Welcome to Boise Run Walk

Boise Run Walk offers structured group training and coaching for runners, walkers and couch potatoes who benefit from the power of group support. We help you training effectively and get to the starting line injury free. Members enjoy participating each Saturday, and most mornings you’ll have completed your workout by 10 AM ready for a fantastic day.

The information below describes Boise Run Walk training programs with specific information on training plans, coaching topics and our basic training philosophy. If you want to get back in shape and train effectively, join Boise Run Walk for the best reasons to get out of bed on Saturday mornings. Make new friends and go the distance! Read some of the reviews and testimonies of people who have changed their life by training with a group of friends with Boise Run Walk.

Table of Contents

Membership Sign-Up

Once you complete the simple membership registration you are part of a group of adults working on improved fitness while making new life-long friends. 

Group Training Plans

We provide you with a detailed group training plan for each season. Group training plans target a local half marathon, 10K or marathon. We deliver the group training plan by email ahead of each new season.

Training Plan Specifics

The training plan provides a text-book approach to scheduling your weekly workouts. The plans adhere to well established coaching recommendations. The plan recommends four (4) weekly workouts. The longest weekly workout is Saturday morning with the group, and this workout is measured in miles. The three (3) midweek workouts are shorter, and are measured in minutes. Coaches have often recommended that some individuals go for time rather than distance, especially early in the season, depending on your current fitness.

The intensity of your workout is not included in the group plan, because each person is different. Recommendations on intensity, speed training, heart rates, pacing, and other measures of perceived exertion are coached on Saturdays. Beginning athletes benefit from the structured plan by ramping-up slowly to a target goal. With experience and freedom from injury, add intensity based on group coaching discussions and Q&A. Work with your coaches for individual attention on how to add intensity and train effectively. Coaches want you to get to the starting line injury free.

Training Plan Compliance

One thing new Boise RunWalk customers learn is that we don’t require strict compliance to the published group training plan. While we have seen great success achieving goals while following the group training plan, most athletes make adjustments to accommodate their individual needs throughout the season. You’ll learn how to make these adjustments. We recommend doing each Saturday morning workout in one way or another, plus at least one mid-week workout, depending on your goal and fitness.

Cross-training is the perfect substitute on days you might not feel like running. Some members run once on Saturdays with the group, and focus the remaining week on core strength and flexibility through cross-training. If your goal is to win the race, your compliance to the group plan is suggested while working with coaches for specific performance improvements. If your goal is to simply finish the target event, and this is a very common goal, follow the recommended plan and stay injury free with less intensity.

100% compliance is unrealistic, but we highly recommend attending each Saturday morning coaching session, even if you are injured. Complete your goal with consistency, working with coaches, and making  new friends along the way. 

Custom Plans

If you want a custom individual training plan, contact one of our coaches for discussion. Custom plans allow coaches to suggest specific strategies helpful to completing your specific goal. A written plan tailored to you may come with an additional fee that is very affordable. Many people are able to tailor their own plan after a time spent with Boise Run Walk. If your goal is to win the race, talk with us on how we can help with a custom plan.  

Weekly Update

We use Facebook, the Weekly Update page and Saturday sessions to let you know about current and future routes, locations, times, training topics and events. We’ll post the updates to the Boise Run Walk Facebook Group and send a reminder by email.  

Training and Coaching Topics

Most of the important coaching information you need to become a successful distance runner/walker with Boise RunWalk is discussed and taught in the group on Saturdays throughout the season. Topics such as form and techniquenutrition and hydration, race strategy, shoes and injury prevention and treatment are coached and discussed on Saturday mornings. We will discuss a wide range of training and coaching topics.

After the workout, stay around and stretch with your new friends, and ask questions. Coaches have also been known to answer questions over coffee afterwards. It’s common knowledge that Coach Steve likes his coffee black, with a side of hash browns.

Warm-up and Stretch

We do warm-ups before a workout, and stretch after. We encourage you to learn how to warm-up and stretch gently, patiently and appropriately. There are specifics about stretches and warm-ups that can be demonstrated. Everyone is different, but we’ll teach you some guidelines and specifics.

Saturday Morning Agenda

Most Saturday mornings we follow a basic agenda. First we meet and start coaching at 7:30 AM, then take a 2 minute break followed with a warm-up, before our workout. During the first half of a training season when so many people are starting new, the coaching session lasts between 30 and 40 minutes. Later in the season, especially on the longest training runs, we reduce discussion time to a few minutes and get started with the warm-up and workout. On average you will have completed the entire morning get together between 10 AM and 10:30 AM.

Saturday Distances

On Saturday mornings with Boise Run Walk, you will have a scheduled distance measured in miles. Beginning the first week of a season, you might do 1-5 miles depending on the target event, season, and your level of experience. Later in the season, distances increase. The scheduled distance is found in the published plan that members receive prior to the season. 

Weekday Workouts

  • Monday through Thursday
  • measured in minutes
  • 3 workouts
  • 2 rest days
  • 2 consecutive days max

Example Weekly Training Plan

Sunday – rest
Monday – 35 minutes
Tuesday – 25 minutes
Wednesday – rest
Thursday – 30 minutes
Friday – rest
Saturday – 3 miles

Walkers

We love walkers. Walkers are generally people who want to stick with walking, or people who want to gradually add running, using run walk intervals. Many of our walkers are not quite ready to add much running in the beginning. Walkers can add run walk intervals as soon as they are ready. You can start walking and gradually add running. Learn about the run walk method by participating in group discussion. Like most of us, you’ll learn about strategic run walk intervals. Intervals are where you will walk a specific time, then run a specific time. We talk more about the method of run walk intervals at length on Saturday mornings. We also have tips for walking more efficiently, which means using less energy and/or going faster. My grandma started walking then running a few years ago, and now we don’t know where she is.  🙂 

Couch Potatoes

Are you a couch potato? If so, you’ll be in good company. Hey, some of your coaches are former couch potatoes. Many in our group are current or former couch potatoes. If there were one target group for Boise Run Walk, it’s the couch potato. Why? Because there are more couch potatoes on the planet than accomplished runners and walkers. Do not worry about being too slow. You’re much faster than those still on the couch or sleeping in all the time.

Coach Potatoes who join Boise Run Walk are typically sick and tired of spending the last few years on the couch, and they want to change their lives. So welcome to Boise Run Walk! Your coaches recommend you attend as many of the Saturday mornings as possible on the schedule, even if you miss a few, and average two or three mid-week workouts. Remember to talk with your coaches and new friends, and take back your life.

Joggers, Runners and Speedies

Around a thousand or more joggers, runners, walkers and accomplished athletes have trained with Boise Run Walk since we started in 2003. Most started inexperienced and willing to learn and have fun doing it. Many had a history of injuries and decided to get coaching. Many customers had jogged some, or done some running. Some of our members are elite athletes. Everyone participates because they like the structured group coaching. Boise Run Walk is a social experience for all experience levels. Our coaches have had lots of fun coaching over the years, through practically every type of training problem. You can do this, we know you can. 

Philosophy & Recommendations

Our philosophy is to train effectively. You train effectively establishing a routine, be consistent, and learn while experimenting with what works best for you. Train in such a way that you arrive at the starting line injury free. In order to train effectively, there are a few topics you need to learn and experiment with. For example, train to get to the starting line injury free.

Leverage your experiences and make decisions about intensity. If you are inexperienced, then slow down and give your body a chance to react positively to the increased rigors of starting a training program. Let your body adapt to a gradual increase in weekly distances at a slow pace. This gives your body time to adapt and grow stronger. Give yourself more than a fighting chance by reading, learning, asking questions, participating, and recovering between workouts. If you are inexperienced, if you have no idea what your pace is, if you have not run or walked more than a 5K in the last few years, then take it slowly the first few weeks.

Let your body adapt. Please do not attempt to take your life back the first week of training because this usually backfires. We discuss many topics that reflect our philosophy, such as injury preventionhow to treat and prevent shin splints and the top 5 running injuries

Your Coaches

Your coaches love to help others adopt running or walking as a lifestyle. Your coaches have a wide-range of experience and accomplishments. Most Saturdays there are 1-3 coaches present in the group and post-workout stretch. Enjoy befriending them and pick their brains. Invite them to coffee.

Best Reason to Get Out of Bed

Boise RunWalk is your one-stop destination for Boise running and structured group coaching for runners, walkers and couch potatoes. But the best reason to get out of bed each Saturday morning is the friends you’ll make along the way.