Sport Today

Wes (St. Petersburg,Fl)

Judging by your 800 time you have just not YET trained to be a great
cross-country runner.  If you are willing to train hard enough this summer,
you can change your goal to breaking 17.  Just think, if you could run 5
more of those 800's you'd be running 13:15 - so 16:59 shouldn't be any
problem for you.

Here's what I did to turn my cross-country performance in high school -
hopefully it will help you as well.

First off, lose whatever extra weight you can.  Notice I said extra weight.
You want to be as skinny as possible while still eating enough to not feel
tired.  This can be accomplished by a few simple guidelines - eat a 6 inch
sub instead of a 12 inch, eat 1 cookie when you would usually eat 2, etc.
This is really simple and can really improve your running ability.  I've
heard 5 pounds makes 30 seconds difference in a 5k - and almost everyone
that hasn't really begun to train can afford to lose this much.

Second, you're going to want to do plenty of miles this summer - while most
of your competition is sitting around or at the very least not running.
Build up slowly to 50 or 60 miles a week.  Throw in some two a-days.  These
help you increase your mileage without destroying your body.  The pace you
run these miles is extremely important.  You don't want to run over 7:00
pace.  If you're too tired to do this, then run shorter.  Eventually you'll
be able to work up to 50 or 60 miles at a pace as close to 6:00 as possible.
It's okay to occassionally throw in a long easy run but never go over 7:30.
The goal is to make this pace feel TOO SLOW by the end of the summer.

Hope this helps give you some ideas.  The most important (and hardest) part
of running well is finding out what works well for you.  Reading the running
histories of others is a great way to find your own style.

-jeff

I'd put in good mileage during the summer, long runs at a good pace,
shorter fast runs, and 1 mile repeats at race pace (try to shoot for
16:00-16:30).  Also, don't neglect raw speed.  Do sprint pickups nearly
daily. Blending these four components should result in a huge
improvement over last yr.

Don't go for heavy mileage, just quality running 50 miles per wk max.
one 10-miler relatively easy
two 6-milers non-stop fast pace, can run them as 2x3mile initially
5x1mile repeats - uphill if available.
two recovery runs 6-8 miles.

4 weeks before the cc openner start doing 800m and 400m repeats instead
of one of the fast 6-milers.

Pete

Amen. With a 2:07 half you should be able to go 16:30 if you get in distance
shape.

Of course, with all that extra milage your 800 time will improve too. 2:02?
Hey, you're underperforming again at 5K! More milage to get your 5k up
to expectations. Now you pop a 1:58. More milage ... better pack your
bags for Sydney. :)

--
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Terry R. McConnell   Mathematics/304B Carnegie/Syracuse, N.Y. 13244-1150

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     How much distance did you over the summer last year? and what kind of
workouts did you do during the season?

     The 19:27 is quite slow for someone who can run a 2:07 800m. That time
should probably drop considerably if you can get at least 30-40 miles per week
over the summer. It's also possible, however, that you're just naturally
stronger in the shorter races so your XC times might always be slower than what
your 800m time would predict.

    On average, I'd expect a 2:07 800m runner to be able to run a 5k of 17:00 -
17:30 in a flat road race and about 30 seconds slower on a hilly, rough-terrain
cross-country course (although Florida is mostly flat).  

   You should aim to get one longer run of around 9-10 miles at least once per
week and to do a couple of shorter 5-6 mile runs at a faster than normal pace
each week.

   What about the rest of the team? Get everyone together before the school
year ends and plan to meet 2-3 times a week for a group run. Find out if any of
this yr's 8th graders want to run XC next year and get them involved as well.
Its a lot easier and more fun if you can do those long runs together as a
group.

   One big benefit of running over the summer is that you're less likely to get
injured or sick when you start doing harder workouts and races during the
season and you're less likely to experience late-season staleness. As a result,
you and the team will be more likely to run especially well in those
championship meets.

Wes wrote

Take care,
Fid