Marlene Atwood Is Our Coach For Team ChristianRunners
Once again, Marlene has agreed to take us to the finish line as our coach/consultant for the ING Georgia Marathon! Marlene brings a an incredible wealth of experience to the program. She's been such a blessing to our group. We've got the best coach in the area! Thanks Marlene!
"May the good Lord be with you down every road you roam...and may sunshine and happiness surround you when you're far from home...but whatever road you choose, I'm right behind you win or lose, forever young..." (Rod Stewart)
Dear Christian Runners,
Running a marathon or half marathon is a life changing experience, one that you will never easily forget. Although the marathon appears to be an insurmountable goal, it will not be what you remember when you finish - rather it will be the journey – the miles you’ve logged, the friends you’ve met along the way, and the emotional moments you’ve experienced within yourself, that you will remember.
As a running coach, one of the most important things I strive to teach my runners is the joy of running. If you are not enjoying what you’re doing, you will not stay with it. Sometimes though, there are things you must learn for yourselves.
Although running seems so outwardly physical, it is one of the most “thought-filled” activities. When you run, you’re a captive audience of one, alone with your thoughts. You daydream, you plan, and you solve day to day problems.
After countless of hours of running, you finally learn to listen to your body.
Running is a vehicle for good health, stress relief, creative thinking and developing great friendships.
While running at first appears to depend on physical strength, it is in fact based almost entirely on strength of mind.
You cannot accomplish something if you don’t believe in it. If you believe it is beyond you, it is.
While you always have to stay focused on your goal, you also need to stay flexible enough to adapt to different situations
Setting a goal is the first step in a runner’s path to fulfillment. A goal should be realistic, attainable, specific as to timeframe, and allow you to measure your progress. In setting a goal, you need to acknowledge that you really want it and that you are willing to work hard for it. It must be achievable – is it a realistic goal? (Do you want to run a marathon after only a few months as a beginner?)
You want to follow a good plan that will get you to your goal safely, without injury. You want to be able to track your progress toward your goal and see improvements from week to week. Once you have established your goal, the key is to follow through, and stay committed.
Don’t get discouraged after a few short weeks, thinking you will never be able to run a marathon.
Don’t think that more is better and get ahead of your schedule only to get injured. 4 miles on your schedule is 4 miles!
Do make it enjoyable by running with others, running where others run, and involving your family.
For variety, try different training surfaces and different times of the day, but above all, be safe.
Remember, the bridge between goals and accomplishments is determination.
Thank you for committing to this great journey with us…
Safe running… Marlene Atwood
ASEP/RRCA/USATF Certified Running Coach
770-263-1233 office
770-883-4208 cell
770-497-4208 home
Coaching Experience
Through her running club, Marlene has coached hundreds of women in running and walking programs over the past 7 years at 5K and 10K distances.
She's worked with the American Stroke Association for 4 seasons as their running coach. The 6 month training programs that I conducted allowed her to train over 750 participants to run marathons in Jamaica, Disney, Kona, Hawaii, San Diego and Bermuda.
Marlene has worked with the Alpharetta Recreation and Parks Department for 4 years, conducting coed running programs and women’s running programs that have attracted over 250 women.
She currently privately coach individuals to run various marathons and half marathons. Abilities vary from the very beginner to my fastest marathoner at 2:55.
Training Programs:
As an RRCA/ASEP certified coach, she designs personal running programs for men or women who are interested in getting fit, losing weight, learning to run, or are running their first 5K , 10K, half marathon or marathon event. Programs are designed for walkers, beginning runners and intermediate runners.
Over the years Marlene has developed several training programs emphasizing the coaching principles of such organizations as the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) and the American Sports Education Program (ASEP), offering periodized training, designing programs to focus on endurance, strength, speed and taper. She also welcomes individuals interested in effort based training, offering group programs and weekly training sessions. Marlene's training programs also cover such topics as nutrition for the athlete with an emphasis on the vegetarian diet, injury prevention, shoes and running apparel, upper body weight training, stretching and other related topics.
Marlene crossing the finishline at the Country Music Marathon
Personal Achievements: 1997, 1998 RRCA Regional Medium Club Newsletter Award
1997, 2003 CRR (Chattahoochee Road Runner) President’s Award
1998, 2004 CRR Service to the Club Award
1998 RRCA National Medium Club Newsletter Award
2000 RRCA National State Representative of the Year
2000 RRCA National Volunteer Award
2000 CRR Female Runner of the Year
2001 CRR Service to the Community Award
2002 RRCA Fred Lebow Women’s Running Award
2003 RRCA Regional State Rep of the Year
2005 CRR Service to the Community Award
Running Profile: Veteran - 49 marathons, 4 Boston Marathons, several ultra distances, and hundreds of 5Ks, 10Ks and half marathons. Age group winner at all distances. She's about to run her 50th marathon! WOW!
