Tag Archive for: half marathon

Austin Marathon Reaches Partnership Deal with Camp Gladiator

Camp Gladiator’s involvement will span entire race weekend

High Five Events welcomes Camp Gladiator (CG) as a supporting partner of the 2019 Ascension Seton Austin Marathon presented by Under Armour®. CG will have an expo presence, lead the pre-race warm-up for participants, and energize athletes throughout the last mile at their hype station. Austin Marathon weekend takes place February 15th – 17th.

Camp Gladiator is excited to support the 20,000+ participants of the 2019 Austin Marathon,” said Ally Davidson, co-CEO and founder, Camp Gladiator. “Our trainers will encourage runners as they traverse the city and we’re honored to support this iconic Austin event.

CG is an outdoor group fitness company whose mission is to positively impact the physical fitness and ultimately the lives of as many people as possible. CG strives to be everywhere there are people and actively partners and engages at the community level to support, encourage and facilitate people of all athletic backgrounds in their long-term health and fitness pursuits.

“We’re pumped to have CG and their trainers join us during Austin Marathon weekend,” said Jack Murray, co-owner of High Five Events.”Their crew of enthusiastic trainers will warm up athletes before the race and push them to the finish line at the energetic cheer zone.”

The Austin Marathon will celebrate its 28th year running in the capital of Texas in 2019. Austin’s flagship running event annually attracts runners from all 50 states and 30+ countries around the world. Having start and finish locations in the heart of downtown Austin puts participants and spectators near all the action and within walking distance of restaurants, hotels, and shops. Finishing with the picturesque Texas State Capitol as your backdrop is icing on the cake for the perfect running weekend destination. Registration is open for all distances.

Austin Marathon Adds Raise Riders Family Bicycle Weekend

The Raise Riders Family Bicycle Weekend joins a host of Austin Marathon weekend activities

High Five Events welcomes The Raise Riders Family Bicycle Weekend to the 2019 Ascension Seton Austin Marathon presented by Under Armour®. The inaugural event is a partnership between woom bikes USA and Buddy Pegs Media. The three-day family-friendly festival will last the entire duration of Austin Marathon weekend (Feb. 15th – 17th) and feature two free youth bicycle events during the Manzano Mile presented by Dole on Saturday, Feb. 16th.

We are excited to bring another special event to Austin that highlights all the tremendous benefits of family bike riding,” said Mathias Ihlenfeld, owner of woom bikes. “Given all the concerns about the rapidly declining emotional and physical health of kids these days, it’s more important than ever to remind parents about the importance of bike riding, and show them how to do it.”

The Raise Riders Family Bicycle Weekend is a multi-day celebration of family bike riding that coincides with the legendary Austin Marathon. The event is presented by local Austin children’s bike company woom bikes USA and the bike-centric children’s media company Buddy Pegs Media. Participating families will enjoy family-friendly group rides, woom bike demos, Buddy Pegs Bicycle Playdates (for children 6 and under), author readings, raffles, bicycle scavenger hunts, and more!

“This is an excellent addition to Austin Marathon weekend and a prime example that the evolution of our Health and Wellness Expo is headed in the right direction,” Jack Murray, co-owner of High Five Events.

woom bikes USA is an Austin children’s bicycle manufacturer. woom bikes are designed and developed in Vienna, Austria. woom USA was born in 2014 with the desire to bring the same high-quality and light-weight bike models to families in the United States. Buddy Pegs Media authors, podcast creators, and co-founders, Jannine and Scott Fitzgerald, are a passionate pair of bicycle industry veterans using the foundation of their children’s media brand to build a national cycling curriculum for families with children 2-5 years old.

The Austin Marathon will celebrate its 28th year running in the capital of Texas in 2019. Austin’s flagship running event annually attracts runners from all 50 states and 30+ countries around the world. Having start and finish locations in the heart of downtown Austin puts participants and spectators near all the action and within walking distance of restaurants, hotels, and shops. Finishing with the picturesque Texas State Capitol as your backdrop is icing on the cake for the perfect running weekend destination. Registration is open for all distances.

7 Taper Tips to Follow Leading Up to Austin Marathon

Implement these 7 taper tips leading up to race day

The Taper. For those unfamiliar, tapering is referring to the reduced volume and intensity of workouts in the weeks leading up to race day. While some runners find it hard to scale back after so much time dedicated to training, others find themselves glued to their favorite couch. Doing too little or too much during this time period can compromise all your hard work. Stick to your training plan and focus on what’s in your control. Make sure you are at the top of your game by following these 7 taper tips between now and race day.

Reduce work stress

While it might be out of our hands, setting yourself up with an easy week or two of work can have a big impact on your energy going into race day. If there is a project that needs to be completed, put in the extra effort now to finish it or see if it can be completed after race day. Try building this into your schedule: find a quiet place to meditate for 10-15 minutes in the morning or evening.

No new workouts

We’re clearly stating the obvious, but now is not the best time to roll your ankle playing basketball or pull a muscle lifting heavy weights. Stick to what you know and focus on less-intense and lower-volume workouts. Keep your runs to less than 60 minutes, but leave room for flexibility based on what your body says. It’s fine to do some easy cross-training on non-running days, as long as the activity doesn’t make your muscles sore or increase the potential for injury. If you don’t want to exercise on days you don’t run, that’s okay, too.

  • Example of a one-week-out marathon workout: 15-min warm-up jog / no more than 4-5 miles at half-marathon goal pace / 15-min cool-down jog
  • Example of a one-week-out half marathon workout: 10-min warm-up jog / no more than 2-3 miles at half-marathon goal pace / 10-min cool-down jog

Read a book or binge a show

Has running taken time away from your favorite book or that newly-released TV show on Netflix? Now that you’re logging fewer miles it’s time to play catch-up! If you plan to cross-train it won’t hurt to go for an easy ride on a stationary bike. Read while you pedal. Catch a couple of episodes of that new show. The distraction from that book or the show will also help distract you from taper madness and the fact that you’re running less.

Foam roll

Increase your foam rolling! Make sure your body is in tip-top shape for race day. Work out all those kinks. Keep your muscles feeling good. If you need to, see a massage therapist. As long as you have access to some products, foam rolling can be done practically anywhere. The benefits are immediate. Have some extra time in the morning before leaving for work? Foam roll. Free time at lunch? Foam roll. Catching up on that TV show? Foam roll. You get the idea!

Sleep

This may be the best thing you can do for yourself at this time. Experts recommend sleeping eight to nine hours per night. To start, choose a consistent time that you are in bed, this may or may not include actual sleep. This will signal to your body that rest is important and hopefully lead to more shut-eye. Instead of focusing on trying to get a good night sleep the night before, try for two nights before. Pre-race jitters can sometimes leave us with the “I am not even sure if I slept at all” feeling the night before. Don’t let this bother you. One poor night’s sleep shouldn’t affect your performance if you have tapered well in other aspects.

Nutrition/Hydration

Skip the pizza and beer for now. Focus on a diet that balances moderate carbohydrates from whole food sources, quality protein, and healthy fat. You may also want to keep a close eye on your calorie intake. While you are used to high-intensity training and the extra food that comes with it, you still have to watch what you eat. The pounds you knocked off can sneak back on in these last weeks, which is less than optimal for race day.

Avoid eating that can affect your sleep quality. This includes eating large meals within 90 minutes of going to bed, spicy foods, or large amounts of protein.

Now is also a good time to make sure you are well-hydrated. It is recommended to drink 8-10 glasses of water a day. You can also add electrolytes from nuun, to get your body ready for race day hydration. Hydrate with what will be on course, Mango Orange nuun performance. You can also try the on-course fuel with Gatorade Endurance gels.

Race Morning

By starting now, you are setting yourself up to be ready race morning. The last advice we have is to arrive at least 90 minutes before the start. Walk or jog around as a light warmup. Then follow the Camp Gladiator trainers as they lead a pre-race warm-up at 6:45 a.m. at the start line.

Austin Gives Miles: Where Miles and Meaning Meet

Introducing Austin Gives Miles

It’s been reported that less than 1% of the world’s population has run a marathon, roughly seven million people (give or take). There’s an even smaller number of people who run marathons that need to be celebrated; those who run their race on behalf of a charity. Enter Austin Gives Miles, the Official Charity Program of the Ascension Seton Austin Marathon presented by Under Armour.

Austin Gives Miles gives runners from around the world the opportunity to give back to local and national nonprofits. This is accomplished by fundraising in conjunction with their race. Participants can raise funds while training for the marathon, half marathon, 5K, or Manzano Mile.

The concept isn’t unique to the running world. Charity endurance programs are a popular mechanism for charitable organizations to raise money for their causes. What is unique to Austin Gives Miles is that the program celebrates the local charities that make Austin great. Some of these Austin nonprofits rescue dogs, combat homelessness through running, and tackle cancer. Austin Gives Miles has a mission that will tug at your heartstrings and add even more meaning to your miles.

Lance Armstrong, Charity Chaser

The great part about Austin Gives Miles is that no fundraising effort is too small or large. Austin Gives Miles charities are proud, enthusiastic, and supportive of every runner that runs for their cause. Sure, large donations and lots of fundraising dollars are great, but Austin Gives Miles charities celebrate every runner, every connection, and every contribution to their mission. The program is even more exciting this year with the announcement that Lance Armstrong will run the 2019 Austin Marathon on behalf of Austin Gives Miles.

Lance is an Austinite, philanthropist, cyclist, and an avid runner. He is founder and owner of WEDŪ, a content destination designed to provoke and equip people to embody an endurance lifestyle. Lance is the 2019 Charity Chaser, a program started five years ago to raise awareness for Austin Gives Miles. This year, Lance will start the marathon in last place. He will raise money for every marathoner he passes on his 26.2-mile journey. The money raised will be evenly split between the local charities who work hard to make Austin Gives Miles a huge success.

If you are looking for a way to add even more meaning to your miles this February 17th, check out Austin Gives Miles. You can make a donation, support Lance, or raise funds for one of the 30 Austin charities.