Pioneer Valley Women’s Running Club offers Walk-to-Run ClinicDate: 2/27/2014 SPRINGFIELD – The Pioneer Valley Women’s Running Club (PVWRC) will offer a Walk-to-Run Clinic, beginning March 20 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., at Forest Park. An information session will take place on March 13 at 5:30 p.m., at Attain Therapy + Fitness, 168 Denslow Road, East Longmeadow.
“Meeting once a week for 10 weeks, participants will go from brisk walking to running steady for 30 minutes,” PVWRC President Linda Edwards said. “The clinic is a terrific way to try something new, get fit, and have fun, with the support of a professional trainer and mentors who learned to run from participating in past clinics.”
According to Edwards, the program will have some new elements this year. “This spring’s program will be led by a certified fitness trainer,” Edwards said. “We will still have our enthusiastic and supportive past participants serving as mentors, but the addition of a professional trainer, knowledgeable in conditioning and fitness, will be a huge benefit to participants.”
Edwards is also pleased that Attain Therapy + Fitness is partnering with the PVWRC on the program. “Attain has an excellent reputation and we are very pleased they will be hosting the information session,” Edwards said.
Attendees of the information session will learn about the clinic, have an opportunity to register, and hear about the importance of nutrition and core strength for runners from head strength and conditioning coach Trevor Dorian, MA, CSCS, CISSN. Attendees will also receive a free functional assessment from Attain.
“I am a reformed couch potato and I never could have stuck with learning to run on my own. Women are naturally supportive of each other, and the Clinic provides a very tactical way to transition from walking to running. You meet as a group once a week, and then have ‘homework’ to do in between, either by yourself or with other Clinic participants. It’s not easy, but it is doable – I’m living proof of that,” Edwards said, noting that she was a Clinic participant in 2006.
The walk-to-run program fee is $50, with proceeds funding the PVWRC scholarship program. To learn more or to RSVP for the information session, please contact: Renee Brown at rrebrown@comcast.net , Edwards at edwardsdldm@charter.net , or Patti Ann Hayes at hayes6099@comcast.net .
Founded in 2000, the PVWRC is a nonprofit organization, and is affiliated with the Road Runners Club of America. The Walk-to-Run Clinics take place twice a year, but the Club meets every Saturday at 8 a.m. for a three-mile run, and also once a month on Sundays for a three- to six-mile run.
Edwards said walkers and run/walkers are welcome too. “You have to walk before you can run, and sometimes even avid runners are sidelined with an injury, so we welcome women of all ages and fitness abilities. New people are matched up with people of the same ability and pace, or who want to run in a certain area. Club members have a mix of interests and ability levels, and include those who have done multiple marathons, those who participate in triathlons, and those who like to do relay events as a group.
“As a nonprofit, we exist to fulfill our mission, which is to support women in staying active and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. The walk-to-run clinics and group runs are some of the ways we do that,” Edwards continued. The PVWRC also offers area high school seniors a scholarship, which is available to local students with high school running careers, who are going on to college.
The PVWRC website is currently under construction, but the Club has a Facebook page, which can be found by searching for Pioneer Valley Women’s Running Club – PVWRC.”
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