Welcome to the GAIN Blog
The blog is updated Monday-Friday. Tune in for posts and discussion about health, fitness, nutrition, training experiments and reflection. We share articles, videos and more. We post the link to our Instagram story every day, make sure to follow along there to never miss a post.
MOnday Check in
Happy Monday!
It was so nice to be off my routine and hanging out for the past few days. That being said, I’m excited to be get back into it. New month and lots of people starting new programs this week. We’ve been tinkering and have been working some new stuff in there, so be ready.
It’s week 4—somehow—of the Fast Mile Summer Project. My goal over the weekend was to get Day 2 in and I’m happy to report that I went to the track and got it done.
It’s also race week. I’m doing the Loon Mountain Race on Sunday—and I’m really excited. Training has been going well, and although I didn’t race Mount Washington, it felt like I nailed the taper and plan to try the same this week.
Stay hydrated today!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Fourth of July
Reminder: GAIN is closed tomorrow, and I’m out today.
Here are my goals for the next 4 days:
Sleep in
Ice cream AT LEAST 2x
15-20k step days
Week 3 Day 2 Fast mile plan
See you next week!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
June by the Numbers
Welcome to this month’s edition of By The Numbers, where I look back at the data my watch collects and try to spot trends and make adjustments. I’ve been doing this for nearly two years now, and it’s become a helpful monthly reality check. Let’s dive in.
Steps
Total: 419,606
Daily Average: 13,987
That’s a couple thousand more steps than May—right on track for midsummer form. I typically average 12–13k steps a day, five days a week. I aim for two full rest days from running, and those usually land around 8–9k steps. That strategy does break any shot at a 10k step streak… and meanwhile, Hannah’s about to hit day 400.
Sleep
Average Duration: 6 hours 51 minutes
Average Sleep Score: 81
Finally, an increase in sleep duration after a few months of gradual decline. What’s interesting is I’ve been staying up a little later—but also sleeping in more—and actually feeling more rested when I wake up. Maybe it’s the cave-like AC effect, or just adapting to a new schedule. I get home later a couple days a week, which shifts my bedtime, but if it helps me sleep past 4 or 4:30 a.m. and still feel good in the morning, I’ll take it.
One standout moment: I logged a 92 sleep score one night and noticed how good I felt the next morning. I rarely score in the 90s, so it was cool to see a direct correlation between the number and how I felt.
Training
Sessions Logged: 29
Running: 16
C2 Bike: 5
SkiErg: 2
Lifting: 7
Running Stats
Miles: 116
Elevation Gain: 9,839 ft
Total Time: 20 hours
Another solid training month with numbers nearly identical to May—and that consistency is exactly what I’m aiming for. I’m now about six weeks into a new work schedule and I’ve settled into a strong weekly rhythm.
The Loon Mountain Race is coming up on July 13, and I’m getting excited for it. Between that and the continued work on my fast mile, I’m looking forward to what July brings.
Thanks for reading along. As always, I encourage you to build a monthly reflection practice like this. It’s one of the simplest ways to keep your health, fitness, and daily habits moving in the right direction.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
FAST MILE SUMMER WORKOUTS WITH HR GRAPHS
You know I love intervals and heart rate graphs. Here’s a breakdown of the first week of the Fast Mile Summer workouts. We specifically didn’t talk about heart rate on the plan - I want people concentrating on hitting their splits, and not necessarily focusing on their heart rates. One thing is for sure, it’s going to get high on test day!
Workout:
Fast Mile 6 minute Baseline Test
NOTES:
The biggest mistake people make on a short test like this is not feeling warmed up enough. I got plenty of movement in and had the time to work my heart rate up before taking off on the test. I paced it well but that last 90 seconds still felt like an eternity.
Workout:
Fast Mile Week 2 Day 1
10 sets
100m @ moderate to fast pace
100m @ recovery pace
Notes:
To me, this is a classic track workout. We would do this when I was training for hockey in college. Run down hard, walk back slowly. This time, I did it on a slight hill to promote good running form and to build my leg strength.
Workout:
Fast Mile Week 2, Day 2
10 sets
200m @ moderate pace
200m @ recovery pace
NOTES:
Return to the track! It felt so good to get out on the track last week for some fast running. My target times here were about 50 seconds of the ON interval, and 65 for the recovery. I was a little faster on the work intervals (average 47 seconds) and a little slower on the recoveries (average 69 seconds). The goal this week will be to push the recoveries paces a little bit.
the little spikes toward the end are the 5 sets of 100m strides I did after this workout.
That’s it for the first week of the Fast Mile Summer. Tune back to see how this week’s workouts go.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Monday Check in
Training momentum can be helpful or destructive.
After tapering for, and not running, the Mount Washington Road Race, I’ve been feeling really good.
So good that I realized I haven’t taken a day off in nearly two weeks.
I’m going to take it easy today even though I feel good. I want to keep feeling good by the end of the week.
If I kept riding the momentum it would take a toll on my body.
Is your momentum helping or hurting you?
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Friday Thoughts 86
Welcome to this week’s edition of Friday Thoughts. Let’s get into it.
Fast Mile
I got both of the fast mile workouts in this week. Day 1 was 8-10x100m repeats and Day 2 was 200m repeats with a 200m recovery jog. I made it to the track for the second workout and it felt good to be out there—first time since last summer. I was a little slower on my recoveries than the “easy” on the pace calculator. I also managed to get in an easy trail run, a SkiErg session and a long bike. It’s been a good week of training so far!
Fourth of July
Reminder: we are closed next week on July 4th.
ME:
That’s all for today, have a good one!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Fourth of July Hours
GAIN will be closed on Friday July 4th. Which, is already next week! Crazy!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Three Types of Workouts
I was digging through some old articles by one of my favorite strength coaches—Dan John, the inventor of the goblet squat—when one in particular stood out.
In it, he breaks down the types of workouts you’ll experience over your training career. Not specific exercises or rep schemes—but how workouts feel subjectively, during and after.
Here’s the breakdown:
1 out of 5 workouts feels great. Things click, everything moves well, and you leave feeling strong.
3 out of 5 are just okay. You check the box, get in and get out. Nothing magical. Motivation is low, but you showed up and did the work.
1 out of 5 is rough. You're tired, distracted, everything feels heavy—and you don’t want to be there.
It’s a solid reminder that not every session needs to be heroic. Some days will be blah. Some will be great. But all of them count. They all move you forward.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
PLUS ONE REP SCHEME
One of my favorite ways to help clients build strength over the past few years is simple: add reps.
It might sound counterintuitive, but increasing repetitions with the same weight is an effective way to improve both your technique and your strength. This approach is often referred to as a “ladder,” because the reps increase each set.
If you’ve trained with us at GAIN, you’ve likely done this with deadlifts.
Here’s how it works:
Start with a weight you can lift for around 8 reps. But instead of doing all 8 out of the gate, you begin with just 1 rep.
That first rep should feel easy—and that’s the point. It allows you to dial in the finer details: foot tension, breathing, bracing, and positioning. You’re fully focused, because you’re only doing a single rep.
Then, on the next set, you do 2 reps. Then 3. Then 4… working your way up until your final set.
What’s great about this method is that it naturally builds your warm-up into your workout. And while you might expect each set to feel harder, many people actually feel more confident and prepared as the ladder progresses. The same effect is typical for EMOMs too.
This approach works well for deadlifts, goblet squats, kettlebell swings, and even bodyweight movements like push ups, pull ups and dips.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Monday Check in
It’s going to be a hot one—so plan your workouts accordingly.
Start by drinking more water throughout the day. Bonus points if you toss in some electrolytes.
When it’s time to train, scale back if needed. Take extra breaks, listen to your body, and expect things to feel a bit tougher than usual. That’s normal—your body’s working overtime to stay cool and keep blood flowing to your muscles.
You can get better at training in the heat. It just takes some exposure and smart adjustments.
Stay cool out there.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Friday Thoughts 85
Welcome to this week’s edition of Friday Thoughts! Let’s get into it.
Up Next
I signed up for the Loon Mountain Race to scratch my hill up race itch. I’m bummed to have miss Mount Washington the race—it’s hard to get into and that in itself makes it fun—but mostly, I’m upset I missed out on a massive vert day to build some more fitness.
Despite that, I had a good week of training. I felt fresh from the taper, and hit a few fast paced efforts and it was a nice reminder that when building fitness, sometimes it doesn’t feel like it until you’ve given your body time to recover. I don’t know how much training I can cramp into the next 23 days, but I think it’s going to be a lot.
FAST MILE
Join us on Saturday!
Where: GAIN
When: 9am
What: a nice long warm up and a 6-minute baseline test.
REMEMBER: you cannot fail the baseline test, it’s just to see where you’re at. The main reason it’s 6-minutes and not a mile is to take some of the pressure off of executing the whole thing we’re trying to train for. Having a good plan for pacing and expectation that you’ll give it a 9/10 effort (not a 10/10 like the will be mile), should take the pressure off.
The Great One
Gotta love the polo workout shirt.
Throwing and athleticism
I loved the sentiment of this post— don’t specialize in only your sport, be an athlete.
Coach T Sent me this
This is a clip about what it means to be healthy and fit. I think a sub six mile might be a touch ambitious for the regular exerciser, but I appreciate the sentiment.
Stay cool this weekend, and hydrate if you’re out having fun in the heat!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
LAst Call: Fast mile summer
This is it—your last call to jump into Fast Mile Summer, our 8-week program designed to help you PR your mile. If you’ve already registered, I’m sending out an email later today with all the details, a copy of the plan and access to the pace calculator that will do all the pacing math for you.
We’re kicking things off this Saturday, June 21st at 9am at GAIN with a group test to establish your baseline.
What’s the test?
It’s simple:
Run as far as you can in 6 minutes.
We’ll use your distance to set your target training paces for the weeks ahead. It’s the foundation of the whole program—and doing it with the group makes it way more fun (and probably faster, too).
Can’t make Saturday?
No problem. You can complete the test on your own anytime between June 19–22—but we’d love to see you Saturday morning to kick things off together.
Final reminder:
📲 Sign up on the PushPress app under “Events” or using THIS LINK (free for members, nonmembers will get a $50 charge after signing up)
**Even if you’re doing the test on your own!
Let’s have a fast summer!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
TrueCoach Videos and Youtube
If you’ve been having trouble with the TrueCoach app lately—specifically videos not loading—you’re not alone. The good news? A quick update in the App Store seems to fix it.
But here’s something you might not know:
All those demo videos are hosted on YouTube.
So even if the app is acting up, you can always head straight to the source.
👉 Check out @GAIN_SC on YouTube and hit subscribe. We’ve got over 550 videos covering nearly everything we do in the gym.
We also just hit our first 100 subscribers, which is a legit milestone in YouTube land.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Fast Mile Summer
A fast mile is one of the coolest things your body can do—but it rarely gets the attention it deserves.
That’s about to change.
This summer, we’re launching an 8-week training program designed to help you set a new personal record in the mile. It’s called Fast Mile Summer, and it kicks off this week.
Here’s what to expect:
2 workouts per week (with optional runs if you want to add more)
A clear structure focused on speed, power, and running mechanics
A chance to test yourself, learn new pacing strategies, and shift the way you approach running
We’ll start things off with a simple but effective test:
6 minutes to run as far as you can.
That’s it. This test helps set your training paces for the weeks ahead.
📅 First Test Day:
Saturday, June 21 at 9am
(Can’t make it? No problem—do the test anytime between June 19–22.)
Whether you're a seasoned marathoner or just someone looking to get faster, this is your chance to focus on pure speed and finally answer the question:
What’s your fastest mile?
If you want in, head to the PushPress app and sign up under the “Events” tab—even if you can’t make the Saturday test.
Let’s run fast this summer!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
DNS
I was hoping to have a recap of the Mount Washington Road Race today. It was going to be an epic tale of man versus never-ending hill.
Only I did not start on Saturday morning.
On Friday Night the race director made the call to have a shortened course because of the weather. Unfortunately, the weather turned out to be okay, especially by Rock Pile Standards. I think they made the call too early on Friday before letting things play out, and I’m sure there’s plenty of people who agree.
I decided a 3 mile run wasn’t worth the drive, and instead hung out at home and contemplated never running again.
You’ll be relieved to hear that I decided not to quit running—yet anyway—and will in fact get over this.
On to the next thing.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Friday Thoughts 84
Greetings! Welcome to this week’s edition of Friday Thoughts — where I share random things on my mind and some of the favorite things I’ve seen on the internet this week. Enjoy!
Mount Washington Road Race
Tomorrow is the day! I’ve had some of my best training go down the past 6 months, and I’m excited to see how the race goes. The weather is looking, well like Mount Washington. It’s going to be cold, foggy and wet, but it’s all part of the challenge.
Fast Mile
Fast Mile program is open for sign up! If you want in on the plan — register for the event on Sat. June 21 — even if you can’t make it to the testing day (and will do the test on your own) registering here will let me keep track of who’s on the plan. You can invite your non-member friends, too! It’s $50 for non-members and they can register the same way. USE THIS LINK! Or register on the PushPress App.
Speaking of Fast Mile
My goal is to beat my previous best, set in 2019 by 30 year old Justin. At first I didn’t think I would be able to get close to that, but I’m feeling confident so let’s put it out there.
couldn’t get this to embed on the site, so here’s a screenshot. Also, the client whom I referenced here was Kendra.
Stairs
Current obsession - track athletes training with amazing set ups. Like endless plyo boxes that get taller and taller. When I didn’t think it could get any cooler this athlete has a gigantic turfed ramp in the gym. Incredible!
Alpha Dad Mode?
IDK about all these hardcore dad-wearing-weight-vest posts.
That’s all for this week. See you next time!
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Fast Mile Summer — All the Details
A fast mile is one of the coolest things your body can do—but it doesn’t get nearly the love that a marathon does.
This all started with a simple question:
What if more runners chased a fast mile instead of a slow marathon?
How would that shift change running injuries, technique, fitness, body composition, or even someone’s relationship with running? It’s an interesting thought experiment—one we’re going to play out in real life.
Who It's For
This program is built for intermediate runners—people who’ve built endurance through 5Ks, half marathons, marathons, or even ultras but have never trained purely for speed.
You should have:
A good idea of what your current mile time is.
A specific mile time goal in mind.
When It Starts
Week 1 begins June 19
The first workout is a 6-minute test to determine your target training paces.
You can do this test any time between June 19–22.
We'll also be open for a group test on Saturday, June 21 at 9:00 AM.
Program Details
Runs June 19 through early August (8 weeks total)
Includes 2 interval workouts per week
Workouts are short, typically between 2000–4000m of total running
Ideally done on a track or the air runner treadmills at the gym, but there will be conversions to set up your watch for units in miles and/or time.
GAIN members will receive workouts via TrueCoach
Non-members will receive a downloadable PDF training plan
Still Racing This Summer?
Great—keep training for it!
This fast mile plan is an excellent complement to your longer-distance goals. With just two focused speed sessions each week:
You’ll improve your stamina and turnover
Your long runs stay intact
You can add volume through warm-ups and cooldowns
If you’ve never trained fast before, this might be the exact thing that helps you PR your next race.
How to Sign Up
👉 Sign up HERE
Non-members can register through the same link (a fee applies).
Save the Date
📍 Saturday, June 21 at 9:00 AM
Join us at the gym for the official Test Day.
We’ll walk through the GAIN Running Warm-Up, then knock out the 6-minute test to lock in your training zones for the program.
Got Questions?
Shoot me a message!
Let’s run fast this summer. 🏃♂️
Justin Miner
@justinminergain
What’s the 3-session trial?
Every potential member at GAIN starts with a 3-session trial. It’s your chance to meet our coaches, experience our coaching style, and get a feel for what makes GAIN so different from the average gym. Our approach is individualized—personal training that feels like a group but isn’t actually one. It's a vibe that’s hard to describe until you experience it for yourself.
Session 1: The Intro Workout
Your first session is all about connection. You’ll work closely with a coach through our Intro Workout, where we focus on fundamental movements, and assessing your range of motion and stability. We’ll chat about your injury history, training background, and goals—what you want to get out of your time in the gym.
No matter your fitness level, our goal is to have you leave that first session thinking, “I could have done more.” That’s intentional. We can write hard workouts all day, but there’s no need to prove anything on day one. Instead, we want to ease you in and help you build a habit that lasts.
Session 2: Adding Movement & Conditioning
By the second workout, you’ll start to see more movement variety. We introduce conditioning (cardio) elements and show you some of our go-to mobility drills. This session is focused on upper body pressing and pulling, plus some single-leg strength work. You’ll continue learning without feeling overwhelmed—we keep the pace accessible while still progressing.
Session 3: The Hinge & Putting It All Together
The final trial workout covers the hinge pattern—an essential movement that can be tricky to learn but pays off in every area of training. We also revisit movements from sessions one and two as needed. Most people find this third session to be their biggest workout yet, and that’s by design. By now, your body is adapting, and we can push things just a bit more.
Why It Works
The 3-Session Trial is a crash course in GAIN’s training philosophy. You’ll learn foundational exercises, get detailed coaching, and leave with a better understanding of how to move well and feel more connected to your body. More importantly, you’ll leave with a plan tailored to your goals—something unique to you.
We’re not just trying to get you through a workout. We’re here to help you build something that lasts.
Get involved.
Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Strength and BAlance
A new favorite phrase I’ve been repeating around the gym:
Don’t turn a strength exercise into a balance drill.
I’m mainly talking about two exercises here—rear foot elevated split squats (RFESS) and calf raises.
Let’s start with RFESS. This is an excellent movement for building unilateral strength and exposing the hips and knees to a healthy range of motion. And yes, there’s a balance component—but that shouldn’t steal the spotlight.
Too often, people struggle through the movement just to stay upright, compromising depth, control, and intent. I’ve surprised a few folks by encouraging them to grab a PVC pipe or hold onto the rack. Why? Because better balance leads to better movement quality. And better movement quality leads to more strength, more stability—and eventually—better balance. But if you’re too wobbly to hit proper depth, you’ll miss the mark on all of it.
Same thing with calf raises. If you're a high-level runner, sure, single-leg calf raises without assistance might make sense. But for most people? Putting a hand on the wall or rack gives you the support you need to focus on strength and capacity through the lower leg—not your ability to stay upright on one foot.
If your goal is balance, we can absolutely program for that. But when the goal is strength, let’s not confuse the two.
Don't turn a strength exercise into a balance drill.
—Justin Miner
@justinminergain
Monday Check in
Another week, another Monday!
I’m feeling ready for the day because I took some time to prepare last night.
I packed my lunch, (and breakfast and second lunch and late afternoon snack), my workouts clothes, set the coffee machine and took a look at my schedule for the day and week. Simple, I know. But this small act of preparing for the day to come makes me feel so much more organized—and less overwhelmed.
These smalls acts that help keep you organized often feel unimportant. They can be the difference maker between sticking with your workouts or healthy lifestyle though. Start to figure out a few key habits or routines on the weekend to help you get back into weekday mode.
-Justin Miner
@justinminergain