Fall is a great time to exercise outside. The days are generally comfortable and the chill of the early morning or evening air is invigorating. For this month's video clip, we stay at Mount Trashmore Park and highlight another fitness station along the jogging path. This one targets the upper body and core with its adjustable push-up and plank structure. Check out the video to see how you can adapt this station for beginner, intermediate and advanced fitness levels.

High intensity interval training, or H.I.I.T, has been gaining popularity over the past couple of years with so many gym goers seeing and feeling the benefits. There will always be a place for workouts at a moderate, consistent intensity level, but for those looking to take their training to the next level, the benefits of H.I.I.T should not be ignored.   

Professors Izumi Tabata, Martin Gibala and Jamie Timmons are three leading researchers in exercise science. In two unrelated studies, Dr. Tabata and Dr. Gibala both found that participants working out in an intense interval style experienced aerobic benefits similar to those that exercised at a more steady state. However, the interval athletes actually worked out less frequently than the steady state group, suggesting that H.I.I.T is a more efficient way to train aerobically.

Dr. Timmons studies focused more on the metabolic benefits of intense intervals. His research concluded that interval workouts have a greater effect on your post-exercise metabolic rate, meaning you are burning more calories after your workout is finished.

With these benefits in mind, we've added H.I.I.T It Hard! to the group fitness schedule at Princess Anne. This new interval class is held Saturdays at 9:30 am and will feature tons of variety, promising that no two classes will be the same. Look for other interval training classes like Turbo Tabata & Core, Tabata X, and Kick'n Tabata at Williams Farm and Bayside Rec Centers. 

Photo credit: Howard N2GOT | Flickr

The New York City Marathon will be run on the first Sunday in November. Runners will travel from all over the globe; tens of thousands of spectators will line the streets or watch on television. As the race concludes, running enthusiasts will marvel at finishing times. When I scroll through the results, I will be looking for one name: Tatyana McFadden. 

Tatyana is expected to finish with one of the fastest times of the day; however, she will not be on foot. She is the top female long-distance, push rim wheelchair racer in the country. This year she became the first person to win three major marathons in the same year with victories in London, Boston and Chicago. With a win in New York, she will complete the unheard of grand slam of distance racing, four major marathon first-place finishes in a calendar year. 

Greatness is easy to root for, especially when someone overcomes terrific adversity to achieve it. Tatyana was born in St. Petersburg, Russia with an underdeveloped spinal cord resulting in paralyses from the waist down and a hole in her spine, a condition known as spina bifida. She spent the first six years of her life in poverty-stricken orphanages without access to a wheelchair, so she learned how to move by using her arms as legs.

At the age of six, Tatyana was adopted by an American family and as they say, the rest is history. Her tenacity and athletic ability has earned her awards in multiple sports. We can easily draw inspiration from her story, her courage and her achievements. And if you're looking for an athlete to follow on November 3rd, I suggest Tatyana McFadden.