions and work actively to lengthen and pull into angles that deepen the stretch and open the hips. Adjust the knee away from the wall slightly if pain is too great, or it feels like you could hurt yourself.

Dead Bug - Lie face-up with your arms by your sides and your palms facing your sides. Your spine and pelvis should be in a neutral position. Your chin should remain tucked throughout the movement, as if you were holding an egg under your chin. Engage your core and lift your feet off the ground, bringing your knees towards your chest until they’re directly over your hips. Lift your arms so your elbows are over your shoulders. Your ribs should be down and your pelvis should be tucked. All repetitions should begin from this starting position. While maintaining a neutral spine, slowly lower your right arm and left leg toward the floor until they’re an inch or two above the floor. Your right arm and left leg should finish fully extended, while your left arm and right leg remain in the starting position. Pause at the bottom position. Bring your right arm and left leg back to the starting position. Repeat the movement with your left arm and right leg, while keeping your right arm and left leg in the starting position.

Frog Stretch w/Internal Hip Rotation - Begin on all fours with your hands under your shoulders and your knees beneath your hips. Yield your weight forward onto your hands. Slowly, scoot your knees out to the sides, keeping them in line with your hips. Keep your knees bent and your ankles behind you, in line with your knees. While doing the frog stretch, lift each foot a couple of inches off the ground while keeping your knees on the ground. Try not to rotate your pelvis too much.

Front Plank w/Arm & Leg Lift - Aim to keep your hips and shoulders level whilst balancing on one arm. Then return your left hand to the floor below your shoulder. Shift your weight over to the left and then raise your right arm up and out in front of you. Keep alternating arms slowly, and with control for the duration of the exercise.

Glute Bridge, Single Leg - Lie face-up with your arms by your sides with your palms facing down. Your knees should be bent, and your spine and pelvis should be in a neutral position. Slightly tuck your pelvis and bring your ribcage down. Your chin should remain tucked throughout the movement, as if you were holding an egg under your chin. Engage your core and lift your left leg off the ground, extending it straight. Your right leg should be bent and both knees should remain next to each other. All repetitions should begin from this position. To begin the upward movement, squeeze your glute and push your right foot into the ground. Continue squeezing your glute as you push your hips toward the ceiling to achieve full hip extension. Your core should be engaged to keep your ribs down. Your pelvis should be level and slightly tucked at the top. Pause at the top of the movement. To begin the downward movement, hinge from your hip and slowly return to the starting position.

Glute Bridge, Single Leg - Lie face-up with your arms by your sides with your palms facing down. Your knees should be bent, and your spine and pelvis should be in a neutral position. Slightly tuck your pelvis and bring your ribcage down. Your chin should remain tucked throughout the movement, as if you were holding an egg under your chin. All repetitions should begin from this position. To begin the upward movement, squeeze your glute and push your right foot into the ground. Continue squeezing your glute as you push your hips toward the ceiling to achieve full hip extension. Your core should be engaged to keep your ribs down. Your pelvis should be level and slightly tucked at the top. Pause at the top of the movement. To begin the downward movement, hinge from your hip and slowly return to the starting position.

Hand Release Push Up - Get into an all-fours position with your knees and toes flexed and in contact with the floor. Your hips should be over your knees. Your hands should be slightly wider than your shoulders. Straighten your legs to lift your knees off of the ground so you end up in plank position. Your legs should be hip-width apart or slightly wider. Pre-tension your shoulders and hips while engaging your core. Squeeze your quads and glutes. To begin the downward movement, lower your chest toward your hands by bending your elbows. Your shoulder blades should retract as you lower to the ground. Your elbows should be 45 degrees away from your body, and your wrists should be under your elbows. Lower your body until your chest, stomach, and legs are in contact with the floor. Retract your shoulder blades, and lift your hands slightly off the floor. Bring your hands back to the floor. While maintaining your alignment, initiate the upward movement by squeezing your chest and pushing your hands into the floor. Your shoulder blades should protract as you push to the top of the movement and return to the starting position. 

Hollow Hold - Start by lying comfortably on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Now, lift your shoulders, arms, and legs off the floor. Straighten your legs, reach your arms overhead and lift your shoulder blades off the ground. Your lower back and butt should be the only parts of your body touching the floor. Focus on keeping your abdominals tight as you hold this position.

Inverted Row - Get under the bar/table and lie down. Look up at the ceiling. Reach up for the bar. Your arms should be fully extended so you can grab the bar with an overhand grip. Your body will be suspended or just off the floor, with your heels being the only thing in contact with the floor. Contract your core muscles and glutes to brace the lower back and keep your body in a straight line from your torso to your feet. Pull yourself up, leading with your chest. The bar or table should be at chest height at the top of the movement. Your body should remain straight and glutes and core tight throughout the entire movement. The bar doesn’t need to touch your chest. Get it as close as possible. Pause for a second and make sure the shoulder blades are retracted (imagine squeezing a small ball between the shoulder blades) before slowly lowering to the starting position, with your arms fully extended. 

Kneeling Ankle Stretch - Keep your heel on the ground and flat. Lean your body weight forward to stretch your calf muscle. Use your body weight to create mobility in your ankle. Hold the stretch for 60 seconds. Alternate sides or continue until you get the suggested reps on the leg that you're stretching. Maintain the length of your spine and don't let your head fall back. Engage your core muscles when taking your knees off the ground. 

Pigeon Pose Stretch - Start in downward-facing dog. Shifting your weight forward, bring your right knee toward your right wrist. Slide your right foot towards the left edge of your mat. Flex your right toes. For a deeper stretch, aim to get your right shin parallel to the top of your mat. To reduce the intensity of the posture, keep your shin at an angle, positioning your right heel closer to your body. Make sure your hip bones are parallel to each other, facing forward. Lower your left leg to the ground. Slide your left thigh backward. Keep your left foot flat against the mat, toes pointing backward. Your left leg should be parallel to the length of the mat. Rest your fingertips on the mat to help keep your torso upright. If this is difficult, place your hands on two yoga blocks to bring the ground closer to you. Pull your shoulder blades back to create space in your chest. Stay here for a few breaths. When you’re ready to come out of the pose, ground down through your palms, tuck your left toes, and step back into downward-facing dog. Repeat on the opposite side.

Pike Push Up - Start in a plank position on the floor, with hands firmly on the floor, right under your shoulders. Press toes firmly into the floor too. Keep core tight and back flat and engage your glutes and hamstrings. Your whole body should be neutral and in a straight line. Lift hips up and back until your body forms an inverted V shape. Keep arms and legs as straight as possible. Start to bend elbows, and then lower your entire upper body toward the floor. While descending, look at your toes until the top of your head touches the ground. Stay there for a moment, then slowly push back up until your arms are straight and you’re in the inverted V position. Make sure you maintain control throughout the movement.

Pike Shoulder Tap - Begin in a plank position by placing your feet on an elevated surface, if desired, with your toes pushing into it. Walk your hands toward your feet one at a time, keeping your legs straight and raising your hips to the ceiling. Lift one arm and slowly tap your opposite shoulder with that hand. Alternate tapping your shoulder with your hand for the prescribed amount of reps. Keep your body as still as possible throughout this exercise by engaging your core. Inhale as you return your arm to the plank position and exhale as you support yourself with one arm.

Psoas “So Ass” Hold - Raise your knee and get into good posture. Hold at the top, keep driving the knee up to flex the hip, and activate those hip flexors. Hold for 5 – 10 seconds. Slowly lower your leg back to the ground with good posture. Switch sides & repeat

Psoas “So Ass” March, Elevated Bridge - Get set-up flat on your back with both feet supported on an elevated surface with the knees straight. Get a band around the top of your feet. While maintaining a flat low back, push into the elevated surface to bridge up and lift your hips off the ground. Your body should create a straight line from your shoulders to your feet. While you hold this position, bring one knee up towards your chest as if you were marching, creating tension in the band. Hold this position for a second, then slowly return to starting position and repeat. Do not let your hips drop or rotate.

Psoas “So Ass” March, Standing - Get set-up with your hands supported on a wall with your elbows straight and a band around the top of your feet. While standing tall with a slight lean forward, lift one leg up driving your knee forward until your thigh is parallel to the ground. Hold this position, slowly lower down and repeat on the other side. Do not round or arch your back when you lift/lower your leg. Try to isolate hip movement during the exercise.

Quadruped Hamstring Curl - Start in the quadruped position with your hands on the ground underneath your shoulders, elbows straight, and knees on the ground under your hips. From here, kick one leg straight out from your hip. Then, bring your heel to your butt bending your knee while your thigh stays in the same position. Keep your back flat, don’t twist your hips as you kick your leg out and curl it. 

Reverse Lunge - Starting in a standing position, take a moderate length step backwards and perform a lunge movement. Pause at the bottom, then return to the starting position. Repeat on the opposite side, then continue to perform alternating lunges in place. You should feel at least 80% of your weight is on the front leg. This is the leg that will be doing most of the work, with your quads and glutes getting a workout. Do not take too short or too long of a step and maintain space in between your feet.

Scorpion Stretch - Begin by lying on your stomach with your arms straight out to the side. Keep your upper half on the ground as you lift one leg up and over the other leg tapping the toe, and returning. Alternate each leg going back and forth for the prescribed amount of reps. You should feel your low back and hips stretch. Try to keep from your belly button up on the ground as you twist up and over with each leg.

Seated L-Sit Leg Lift - Begin this exercise by sitting tall with your hands on the ground in front of your hips and your legs straight and directly in front of you. From here, engage your quad muscles by pushing your knee down into the ground, keep the legs straight, and lift your legs up and pause at the top for a brief second. Keep control of your legs as they descend to the ground. Try to keep your upper back slightly rounded and pull your heels off the floor by contracting your abs. Bend your knees and move your hands back toward your hips to make the movement easier.

Seated Leg Lift - Begin this exercise by sitting tall with your arms out to the side and your legs straight and directly in front of you. For the leg you intend to work, set a yoga block or small object just to the outside of your shin. From here, engage your quad muscle by pushing your knee down into the ground, keep the leg straight, and lift your leg up and over the object. Once back on the ground you can quickly rest the leg with control on the ground. Engage the quad again to lift the leg and return to the starting position.

V-Ups/Tucks Ups - Lie on your back with your arms extended above your head. Keep your legs straight and feet together. Point your toes and engage your core to lift your feet about 3 inches off the floor. Exhale as you engage your core to lift your torso and legs at the same time to create a ‘V’ shape with your body. Keep both your arms and legs straight. Inhale as you engage your core and slowly lower your body down to the floor. Make sure your arms are extended above your head and your legs are straight. Keep your feet about 3 inches off the floor.

Wall Sit - Lean against a wall and slide down into a squat with your knees at a 90° angle and your thighs parallel to the floor. Keep your back flat against the wall. Engage your core throughout the exercise. Keep your hands and arms away from your legs. Dig through your heels. For a more advanced exercise, hold a weighted object like a bucket or backpack while you're wall-sitting. 

World’s Greatest Stretch - Try to keep your back leg as straight as (extended) as possible to stretch the hip flexors. For the front hip, really drive your elbow down to open up the hips into flexion as much as possible. You should be ACTIVE throughout each movement and thoracic spine rotation is no different. Build tension in the shoulder girdle and use your down arm to protract your scapula and rotate your torso towards the front leg. Try and keep your knee as straight as possible. Reach up as HIGH as you can, in addition to side-bending away from the leg that is to be stretched. Lunging into the front leg will assure that your pelvis is locked-out and you are avoiding compensation from your low back.