Foundation Run - Foundation Run 124 Aerodrome Road

Great advice and good programming especially around returning to running post injury

Foundation by more than name only… In the latter half of last year, our 15-year-old daughter joined the Foundation Run team to train for the 4km road race at the Secondary School Track Nationals in early December. While I had no intention of running a 4km road race, I did join her for a fair bit of her programme, just to give her some company (not that it isn’t fun getting up before school to do hill reps on your own ?). While we weren’t always jumping for joy at the thought of tackling every session, the programme was refreshingly varied with hill reps, flat runs, a mix if trail and road and the group run on Tuesday nights, which we both love for the social aspect as much as the running! Then four weeks out from the race our daughter wondered if there might be something a bit more fun to do with her weekend than travel all the way to Dunedin to run 4km on the road! I had a look and there was – being the anniversary year of the Tongariro Goat they also held the 'Big Kid' run and there were still entries available! So her 4km flat run on the road became our 18km trail run mostly uphill! Coach Rob was unphased by the late change of plan, he added in a couple of long hilly weekend runs and said we’d be fine. And he was right! The training that we had done stood us in great stead for the event we ended up doing. I was a bit worried about how it would go to be honest, but ended up being super impressed at the foundation (pun intended!) the training gave us to tackle something completely different. For me personally that included the twice weekly strength sessions at the Athlete Factory with Craig Newland, I definitely felt the benefit of those over the last steep 4km! So big thanks Foundation Run, you really mean what you say! As a postscript to this… our daughter is still on the Foundation Run programme, recently competing for the first time as a Senior Girl at the National Secondary Schools Cross Country Champs. Her top 10 placing was once again testimony to her great preparation from following the Foundation Run programme, which now includes weekly strength sessions for her also. And what I really appreciate as a Mum is that she is supported to train in a way that puts her love for running first. It’s said that running track over summer is good for building leg speed leading into the winter cross-country season, but our daughter would much rather be on a trail than a track! She gets no pressure from the Foundation Run team to run track, what she gets is a programme that supports her running goals, her life as a busy Year 11 student with other sports and commitments, and her age as a 16 year old with a body that’s still growing and developing. I know that the Foundation Run team are as keen as I am that’s she’s still enjoying running for a long time to come yet, and that's worth a heap. So, thanks again Foundation Run, you’re the best!

I joined foundation run about 2 years ago - such a great decision and quite life changing for me? I had tried many avenues to improve my physical health and find something I would “stick to”!! I have achieved results I never thought possible and the benefits spill over to your mental and emotional health (well it has for me!) There are so many great aspects to FR - accountability, results, support, social and some good laughs to name a few ? HIGHLY recommend!

I joined Foundation Run after my physio mentioned it when helping me recover from a foot injury. I initially started with the strength sessions twice a week while I was building up running again, then once my physio gave me the OK, got a run program and joined in with the Tuesday night interval sessions also. It's been great to meet and train with a bunch of friendly like-minded people and feel welcomed, especially as I'm relatively new to Tauranga. Summer evening hill reps on the Mount and jumping into Pilot Bay afterwards is great fun! I like the way the run training is combined with smart strength training sessions at the Athlete Factory, and seeing people several times a week and interacting via the Facebook group builds a sense of community. The programming is easy to follow and I'm gradually getting back to where I was before the injury through well structured training and the injury hasn't returned. Looking forward to continuing to improve and enjoy my running :) Thanks Foundation Run!

Foundation Run has helped my running immensely. My speed has increased as well as my running efficiency. This has been achieved with Foundation Run's smart training approach incorporating running specific strength training and a personalised program that fits in with my lifestyle. There is a great social aspect as well, meeting with other runners on a Tuesday evening for a track session. I cannot recommend Foundation Run enough if you want to become a faster runner or just want to make running more enjoyable with like minded people.

I joined Foundation Run after a couple of unsuccessful half marathon events. Before joining Foundation Run I was following a free running plan I had found online and was completing the training runs but I wasn’t getting the results I desired. Frustrated and knowing that I could achieve more, I signed up to Foundation Run. The training sessions are fun, varied and you can see the progress you are making. It is easy to fit in my daily schedule and Foundation Run takes any guess work out of training. No matter where you live, you can join Foundation Run. All my training correspondence has been through email and the Foundation Run website as I live in the lower North Island. I have found there to be fantastic support and encouragement from the other Foundation Run members too. If you have running goals, whether it is distance, time or both I highly recommend Foundation Run training. I am a faster, fitter and stronger runner who has achieved more than I ever thought I could all thanks to Foundation Run.