Runnersville Ladies Training Camp

Whether you need some motivation to get off the couch and get moving or you’re an experienced walker or runner wanting to improve your pace, the annual FREE Runnersville Ladies Training Camp is for you. Runnersville is known for providing an uplifting environment for girls and ladies of all ages and fitness levels while preparing them for a graduation 5K (3.1 miles) event.

The Runnersville Ladies Training Camp launches on Saturday, February 24, 2024, and lasts 10 weeks. Our training plan recommends that participants complete three training sessions each week. Each session typically last 45 minutes to one hour, including warm-up, cool-down, and stretching.

Training Groups


The Runnersville Ladies Training Camp now features six training groups to meet the various goals and fitness levels of our diverse group.

• Wonder Girls: Designed specifically for girls in 1st through 6th grades, this group provides girls a positive experience with walking, run-walking, running and physical fitness in general, as well as boosts confidence. Our coaches keep in mind the girls’ shorter attention spans and engage them with a variety of activities that prepare them for a lifetime of wellness.
  
  
• Fitness and Fun Walkers: This group is geared toward ladies who want to take advantage of the health benefits of walking and the camaraderie of sharing the experience with others. Typically, these ladies choose to walk at a comfortable pace that allows them to engage in conversation. These ladies may choose to walk at a steady pace or use intervals where they alternate between their regular pace and a faster pace.
  
  
• Competitive Walkers: This group is designed for those walkers who want to walk faster. If your goal is to get outside your comfort zone as a walker, cover more ground in less time, and/or set a new PR (personal record) and perhaps win an award at a race, this group is for you. These ladies may choose to walk at a steady pace or use intervals where they alternate between their regular pace and a faster pace.
  
  
• Change of Pace: This group is for you if either you: (a) do not currently run, but want to train to complete a 5k running the vast majority of it, OR (b) you already run and enjoy training and racing using run-walk intervals of your choosing. For those who do not currently run, we will provide a training plan with walk-run intervals that progress throughout the 10 weeks, helping you condition your body for the repetitive motion of running, minimize your risk of overuse injury, and find your “happy pace.” We can also help you modify the plan for your current level of conditioning.
  
  
• Mind Over Miles Runners: This group is designed for ladies who are currently able to run three minutes or more before needing a walk break and who want to complete a 5k running non-stop (or with minimal walk breaks). These ladies will learn about intuitive running, which includes listening to your body, knowing when to push harder and when to pull back, and winning the mental battle with running.
  
  
• Stroller Strutters: This group is designed for moms (and even grandmothers, aunts, nannies, etc.) who wish to participate in our training, but want or need to bring their little one with them and push them in a stroller. Walkers, walk-runners, and runners of all paces are welcome. NOTE 1: This in-person group will not train on the RHS track but will use routes on the RHS campus and in M.J. Hickey Park. NOTE 2: When registering for the training camp, you will be asked which training plan you wish to follow. Your options will be Fitness and Fun Walkers, Competitive Walkers, Change of Pace, and Mind Over Miles Runners. In a separate question, you will be asked if you plan to train as part of the Stroller Strutters group.

In-Person and Virtual Options


There are two ways to participate. During registration, participants will be asked to select between the “in-person” option and the “virtual” option. However, you can switch at any time.

In-person Option:
In-person training groups will meet Saturday mornings and Wednesday evenings at Russellville High School Cyclone Stadium starting on Saturday, February 24, 2024. Sign-in will be inside the main gates of the stadium near the concession stand. Our training routes may include the track, the grounds of Russellville High School, and M.J. Hickey Park. If there’s a scheduling conflict with a school event, an alternate location will be announced.

For the first three Saturday morning training sessions, we will have a “split schedule.” The Fitness and Fun Walker and Competitive Walker groups will start their training session at 8 a.m. All six groups are strongly encouraged to be present for announcements, door prize drawings, and a guest speaker time at 9 a.m. (We certainly understand the challenges this may present to our Stroller Strutters and their “littles,” so we ask that you use your discretion as to whether you attend speaker time.) At the conclusion of this assembly at 9:30 a.m., the Change of Pace, Mind Over Miles and Stroller Strutters groups will head to the track for training. The Wonder Girls training group will be available during both the 8 a.m. and 9:30 time slots so they can train at the same time as their mom or female guardian.

Starting Saturday, March 16, 2024, we will collapse our training schedule. All training groups will meet at 9 a.m. for speaker time and train at 9:30. (On March 16 specifically, we will meet along Main Street to observe “Arkansas Run for the Fallen” in lieu of our speaker time before heading to RHS for training. More details to come.)

The training groups will also meet on Wednesday evening at 5:30 p.m. for 45 minutes of physical activity.

Interested ladies who have a scheduling conflict that would prohibit them from attending one of the weekly in-person training sessions are still encouraged to take part. The program calls for participants to be at both training sessions and have one session of homework to do on their own or with a buddy on a weekly basis. Those who have to miss a training session simply need to plan for an extra homework session each week.

Virtual Option:
Virtual participants choose when and where to complete each training session and whether to do so on their own or with a friend or family member. If questions arise, virtual participants are encouraged to contact Runnersville, and a virtual coach will respond.

Both in-person and virtual participants will receive emails on a regular basis that contain their training plan for that week and point them to informational and motivational videos by Runnersville coaches and special guest speakers.


Orientation Via Video Conferencing


In lieu of our traditional in-person orientation meeting, Runnersville plans to hold a video conference to familiarize our participants with the 2024 program and guidelines. More information about this online meeting will be emailed to registered participants, who are encouraged to attend.

Stay Informed

It will be imperative that participants read their Runnersville emails throughout the training period to stay informed. Emails will be sent from runnersvilleladies@gmail.com, so please make sure this address is added to your contacts so our messages don't get blocked or sent to your “junk mail” folder.

We also recommend that you "like" and "follow" our public Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/RunnersvilleAR. All training groups except for the Wonder Girls will also have a private Facebook group available only to registered participants in that group.