

TRAIN.
RACE.
EXPLORE.



July 28, 2025
Week 6 of Training
Hey MIT runners and walkers,
Welcome to Week 6 of training! You’re learning how to tough out the summer heat, now let’s focus on building strength to keep your body durable and your stride strong.
Your MIT team, Fleet Feet, and expert partners are here to help you thrive with smart training strategies, supportive community, and tools to help you stay healthy through peak mileage.
🧡 This Week’s Focus: Strength for Runners & Walkers
Endurance doesn’t come from mileage alone. Strength training is key to staying injury-free and moving efficiently, especially as your long runs get longer.This week, our friends at Fit For Life Physical Therapy are sharing their go-to movement routine:
👉 The Runner’s and Walker’s 10. These 10 targeted exercises to improve balance, mobility, and functional strength for the miles ahead.
These moves are simple but powerful, with no fancy equipment needed. Add them in once or twice a week for a big impact over time!
🛍️ Save the Date: MIT Shopping Event + Tax-Free Weekend: THIS SATURDAY!
This Saturday after your long run/walk, join us at Fleet Feet Upper Arlington for a special MIT-only shopping event during Ohio’s Tax-Free Period!
🔥 New Balance gear will be 25% off (shoes and apparel!)
📍 At Fleet Feet UA, right after your run
🎉 MIT members only, no code needed
It's the perfect time to stock up on training essentials or try something new, tax-free and on sale.
📅 Community Calendar
Saturday, August 10:
🎉 Coach Mark’s Wipe Out Cancer 5K – Fun, inclusive, and full of heart.
🎬 Run Forrest Run 10ishK + Film Screening – Recovery miles and popcorn? Yes, please.
Keep showing up, keep leaning in, and keep reminding yourself: you’re not just training for a race...You’re becoming stronger in every way.
You've got this.
– Coach H


Workout Hub
This Week's Workouts at a Glance
WEDNESDAY GRIT WORK: RING AROUND THE ROSIE
WHEN
Wednesday, July 30th @ 6:30pm
LOCATION
Whetstone High School
4405 Scenic Dr, Columbus, OH 43214
PARKING:
Please park in the large lot on the South side of the school.
WORKOUT DETAILS:
Race Pace Repeats.
This workout will help you get a feel for how your goal race pace feels. Focus on form and breath, relaxing into your pace and focusing on how this pace FEELS.
Between each repeat, you’ll walk/mill about for recovery. Make sure you bring a cup or bottle, as coach Hannah will not always have an extra!
WARM UP & ROUTE: 1 mile on Ring Around the Rosie Loop
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HALF MARATHONERS:
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3-4 x 1 mile @ Half Marathon Pace
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FULL MARATHONERS:
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4-6 x 1 mile @ Marathon Pace
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COOL DOWN: 1 mile loop
Note: Please be sure to bring a hydration bottle or bottle to every Wednesday night workout. Hannah will have a cooler for water, but we are cup-less!
SATURDAY LONG RUN: Fleet Feet Upper Arlington
WHEN
Saturday, August 2nd @ 7:00am
LOCATION
Fleet Feet Upper Arlington
1344 W Lane Ave, Columbus, OH 43221
PARKING
Do NOT park in the Tommy's Pizza Lot, The Fleet Feet parking lot, or the Starbucks complex lot. Please only park in the parking garage across the street, and cross the street AT THE LIGHT to make it back to the store.
WORKOUT DETAILS:
ROUTE: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/2702324
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HALF MARATHONERS:
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7 miles
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FULL MARATHONERS:
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14 miles
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Be sure to bring your own hydration cup or bottle - our water stops are cup-less! Use your MIT Discount at any Fleet Feet Columbus store and snag an amphipod flexible cup, a handheld bottle, or hydration vest.

Strenth Training for Runners & Walkers
FIT FOR LIFE PHYSICAL THERAPY
In today’s world, it seems like every scroll or inbox ping promises the next best workout, recovery tip, or injury fix. But how do you know what advice is actually worth your time?
At Fit For Life Physical Therapy, we cut through the noise. With decades of experience in sports medicine and hands-on work with MIT athletes, our team has identified the top 10 strength and mobility exercises that truly make a difference for runners and walkers.
These aren’t just trendy movements, they’re the tried-and-true tools we use every day to help athletes prevent injury, build strength, and recover smarter.
Plus, Chelsea Hall (FFL clinician and second-place finisher at both the Cap City Half and Detroit Marathon) has updated her essential guide to strength training just for you. Ready to train strong and stay strong? Click the link below!
Fit For Life Physical Therapy are proud to be the Official MIT and Fleet Feet Columbus Medicine Partners. We care for people of all activity levels — to help prevent, recover from, or rehabilitate athletic injuries.
Michael Sean Huffman MS, ATC, PT
Fit For Life Physical Therapy
MIT Medical Resources Coach

RUN FORREST RUN 10(ish)k
A Fantastic Event Where Running-Meets-Cinema
🎬 Ready to run like the wind blows?
Join your MIT teammates on Sunday, August 10th for one of the most unique race experiences of the summer: the Run Forrest Run 10ishK!
This movie-meets-mileage mashup is a celebration of the iconic film Forrest Gump, featuring:
🏃♂️ A 6ish-mile point-to-point run between two local theaters (Grandview Cinema & Drafthouse and Studio 35 Cinema and Drafthouse).
🍺 A free beer + custom pint glass waiting for you at the finish
👕 A race shirt, naturally
🎞️ A full Forrest Gump screening—half before you run, half after
🎟️ And yes, plenty of feathered hair and 90s nostalgia -- COSTUMES ENCOURAGED!
Here’s the breakdown:
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8:00–9:00am: Packet pickup at your starting location
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9:00–9:30am: Forrest Gump Pt. I
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9:30–11:30am: Run ~6.5 miles to Grandview Theater
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11:30–2:00pm: Forrest Gump Pt. II, with your beer in hand 🍻
Whether you're gunning for a pace goal or just looking for a great time with Coach Hannah and other MITers, this event is the perfect way to mix fun and fitness.
If you'd like to join Coach Hannah on this adventure, choose the GRANDVIEW TO STUDIO 35 OPTION and use code MITLOVESGUMP for $5 off!
🎟️ Spots are limited—sign up soon!
And remember… We "just feel like running. "🏃♀️🏃♂️

From Coach Mark:
A little back story on me. I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma cancer in Oct 2020. Multiple Myeloma is the second most common form of blood cancer and has a 5-year survival rate of about 60%. By March of 2021, they were able to get it into remission, it will come back. On March 24, 2021, I was admitted into the James and received my dose of Chemo.
On March 26, 2021, I received some of my Stem Cells back and then was released 10 days later the cancer being in remission. It is still in remission today, I know the cancer will come back, as there is no cure as of today, and this is where MMRF comes into play. They are searching for a cure for Multiple Myeloma, but as of today, there has been great progress in keeping the cancer in remission, but no cure. Before the cancer, and for the past 14 years, I have done many races. Anything from the London Marathon to the Spartan Beast. 5k's, 10k's, 15k's, half marathons and 25k's. I wanted to keep going after my treatment and 11 months after the treatments, I was able to complete the Warmup Columbus Half Marathon and 2 weeks later the Ft. Lauderdale A1A Half Marathon.
The Wipe out Cancer 5k is being organized as a fundraiser for the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF), and all proceeds will be donated to the organization. In return for my fundraising, I was given an entry into the NYC Marathon on November 2, 2025. This will be my 2nd World major, with London being completed in April 2024. I intend on making this an annual event and hope that many will run, to show their support for the MMRF and their research to find the cure for Multiple Myeloma.
WIPE OUT CANCER 5k
Local Race (OR VIRTUAL RACE!) for a Great Cause