Building a strong core is essential for runners, not only to improve performance but also to prevent injuries and enhance overall stability. I’m Jay Johnson, and I want to share with you an effective, straightforward core strengthening routine called Core X. Designed specifically with runners in mind, Core X consists of 10 exercises, each lasting 30 seconds, making it a quick and efficient 5-minute workout you can easily add after your runs.

Published April 23, 2025

This is an interesting time of year in the track season. For some athletes who are running at a JV conference championship, the season might be ending now. In the state of Colorado, where I am, we're solidly four weeks away from the state meet. Plus, a lot of serious athletes will run a postseason meet, so we're looking at five, six, or even seven weeks more in the season.

Regardless of where your athletes are, I think ...

Published April 16, 2025

Think about what you’ve asked your athletes to do to run PRs this time of year since they started training this winter.

Things like...

• A new warm-up
• New post-run work
• Workouts you didn’t do last spring that you knew could lead to PRs this spring

Hopefully, these adjustments have led to your athletes running fast and having fun.

Now that it’s mid-April, you will probably ask them to do things they’ve never...

Published April 9, 2025 

This is a hectic time of year - but also a fun time of year - for you and your athletes.

Today, I want to help you plan for the rest of the season with a tip that will help your kids PR in the last three meets of the year.

The Long Run

The long run is a key workout in my training most months of the year. Both cross country runners and 1600m/3200m runners gain significant fitness from weekly long runs (or a long run ev...

Published April 2, 2025 

One of the biggest questions coaches and athletes have during the track season is how to properly warm-up when the athlete is running two races (aka "doubling").

Great question! Here's my concise warm-up for running track races on the track.

Quick Mobility Routine 

After finishing the first race of the day, the athlete should take 10-15 minutes until they feel mostly back to normal. They can choose to jog for 2-3 mi...

Published March 26, 2025 

It’s the last week in March and it’s a great time of year to be a track coach!

There’s a very good chance you have athletes on your team who either didn’t train this winter or had a very inconsistent winter, or, as we talked about in a previous email, they might have been basketball players or swimmers for whom you have to be really cautious with the training in the first few weeks of the season.

It’s tempting to want...

Published March 19, 2025 

I hope the season is going well and that your kids are staying injury-free.

Let's talk about the 1600m...

One of the reasons I love seeing kids run this distance is that the race can unfold so many ways.

From sit and kick races to races where kids run fast from the gun and the winner speeds up just a touch in the last 100m, to a race that starts fast, slows in the middle, then gets fast the last 400m, 200m, 100m.

B...

Published March 12, 2025 

We’re changing gears a bit this week. I’m sharing an article on my site that’s written for your athletes, with tips that you’ll likely agree with.

Here’s the article:

 ​Running A PR in Track: 12 Tips for a Breakthrough Performance​ 

I’ve pasted it below as well.

Next week I'll have a list of tips for you.

I hope the season is off to a great start!

Let’s go!

Jay

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This article is for high school...

Published March 5, 2025

This is a short email about a term we’ve all heard, and likely used ourselves: the “rust buster” race.

The rust buster is the first race of the year, one where both the athlete and coach have low expectations. The rationale is that the athlete hasn’t raced in months and that they need to “get a race under their belt” before they can chase PRs.

I’ve used this term for many years, and for younger athletes and athletes new...

Published February 26, 2025 

The official outdoor track season started on Monday here in Colorado. Let's go! 😀

Today I want to talk about one of the most important things you can do this outdoor track season to ensure that in April and May your kids are running PRs and running to their fitness level.

If you don't read the rest of the email, please make sure you do the following:

When you have a break in the weather and it's nice, make sure yo...

Published February 12, 2025

It’s mid-February, and most coaches have a variety of athletes that they are trying to help.

You’ve got some athletes that started running in December and have been fairly consistent over the holidays and all of January. You’ve got other athletes who will be joining you later this month or in March who are playing winter sports.

Today, let’s focus on the athletes who’ve been consistent this winter and what you can d...

Published February 5, 2025 

One of the chapters in ​Consistency Is Key​ that is both overlooked and misunderstood is this: Do Easy Days Easy and Hard Days Hard. I want to spend today talking about the second part of this maxim.

But first, I hope you'll join me tonight for a free live class. It's technically for coaches from the Michigan Coaches Association, but they're opening it up to anybody who wants to join live.

It'll be a concise, fast-...