📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Excellent cross country races in October and November are directly tied to intelligent summer training that keeps athletes injury-free and builds their aerobic fitness.
• Think of the runner’s body as a car: build the aerobic engine (long runs, fartleks, progression runs), strengthen the chassis (post-run strength and mobility), and rev the engine (strides).
• The aerobic metabolism fuels the vast majority of energy in a 5k cross...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• After the state meet, athletes need several easy days to recharge emotionally — they’re physically fit but mentally drained from weeks of high-stakes racing.
• Don’t jump straight into race pace workouts. Use challenging aerobic workouts (progression runs, fartleks) in the first week back to advance fitness without adding emotional stress.
• The post-season should be fun — don’t schedule hard workouts until the athlete is genuine...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Athletes shouldn’t start summer training until they’re genuinely bored and “chomping at the bit” to run — mental recovery is just as important as physical recovery.
• A consistent 48-week training year means athletes can afford two weeks of minimal activity between track and cross country without losing fitness.
• Week 1: race Saturday, easy run + mobility Sunday, off Monday, four days of complete rest Tuesday-Friday, then outdoo...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The "third lap problem": Most athletes' third lap is much slower than the other three
• Solution: Make a move with 500m to go using "Fast, Faster, Fastest"

    - 200m fast (from 1100m mark)

    - 200m faster (backstretch + curve)

    - 100m fastest (final 100m MUST be the fastest of the race)

• Practice "switching gears" with 300m and 600m repeats in workouts

The 1600m is a fantastic event for high school runners bec...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• When an athlete has only 3–4 weeks left in their track season, the long run should no longer be a key workout — replace it with progression runs.
• A 20-minute progression run (10 minutes steady, 5 minutes faster, 5 minutes fast but controlled) gives a great aerobic stimulus without the fatigue of a long run.
• Athletes should feel like they could have kept going for 5–10 more minutes at the final pace — the run is fast but contr...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• A stride = quick, short, controlled sprint (70-150m) faster than race pace but not all-out
• Two reasons for strides: (1) Make 5K pace feel comfortable (2) Practice speeding up/changing gears
•  Three common mistakes: Not doing strides Day 1, no progression planned, fear of "peaking early"
• You will NOT peak too early by doing strides the first day of practice
• Progression: Start with 4x20sec at 5K effort → build to longer/fa...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Three goals: Neuromuscularly ready, mentally ready, no carry-over fatigue
• Start with Jeff Boelé's dynamic warm-up (13 min, all three planes of motion)
• 5-10 min easy run → skipping/sprint drills → spike up
•  Key workout: 3 x 150m In-n-Outs (50m build, 50m fast at 92-96%, 50m run out)
• Then 2 x 200m at race pace: First from standing start, second with 20m run-in
• Cues: "Up tall" and "fast and relaxed" — never give more tha...

 📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

•  The Car Analogy: Build the aerobic engine, strengthen the chassis, rev the engine with strides
• 5000m cross country = 95% aerobic metabolism — build that engine year-round
• "Metabolic changes occur faster than structural changes" — chassis work prevents injuries
• High school runners need chassis-strengthening work EVERY day they run
• Practice structure: Dynamic warm-up → Workout/run → Strides → Post-run strength (no break...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Touch mile pace year-round — even a single 200m at dream-mile pace once a week helps the body acclimate to the demands of 1600m racing over time.
• The 1600m is about rhythm and cadence — athletes need to learn to run their goal pace efficiently while minimizing effort, starting as early as summer training.
• Use speed zones (alternating float and sprint segments within 120m reps) to teach athletes how to change gears mid-race an...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The 800m demands a completely different mentality than the 5k — it’s only 12% of the duration, requiring athletes to embrace intensity from the gun rather than “wading in.”
• A positive split (first lap 2–3 seconds faster than the second) is optimal for the 800m — don’t overcorrect by going out slower, because positioning and free energy early in the race matter.
• Early-season 800m splits will show a larger gap between laps; the...

📌 KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Athletes need both physical and mental recovery after cross country — don’t start winter training until they’re genuinely bored and eager to run again.
• The period from November to May (~190 days) is longer than summer to state (~150 days) — there’s more time to prepare for track than most coaches realize.
• Week 1: race Saturday, easy run + mobility Sunday, off Monday, four days of nothing, then active outdoor fun (hike, bike) ...