Ow! My butt hurts

Between battling chronic hip flexor and IT band issues and wanting to finish the half-marathon with an awesome time, I decided I need some help from an expert. So a friend of mine hooked me up with her personal trainer to get a consultation and some training tips.

I went to see him Friday afternoon and let me tell you, I’m still feeling it. If there’s one reason to see a trainer, it’s that they’ll push you farther than you ever will yourself‘it’s a good reminder that your limits are higher than you think.

His primary conclusion was that my glutes are too weak, which was followed by a blur of walking lunges, step-ups, side lunges and bridges, not to mention a few minutes of jumping rope to test my cardio fitness. (Conclusion: I hate jumping rope. Can I just run instead?) We also did a bit of ab and core work but apparently glutes are my weakness.

Now, I’m not one to deny the aspiration to have a perkier butt (pictured above is an artist’s rendition of what I’ll look like in a bikini after the program), so I’m going to do my best to follow the glute-strengthening program, despite being both busy and lazy. I’m going to think of walking lunges down major Toronto streets as a public service to raise people’s spirits during the strike, and I’ll do my step-ups and other exercises at home like a good girl, with a well-shaped rear end and less injury-prone legs as the prize at the end.

At least, I’ll try. I’ll keep you posted.

What necessary exercises do you avoid? And do you have any tips for making glute-strengthening fun?

View all of Kat’s running posts on the Half-marathon diaries home page.

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