Raising a Distance Superstar: The 12-Month Blueprint from Puppyhood to Performance
Start Training for Distance from Day One
PUPPY NOW- DISTANCE SUPERSTAR LATER !!!!
Here’s exactly how I did it—from 9 weeks to 14 months. 🐾
When I brought home my puppy, Myelin, I knew I wanted to raise her with distance agility in mind from the very beginning. Not just “when she was older,” not “once the equipment came out.” I mean from Day One—laying down the foundation, the life skills, the body awareness, and the connection that would shape her into a confident, independent distance dog.
That’s why I created
Raising a Distance Superstar: The 12-Month Blueprint from Puppyhood to Performance
This is a complete, step-by-step roadmap that follows Myelin’s real-life training—starting at just 9 weeks old and continuing through 14 months. It’s packed with everything I taught her to help her grow into the bold, responsive, driven dog I dreamed of. This is a unique full-year journey that shows how to build a distance superstar from the ground up, using short, fun, age-appropriate training sessions.
The curriculum is organized by puppy age (from 9 weeks to 14 months), so you’ll always know exactly what to work on each month—safely and effectively.
Whether your pup is 9 weeks, 5 months, or just under a year—there’s still so much gold inside this course. And you’ll get instant access to all of it the moment you sign up.
Raise your future distance star the right way—start today!
What You'll Learn:
• Life skills: leash walking, recalls, learning rules and more
• Connection and fitness exercises
• Foundation agility skills for distance training
• Small space drills to teach cues
• Safe, age-appropriate training techniques
What You Get:
• Full access to over a year’s worth of training content immediately upon sign-up
• Detailed videos of Myelin's training journey
• Step-by-step guides with troubleshooting tips
• Lectures on puppy training and development
Class Highlights:
• Essential life skills
• Training and puppy lectures
• Connection and groundwork exercises
• Targeting with toys and buckets
• Teaching your pup to understand cues
• Drive forward at a distance
• Directional cues at a distance
• Foundation start-lines and lead outs
• Puppy fitness: safe exercises for growing bodies
• Body awareness and coordination training
• Foundation contact training
• Foundation jump training
Why This Course Is Different — A Full Year of Training From Puppyhood!
🐾 9 Weeks to 14 Months — Follow Myelin’s development and training journey
📅 Monthly Progressive Lessons — Age-appropriate skills introduced at the right time
🎥 Real-Time Videos — Watch actual training sessions and learn from real-life challenges
💪 Fitness & Body Awareness — Safe exercises that grow with your pup’s body
📢 Connection & Confidence — Build a solid bond and foundation for distance work
🎯 Distance & Direction — Teach drive, targeting, start-lines, and lead-outs as your pup matures
📝 Personalized Video Feedback — Working students get detailed monthly reviews
Life Skills
Foundation Agility
Play & Fitness
Course Info:
Duration: You have access until June 2026.
*Included in ITZ All Access Membership https://inthzonedogtraining.homesteadcloud.com
Auditor Spot: $199 – Full access to all materials, with Q&A, no video submission
Working Spot: $349 – Includes monthly video submission
Video Review: Working students can submit up to 10 minutes of video per month for personalized feedback. Lisa provides voiceover and screen-casting to analyze and suggest improvements, using slow motion and visual aids.
Here’s how our course will help you avoid common mistakes and set your puppy up for success:
1. Skipping Foundation Skills:
* Mistake: Rushing into agility sequences before building strong foundations.
* Solution: In our course, we start with life skills, groundwork, and teaching your puppy the rules of engagement, preparing them for agility the right way.
2. Training Too Much or Too Long:
* Mistake: Overtraining or training too long can frustrate or exhaust your puppy.
* Solution: We focus on short, fun, and engaging training sessions. I’ll show you how to keep your puppy motivated and successful without burnout.
3. Allowing “Bad” Behavior:
* Mistake: Letting unwanted behaviors slide creates confusion and frustration for the puppy.
* Solution: In the course, you’ll learn how to set clear rules and maintain consistency, helping your puppy understand expectations early on.
4. Unsafe Training Practices:
* Mistake: Engaging in unsafe training practices or inappropriate exercises can cause mental or physical harm.
* Solution: I’ll teach you age-appropriate training methods and safe fitness exercises that protect your puppy while promoting healthy growth.
💬 What Students Are Saying...
"Watching Myelin grow up and learn in real-time gave me so much confidence with my own puppy. I never had to guess what to train next!"
— Emily B.
"This isn’t just a puppy class—it’s a full roadmap to raising a focused, driven distance dog. Every video was packed with gold."
— Josh R.
"Lisa breaks things down so clearly. I used the connection and fitness games right away, and I’m already seeing the difference!"
— Sarah K.
"The best part? I didn’t have to rush. The full-year format let me take my time and build real skills with my pup."
— Megan T.
Lisa Schmit is a passionate and dedicated dog trainer who believes in building confident, connected canine athletes—at every stage of life. With a deep commitment to both training and wellness, she focuses on helping dogs stay sound, strong, and happy through thoughtful fitness, clear communication, consistent, timely cueing and smart agility handling.
As the founder of In The Zone Training, Lisa has created a supportive learning environment for agility handlers of all levels. Through individual skill classes or her All-Access Membership, she offers step-by-step guidance for everything from foundational distance work to advanced Bonus handling, along with fitness and massage techniques to keep dogs in peak condition.
Lisa isn’t just an expert—she’s a teacher at heart. She makes complex skills accessible, and she’s known for her practical, encouraging style. Whether helping a handler build their first start line stay or coaching a team to their 25th NATCH, Lisa blends science, experience, and heart in every lesson. Her goal is to help dogs and handlers thrive—not just in competition, but in every moment they share.
She doesn’t just want to train her own dogs—she wants to empower others. She builds structured learning communities (like All Access Membership), pays attention to what her students need, and she is always looking for ways to make information clearer, more inspiring, and easier to apply.
Lisa is detail-oriented, practical, and experienced—but also warm and approachable. She values connection: with her dogs, her students, and her community. At the same time, she is not afraid to advocate—whether it’s for better course design, more fairness in the sport, or just helping others understand what’s realistic to train. She strikes a balance between expertise and empathy.
Lisa is also one of the most accomplished distance handlers in NADAC. Her consistent, clear, and positive training has led to extraordinary success across many dogs and years. She has earned:
*Multiple NADAC Championship Winners/Top 3 with Multiple Dogs (10 dogs on Podium, 28 times)
*3 Dogs with Distance Cups from NADAC Champs
*4 Dogs with MODSQUAD (Master of Distance and Speed)
*4 Dogs with over 34 Distance Awards
*10 dogs with hundreds of NATCHES
These achievements reflect not just her technical skill, but also her ability to build joyful, trust-filled partnerships with dogs. She is passionate about helping other teams experience that same level of confidence and connection—even from a distance.
With a PhD in Public Policy Analysis and certifications in canine fitness and massage, Lisa brings both academic depth and hands-on expertise to her work. Most importantly, she understands that great agility comes from trust, connection, and a whole lot of joy. With over 20 years of training experience and a library of 40+ online courses, Lisa helps teams—from puppies to elite competitors—build focus, confidence, and success at any level.
In short: Lisa is a passionate dog trainer, a generous educator, and a thoughtful advocate for both dogs and the people who love running with them.