PRG Newsletter – May 2026 by Performance Running Gym
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What a month! This last month our Spring racing season kicked off with a BANG! Locally, our PRG members and coaching clients had stellar races at events like the Zumbro Endurance Run, Get in Gear Races, and the Chippewa Trail Races. On the national stage, we got to watch athletes from the gym run the streets of Boston in what was one of the best weather days in the recent history of the race. And who can forget—the first sub 2-hour marathon in history at London Marathon just last weekend!
Spring is undoubtedly the most exciting time of the year to be a runner, and there is no shortage of motivation or inspiration if you look around.
As we head into May, we’re looking forward to the first PRG sponsored events of the year at CityTrail Loppet and the Superior Spring Trail Races, trail group runs every Tuesday with The Loppet Foundation at Wirth Park, and of course, Wednesday Night Group Runs at PRG—which include a handful of demo nights with footwear brands this month.
We hope you come out and run with us in May! See you on the trails!
-Aaron Boike
Co-Owner, Performance Running Gym
Tuesday Night Trail Group Runs w/ The Loppet Foundation
Every Tuesday at 6:30pm at Theo Wirth Park
Starting location at Xerxes Ave. N and Glenwood Ave., Golden Valley, MN
We’re excited to be hosting the Loppet Run Club’s Tuesday Night Trails again for 2026! Join Coaches Aaron Boike and David Nogle for a 4 or 6 mile run through beautiful Wirth Park. Pace groups from walk/jog to approximately 10 min/mile will be available.
Demo Nights in May
Altra (Road): Wednesday, May 6th at 6pm @ PRG
Asics (Trail): Tuesday, May 19th at 6:30pm @ Theo Wirth
Xerxes Ave. N and Glenwood Ave.
Nike (Road): Wednesday, May 27th at 6pm @ PRG
PRG Happenings Spotlight
PRG Run Club – Wednesday Night Group Runs
Every Wednesday at 6pm at PRG
Join us each and every Wednesday for a fun, free, community group run starting at PRG! We host 4 and 6 mile routes weekly with paces ranging from walk/jog up to approximately 9 min/mile.
PRG Sponsored Races in May
Superior Spring Trail Races: Lutsen, MN – May 16th
12.5k, 25k, 50k
CityTrail Loppet: Minneapolis, MN – May 17th
5k, 10k, 10 Mile
Member Spotlight
Andrea Breen
If you’ve spent time in the weight room at PRG, you may have crossed paths with Andrea Breen—a Minneapolis native who brings the same energy to the gym floor that she brings to mountain trails, gravel roads, and ski tracks across the country.
Andrea teaches Community and Leadership in the Undergraduate Leadership Minor at the University of Minnesota, which feels fitting when you hear how she talks about staying active. “I go nuts if I’m not active,” she says. “It’s my addiction.” That’s not hyperbole—her athletic resume makes most people tired just reading it.
She’s an avid biker, including bikepacking and long gravel rides such as a point-to-point trip from Vancouver to Seattle, a trail and ultra runner, and a skier who has completed 14 Birkies and 14 Loppets. Her standout race moments include the Superior Trail Marathon and the Goat Ultra in Washington State.
She’s been doing this while managing osteoarthritis, which says everything you need to know about her gritty mindset.
Andrea found her way to PRG after the YWCA closed, drawn in part by the gym’s partnership with the Loppet Foundation. Two years in, she’s found a community that suits her well.
“So many different types of athletes, great equipment, clean and not overly busy,” she says of the facility.
Beyond the logistics, membership has shifted how she thinks about her training—with more intention around building strength and learning new techniques to keep her body doing what she loves.
Andrea Breen – Continued
Her go-to workout soundtrack? Podcasts, including a healthy dose of true crime. When music is called for, she leans toward fast pop, rock, or Latin—which makes sense, given that she’s fluent in Spanish and spent time living in Mexico with her kids.
Her mantra? “Perfect is the enemy of the good.” She’s also working on something a lot of athletes struggle with: staying focused on her own goals instead of measuring herself against others.
Her goal ahead? More ultras, and we can’t wait to follow along on her journey!
From The Treatment Table
Dr. Kailee Carlson
Race season is here!! And if you’re toeing a start line this spring, your body isn’t the only thing that needs to be ready.
As an acupuncturist, I spend my days working at the intersection of body and mind. In Chinese medicine, we don’t separate them. They’re one system, constantly in conversation. What you think, your body feels. What your body feels, your mind interprets. And endurance running makes that truth impossible to ignore.
Around mile 18, your legs aren’t the only thing that gets tired. Your mind does too. The athletes who cross the finish line aren’t always the ones with the strongest legs. They’re the ones who trained their minds just as hard.
The mental reps count too.
If you’re like me and are in the thick of training right now, logging long runs, fighting early alarms, showing up on tired legs, that IS the training. Every time you lace up when you don’t want to, you’re teaching your mind that it’s capable of more than it thinks.
I see this in my patients all the time. The ones who recover fastest and perform best aren’t always the ones who do everything right physically. They’re the ones who trust their body and stay mentally steady.
The race is just an extension of what you’re already doing. It will get hard. Expect that, not fear it. And when it does, remember the feeling you had the moment you signed up. That belief hasn’t expired. Carry it with you.
What are you feeding your mind?
We talk a lot about race-week nutrition, what you’re eating, how you’re fueling. But what are you feeding your mind?
The podcasts on your long runs, the people you’re training alongside, the thoughts you return to when things get hard, all of it shapes your mental state heading into race day.
Be as intentional about your mental diet as your physical one. Fill your mind with things that remind you what you’re capable of. And on the days you can’t find it in yourself, borrow belief from someone else until your own comes back.
This race is not your finish line.
When you cross that finish line, flooded with relief, joy, pride, hold that feeling and memorize it.
Because here’s the truth: this race is not your end goal. It’s a stepping stone into the rest of your life. The real transformation already happened in the early mornings, the long runs, the days you chose to show up when you didn’t want to.
You are different because of this process. Not just as a runner. As a person.
So go run your race. Choose it, mile after mile. I’ll be cheering for you!!
And always remember, we GET to do this. If your body and mind need support getting to or recovering from the start line, that’s what I’m here for.
Book with me at:
https://drkaileeacu.janeapp.com/
or find me at PRG!
Stronger, Faster Evening Bootcamp
Tuesdays – Jack Zahn
Thursdays – Caleb Birklid
New Session Starts 5/11/26
6:00 AM
Stronger, Faster Morning Boot Camp
Monday & Wednesday mornings w/ Coach Caleb
6:00 AM
PRG Run Club
FREE GROUP RUNS
Every Wednesday
From PRG Lobby
6:00 PM
Trainer Tips With Aaron Boike
Ask most runners what they train, and you’ll hear about legs, hips, maybe core. Ankles? Rarely. Yet the ankle is one of the most mechanically loaded joints in the body during running.
The ankle serves to absorb force, stabilize your stride, and transfer energy from the ground up with every single step. When ankles are weak or unstable, that cost gets distributed elsewhere: the knee, the hip, the lower back. Over time, that adds up.
For trail runners especially, ankle strength isn’t optional. Uneven terrain demands constant micro-adjustments that your ankles are making faster than your brain can consciously process. A strong, stable ankle responds. A weak one rolls, compensates, or eventually gives out.
The good news is that ankle training doesn’t require much time or equipment. A few targeted exercises done consistently will build the kind of resilience that pays dividends on race day—and keeps you out of the injury cycle that sidelines too many athletes.
When considering what movements to include in your ankle routine, I recommend including movements focused on eccentric strength, movements focused on ankle stiffness and reactive strength, and movements focused on isometric strength.
Eccentric Strength
- Single Legged Calf Raise w/ Slow 3-5 second negative (down phase): 10-12 reps, 2-3 sets
- Seated Calf Raise Machine @ PRG w/ Slow 3-5 second negative (down phase): 10-12 reps, 2-3 sets
- Tib Raise Machine @ PRG w/ Slow 3-5 second negative (down phase): 10-12 reps, 2-3 sets
Ankle Stiffness & Reactive Strength
- Pogo Jumps – 2-3 sets of 50 reps
- Alternating Plate Foot Taps – 2-3 sets of 15-20 reps
Isometric Strength
- Toe Walks – 2-3 sets of 20 steps per side, slow and controlled
- Heel Walks – 2-3 sets of 20 steps per side, slow and controlled
Featured Episode
Dr. Michael Rodriguez – Choosing Your Target Marathon
Every year runners spend countless hours training, recovering, and mentally and physically preparing for one event, the marathon. What many don’t know is just how much the event you select has an impact on the outcome and experience you can expect to have on race day.
Every year, many hundreds, perhaps thousands, of marathons occur in the USA alone. Selecting the right one for you can mean the difference between a personal best and an underwhelming capstone to your dedication and hard work.
In this episode we bring back a former guest, Dr. Michael Rodriguez, the Owner of Endurance Sports Physical Therapy and Performance, to discuss how to choose your ideal marathon.
Dr. Michael is a former D1 collegiate runner with a personal best of 2:34 in the marathon and 1:12 in the half. Dr. Michael also coaches runners and has gained a reputation for helping athletes knock down time barriers and achieve breakthroughs in the marathon.
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