Running Clinic

Today I went to a free one-on-one running clinic at my gym. It was great! The personal trainer who did it is a runner and triathlete who has done iron-mans! Anyway, I'm doing this post so I can remember what she told me, so don't read this if you are bored about running posts.
First of all she watched me run for about 8 minutes, which was a little weird, but not bad. I was tired from our late soccer game last night (started at 10pm), but I managed. She had lots of pointers to tell me. She recommended I get running shoes (which I knew she would, my cross trainers are about 5 years old and very worn out, actually she said she was suprised I wasn't having any foot problems). Then we went over drills and exercises that would strengthen my core and overall body and help improve my running. She said for long distance runners and triathletes you don't really want to do a lot of resistance training because you don't want to be carrying around a lot of bulky muscle. Instead it is best to do body weight training, like push ups and pull ups. We also did drills with the exercise ball, lunges, and hip flexor exercises. We talked about plylometrics and how they help with that burst of energy you want when you see the finish line. It was so great to find out what I can do to improve running and training. I needed it. And, I was lucky that no one signed up after me, cause a 15 min. slot turned into about 35 mins. Anyway, it has gotten me excited again about my training and exercise, which will help with all the holiday baking I will be consuming in the near future :)
Happy running to you all!