WWW.TWENTYSIXERS.COM

About The Twentysixers Marathon Training Club

The Twentysixers Marathon Training Club is based in Santa Monica, CA and is dedicated to providing a safe, fun and professionally coached marathon training experience for both novice and experienced marathon, half marathon and ultra-marathon runners. Run with us and have a great time. We do exotic runs each year like our famous Stair Run, The Steepest Streets in LA, and our summer running in Death Valley as examples. We believe in providing a smaller more intimate club where everybody knows your name. We train all types of runners. Our members range in age from 18 to 61 years old at present.

We provide personalized training programs via email based on your race goals and current level of fitness. These programs are specific to each runner's goals and time available to actually train for an event. Our programs our for any race distance you may have in mind. Along with the specific training program, we are available to answer questions. The program is also updated as your fitness improves and we typically determine this by having our runners periodically run 5K races. The goal is to have each of our runners run at the correct pace for the correct distance for each workout to maximize that training and allow sufficient time to recover before the next workout. By doing so, we reduce injuries and our runners improve much faster and without the strain of running too hard all of the time.

What separates us from the other large running organizations in Los Angeles is that we actually provide coaching for each runner. The other large clubs usually have volunteer mentors and while some of these mentors are quite good, it has been our experience that you get what you pay for when it comes to training. We believe that every runner in our club should be getting the same information and coaching and this just does not happen with the big clubs. This is not good for the novice marathoner nor expericenced runners who run the same way each season and wonder why they get slower every year.

If you want actual coaching, interesting routes to run and enjoy the social aspects of running, then the Twentysixers is your club.

Coaches

Rodney and Dan have been coaching and mentoring both experienced and first time runners to train for and complete their first marathon and or half-marathon since 1999. We have mentored runners and groups of runners ranging from 7 ½ minutes per mile to 14 minutes per mile. While we tend to focus on marathoners, we have also coached age group winners from 5K to ultra marathon distances. Not only do we coach our runners, but we run with them during training runs and marathons in order to provide a better, richer learning experience for everyone. Our experience running at various paces has allowed us to truly understand the needs of a wide range of runners and their abilities and challenges as they prepare for their first marathon or half marathon experience. We have also leveraged this knowledge and experience in helping experienced marathoners improve on their times and achieve their running goals. Dan is certified as a personal trainer through National Academy of Sports Medicine and Rodney has a BA in Kinesiology, is certified as a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, a Road Runners Club of America Certified Running Coach , a USATF Level 1 Track and Field Coach and  a Z-Health® Exercise Therapy Specialist (R,I,S,T,9S). Our primary goal is to help everyone sift through the incredible amount of different training philosophies that are put in running magazines each and every month and provide to our runners a program that is based on sound principles that each runner can use to build his or her foundation of running success while still having fun. While it is true that the primary goal is to cross that finish line at the end of the marathon, we believe strongly that you should enjoy and embrace the training that will allow you to reach that finish line. Each training session builds on the previous one and while you may have tough runs from time to time, the end result is a new, fitter, more confident you. You may run many marathons, but they will all be different as will the training that you put in for each of those races. Age, strength, flexibility, injuries, health, life, work, family and even the weather all play a role in shaping each experience. Whether you decide to train with us or other clubs or on your own, we wish you the best, and we hope you take the time to be respectful and courteous to those you meet while running. Be safe and pay attention to cars, bikes and other hazards on the road and do your best to smile even during those tough runs.  Don’t worry, we all have tough runs both in life and running, but as long as we keep moving forward one step at a time, we will overcome any obstacles and finish the race.