By The Char Fitness Club team
Fleet Feet Montclair's Winter Warrior Challenge is back for its sixth year, and Char Fitness Club is a Community Partner. The idea is simple: keep moving through January and February, when it's cold and dark and the easiest thing is to stay on the couch. Here's how the Winter Warrior Challenge works, and how classes at Char can carry you through it.
The Winter Warrior Challenge in Montclair at a glance
- When: January 1 to February 28, 2027.
- The goal: log 4 thirty-minute activities a week. Complete 32 workouts to earn the Winter Warrior Mug, which has a new design every year.
- What counts: running, walking, stretching, yoga, skiing, strength training and more. You don't have to be a runner.
- Teams: new this year, you can join a "Snow Squad" of 2 or more friends, family or coworkers and climb the leaderboard together. Each team has a Warrior Captain to keep everyone on track. Going solo is fine too.
- Entry: $40 through December 1 at 11:59 PM, then $50, then $60 from January 5. Ages 15 and under are $25. Households of 4 to 6 get $5 off each.
- Perks: a custom long-sleeve tee, 35+ virtual badges, meet-ups and prizes, and a chance at the mug. Swag pickup is at Fleet Feet Montclair, 603 Bloomfield Ave, in early March, or it ships.
- Where: mostly virtual. You log everything in RunSignup, so you can join even if you don't live near the store.
Sign up and check the latest details on the official Winter Warrior Challenge page, since the organizers have the final word.
Winter Warrior Strength & Mobility with Char Fitness Club
Char is running Winter Warrior Strength & Mobility for eight weeks, Monday nights at 7 PM, from January 5 to February 23.
How Char classes count toward your 4 workouts a week
Strength training and stretching are both on the list of activities that count, so every class you take at Char can go in your log. Here's how to use each one this winter:
- Strength: weight training with a focus on form. It builds the legs, hips and core that keep your running and walking strong on cold, stiff days.
- Sweat: cardio and high-intensity intervals, indoors and out of the wind. A good swap on icy mornings when a run outside isn't safe.
- The Trilogy: strength, conditioning and recovery in one session. Our most popular class, and the best pick when you're short on time.
- Stretch: guided mobility and flexibility work. Cold weather makes hips, hamstrings and ankles tight, and this is where you loosen them up.
Classes are capped at 12, so a coach can watch your form and adjust any exercise to your level.
A simple winter workout week in Montclair
Four workouts a week for eight weeks is a lot to keep up when it's dark by 5. A mix makes it easier to stick with:
- 2 classes at Char: one Strength or Trilogy, and one Sweat or Stretch.
- 2 on your own: a run, a walk around Edgemont Park, or a hike in Eagle Rock or South Mountain Reservation when the weather allows.
Book your Char classes at the start of each week so they're on your calendar before the week fills up. If a snowy day knocks out your outdoor workout, move it indoors instead of skipping it.
Five tips to finish all 32 workouts
- Join a Snow Squad. Training with friends is the easiest way to show up on a cold January morning.
- Log it right away. Add each workout in RunSignup the same day so you don't lose track.
- Front-load your week. Get two workouts done by Tuesday so a busy weekend doesn't sink your four.
- Warm up longer. Cold muscles need more time. Give yourself an extra five minutes of easy movement before you push.
- Keep one easy day. A Stretch class or an easy walk still counts and helps you recover.
Start your winter training with a free week at Char
New to Char? Try a free week before the challenge starts in January and find the classes you like. Book in Mindbody, then find us at 8 Hartley St., Unit A + B, Montclair, behind the auto shop on one-way Hartley Street, just off Bloomfield Ave. We have a step-free entrance, lockers and changing rooms, and street parking on Hartley St., Washington St. and Bloomfield Ave. Coming back after a break? Read getting back into fitness after time off first, or see our December races near Montclair if you want a race to train for before January.
