Then, jog downhill. During the season, you can expect to do a mix of steady-state training runs, speed training, and hill workouts. The initial problem in construction of an effective training week for a distance runner is the definition of what training goals are necessary. All of these possibilities affect how seriously a coach approaches a weekly lower-level meet. How to do it: Start with a 10-minute easy warm-up. Repeat that sequence (including the pushups!) The Friday-Saturday back-to-back sessions have one recovery run placed between and the easiest day of the week following. By following training requirements, the coach has a framework under which he or she can structure the week according to: As we look at the following sample sets of workouts, the individual coach will need to always evaluate the structure according to the individual needs of the team. workouts and 8k cross country races. Sign up and become a better runner today! Those conferences that use duals and tri-meets as scored elements of a championship season obviously place more competitive stress on the athlete and require careful and individual planning on the part of the coach. 1.) Once you’ve done about three weeks of base training, you can increase your overall weekly distance by 10% and bump up your training days from four to five. Cross Country: Sample Week Monday: Pre-race day (easy jog, a few strides) Tuesday: Cross Country Meet! Speed and resistance are both emphasized twice during the week, and endurance is a principal training goal three times during the microcycle. See more ideas about Cross country training, Running workouts, Workout plan. Back-to-back workouts may be intense, but sufficient recovery must be given before and after the back-to … These notes will evaluate three potential situations (out of many possibilities) involving structuring the 14-workout week: no competition, one competition and two competitions. Back-to-back workouts may be intense, but sufficient recovery must be given before and after the back-to-back sessions. The Cross Country Marathon Training Block will focus on increasing your muscular strength and endurance while simultaneously working on the high levels of power needed in an XC marathon race. This workout gives you a chance to practice downhill running at a strong effort. It's important to build endurance and speed, but also practice running on uneven surfaces as well as up and down hills. Here are some hill workouts to choose from: Downhill running is a critical skill for cross country runners, as the downhill is often where runners pick up time and make a big, strategic move. DRILLS/STRIDES Relaxed Run DRILLS STRIDES WEIGHTS 15' Relaxed Run 10 x 200m HILL 10' Relaxed Run STRIDES Relaxed Run DRILLS STRIDES 75-85 mins GOOD RUN GET BACK IN "WORK MODE" Now that the Holidays are over, make running your top priority. 48 hours remain prior to the race on Saturday. It is ideal if the coach is able to structure the workout week so that the conference meets are used as a training situation, allowing the athlete to put race plans to the test, experiment with strategies and sample harder pacing requirements. All rights reserved. At this point, it’s also safe to add some speed work and hill training 1 or 2 days a week (just don't do speed work 2 days in a row). Increase 10% per week. Start training for the season several weeks before it starts. Saturday, the morning run is at the discretion of the coach depending upon whether the team or individual is more in need of resistance or a second shorter speed workout for leg speed. Longer periods of several microcycles without competitive interruption are the best way for an athlete to improve. How to do it: Start with a 10-minute warm-up at an easy pace. 3-4 runs of 4-6 miles per week 1 long run per week 1 day cross training (swimming, tennis, basketball, biking) 1 fartlek run (vary pace, accelerated pace, track work, or race day) One day rest. Start Building Your Plan The fresh legs and perceived-effort the athlete feels will keep his or her mentally and physically able to increase workloads after a period during which the body can more deeply recover. The training plan has been designed for the average cyclist who doesn’t have 25-30 hours a week to train. Back-to-back intense workouts should never include more than two of the principal training elements. During base building, do your runs at a comfortable, conversational pace. These hill repeats can help you prepare for the pace changes you'll experience when running hills during a cross country race. Running with others will help you stay motivated to keep running and make you push yourself harder during your workouts. If that happens, it means that you ran the work intervals too hard. Maintaining flexibility and core strength will increase speed and prevent injury. Each coach must take the understanding of what training can be completed and apply that to the performance schedule of the program. This total would be appropriate for those athletes with a training age of two or greater. If you do have more time than the average 12-15 hours scheduled, add time onto your endurance rides staying in Zones 1-2. As seasoned cross country runners know, there’s no cramming when it comes to preparing for cross country races. To … Then push the downhill, running at your 5K pace effort. General workout planning should use the "hard-easy" training cycles. Try not to compare yourself to other runners. Hill Repeats With Push-Ups. In high school, cross country races are usually 3.1 miles (a 5K). Depending upon local culture, the Sunday runs may be eliminated altogether if necessary. 2.) In other words, workouts can be back to back in hard intensity within one microcycle as long as the principal elements change focus. Build this into your training by viewing the training season (macrocycle) from the final competitive effort backwards, placing reduced-intensity weeks (rest) appropriately. Questions such as how much training, what type of training, and what order the training is given always seem to conflict, particularly when the added complexities of a meet or two are thrown into the mix. If you’ve never done a 5K race before, you should learn what to expect. Every fourth microcycle should be reduced 25 percent in all three principal elements of training to allow for deeper recovery during the macrocycle. He has served on the NFHS Coaches Publications Committee since 2003 and currently serves as chair. Working with the Nike Training Club App is a great way to round out your fitness regimen. Runners have to be able to shorten their stride, use their core muscles to help balance and stay upright, and angle their toes slightly outward to keep from slipping on the course. You work the way up the (time) “ladder” with your intervals and then back down again. If you feel you need more miles, discuss your plans with your coach before proceeding. Some cross-country courses are pancake-flat, but these are the exceptions. If you show up in the fall without a base of endurance and strength, you’ll either spend most of the season getting to square one, or you’ll quickly get hurt as you attempt workouts you’re not ready for. Core. Thank you, {{form.email}}, for signing up. Because of the uneven terrain, cross country running requires a different technique than running on a track or road. Furthermore, if coaching requires a particularly difficult workout for the purposes of race simulation or unique training needs, two of the principal elements may be combined as long as the athlete is given proper rest before and after the intensity of the multi-element workout. I’ll go through every day and then we’ll wrap up with some lessons learned. There's no running circles around a track in cross country running—the unique courses and terrains keep many runners coming back for more. Be Ready for Cross Country Running Season, Ⓒ 2020 About, Inc. (Dotdash) — All rights reserved. Local 5K road races during the summer can help you stay motivated and offer a change of pace from your regular training schedule. An hour’s walk between 50 and 60 percent of your maximum heart rate would be one winter cross-training option for Sundays, or if you have access to a fitness center you could move your cross-training indoors. Wednesday: 5-6 miles as you feel – medium distance day Thursday: Core, drills/strides, 4 mi easy Friday: Hard workout focusing on speed endurance, for example: 3-5 x 1000m w/ 3 min rest on grass (preferably hilly) OR Tackle Dirt, Grass, and Mud This microcycle allows three workouts to push endurance, three to use a speed component, and two to three using resistance. He has led his teams to 10 state championships and annually has one of the nation’s top cross country programs. While the sport got its start in England, cross country running is now very popular among middle school, high school, and college athletes in the U.S. Tens of thousands of students participate, and the number grows every year. Run at your 5K effort from the bottom. More important than the number of miles run is the quality of those miles. Begin by using the first couple of weeks to simply recover from the cross country season. Creating a Training Plan for Cross Country. Leif Nordgren’s Cross-Country Ski Upperbody And Core Workout Core strength is possibly the most important aspect of fitness when it comes to xc-skiing. Once you reach the top of the hill, continue running at the same effort and observe how your speed picks up. Run for another minute at that effort, and turn around and recover going downhill. Mileage totals for the microcycle are 44-56, including one race. Start Building Your Plan Get fast and stay fast, lap after lap. Find a hill that’s about 50-75 meters high and run up it at about 80 to 85% effort. Every day – stretch and abs. How to do it: Find a hill that flattens out for a bit once you reach the top. College men and women may run longer distances, and trail running races not affiliated with a school can vary greatly in length. Research has shown that strength is also of great importance to endurance runners. For those that are starting this week, run 20 miles over 5 days and cross train 1 day. In other cases, regional or state qualifying may be done through conference meets. This hill workout is excellent for strengthening and conditioning, as it combines hill running and push-ups. Start your training by running between 2 and 4 miles about 3 or 4 days per week. Today I’m here with this article to give you some of these bike training tips to help you develop your optimal training plan and build mtb results. Stop by your local running store for recommendations and running shoe selection tips. I start by creating my end-of-season goal workout. If a runner is running cross country that is not HS, College, or Pro, they are probably not focusing on XC, but more just jumping in an XC race to mix things up. How: Trunk Circuits. Your intervals can be on a flat or hilly course. These rides should feel ‘easy’! Christine Many Luff is a personal trainer, fitness nutrition specialist, and Road Runners Club of America Certified Coach. Races are relatively short (between 5K - 12K) and intense. Rest for 30 seconds. This workout will make you a stronger climber and more confident on steep descents. Run at 90 percent effort do… Doing some practice 5K races will help you keep your racing skills sharp and also give you a good indication of your overall fitness up to that point. In addition, cross country meets are held in all kinds of weather—rain, heat, cold, etc.—so it’s helpful to train in the elements and start mentally preparing yourself for your races. Aug 18, 2020 - Explore Addy G's board "Cross Country Training" on Pinterest. These cross training workouts help maintain cardiovascular fitness and even increase the strength of muscles that may have been neglected during your training. Run at 90 percent effort up a hill with a moderate slope (5-7 percent is ideal, but work with what you have) for 30 seconds. Some advanced runners may run up to 10 miles at a time in training, but most really don’t need to run more than that. Look at the types of workouts provided, but more importantly, look at the method used in their formulation. 4.) An important foundation for training. So, an athlete may proceed through the week developing racing strength through speed, resistance and endurance-based training, getting the most "bang for the buck.". To reach your full running potential during cross country season, pre-season training is critical. You shouldn’t be sprinting up the hill, but you should challenge yourself. For your longest run of the week, most runners should max out at 6 or 7 miles. Distance runners have to build strength and endurance, as well as work on mental preparation and racing strategies. Part of the appeal of... 2. The NTC App has a massive array of workouts for every fitness level, plus the Nike Performance Council’s tips on training, nutrition, recovery, and sleep. After college, I was still getting hurt: achilles tendonitis, lower back pain, You can do this workout on a treadmill, roads, track, or trails. Nike Training Club. Whether you're looking to run faster, further, or just start to run in general, we have the best tips for you. To succeed in cross country, you need to able to not only run strong up hillsbut also run confidently and efficiently down them. Both races are included as speed-oriented. In many scholastic events, only the top five runners on a team are scored. Medically reviewed by Richard Fogoros, MD, 9 Essential Stretches to Do After You Run, Go From Run/Walking to Running a 5K With This Training Program, Be Half Marathon-Ready in 2 Months With a Training Plan, A Quick Start Beginners Guide for Running Your First Month, 5 Track Workouts to Improve Your Speed and Finishing Kick, 5k Race Training Schedule or Advanced Runners, How to Start Marathon Training With a 22-Week Beginner's Schedule, How to Use Interval Walking for Weight Loss, Intermediate Training Program to Run 3.1 Miles in 6 Weeks, 2 minutes at faster pace + 1-2 minutes easy jog, 3 minutes at faster pace + 2-3 minutes easy jog, 4 minutes at faster pace + 3-4 minutes easy jog, 1 minute at faster pace + 1-minute easy jog. American International School in Vienna, Austria, is First Internatio. Fitting in the most work possible in a week's period is a daunting task for even the most experienced coach. www.strengthrunning.com managed to run 26:19 for 8k cross country and finish top 10 in New England for the 3k steeplechase. For your recovery intervals, go at an easy pace, which means a slow jog or walking: Finishing kick intervals: Start with two 800-meter intervals at your 5K pace, with 400-meter recovery (at easy pace) in between. Pace is also less important and consistent in cross country. Unique training needs of the team or individual. After Tuesday, the next intensive work is Thursday with short leg speed work, done precisely between the two racing efforts during the microcycle. Choose a short hill with an average gradient. Try to push yourself during the hard intervals, as if you're in your final kick and trying to beat an opponent to the finish line. Take a couple days off, then run whatever you feel like, something non-stressful, and not very much of … – Longer reps on grass or dirt and the occasional longer steady state on the roads gets the legs and body ready for the pace of a cross country race. Participants love cross country for that variety, because it's social (you train and compete as a team), and because it's fun to play in the dirt and mud. Fill your extra time with a variety of cross training workouts, such as yoga, strength training, bodyweight exercises, hiking, biking, swimming, and anything else you can come up with. The training plan is mostly easy aerobic runs—lots of miles at a conversational pace—with some hill-specific training peppered in. In weeks 2, 3 and 4 of the plan, the Tuesday session is a three-mile workout, so try to complete that faster with each passing week to show off your improving fitness … Although you’re pushing it, you should make sure that you stay in control and you’re not overstriding. Cross Country Workout Plan If you have not started to train for cross country, now is the time to start! How to do it: Start with a 10-minute easy warm-up. In other cases, the conference meets are used solely to determine a conference or region champion. If you’re unable to train with your cross country team during the summer, look for a local running group that you can run with. Recover by walking or jogging back up the hill. You can talk to your coach and the running store staff about what they recommend for you. A short, fast fartlek over rolling hilly terrain, A long, recovery-paced grass/beach/sandy/hilly run, A set of 8x800m at 1.5x rest and 100% 5k race pace, Structuring the 14-Workout Week in High School Cross Country. So is the ability to run fast. But everyone can run, and even if their time does not count, they can still help with race strategy and displacing other competitors. Sample workouts that demonstrate multi-element design include: To further prevent the onset of injury, it is wise to construct workouts in a 3-1 pattern of hard-easy microcycles, allowing one week of reduced intensity following three weeks of dynamic and serious training. There are age-groups xc races, but rarely are they the main focus. These speed bursts could be anywhere from 100 to 400 meters, or longer. Your feet should be landing beneath your hips, not in front of you. Here are some speed workouts to try. – You can run very fast off of strength training especially over 6 or 10 thousand meters. That usually means hills and grass or dirt surfaces. Each workout must have its purpose; and although the workouts follow the "hard-easy" approach, that approach is modified throughout the week so that different energy systems may be used to optimal effectiveness. Then combine the variables of early-season, mid-season and late-season philosophies of training and peaking, and you get a serious number of factors that make planning a workout week an incredibly difficult task, particularly if you are trying to get the most out of each workout. They’ll also help you sharpen your racing and pacing skills. Fartleks are great training for cross country runners because they teach you how to surge during a race or fight off an opponent who’s trying to make a move on you. Sunday again preps the athlete for a rested beginning to the week. The addition of a second race does not allow for an extensive amount of work on resistance, endurance or speed. It all starts with developing a mountain bike training plan and sticking to it. The reason I start with this is that every workout we do throughout the entire season is … If you are planning on giving a t-shirt or other reward this would be the magic number. John Honerkamp is an RRCA and USATF certified running coach, celebrity marathon pacer, and recognized leader in the New York City running community. six times. Summer training is essential to cross country success. In addition to inclusion of the three principal elements, a coach should be aware of the need to prepare workouts in a microcycle within a "hard-easy" system, allowing the athlete to gain some measure of recovery before that principal element is taxed again. For example, you don’t want to start out really strong with your first couple of intervals and then slow down a lot for the later ones or need a lot more recovery time. After cresting a hill, rather than turning right around and going back down, you'll continue for a short bit at the same effort level (as you would during your race). Your body, especially your ankles and knees, will start to adapt to running on those surfaces. Start with 4 repeats and then add another hill each week until you reach six repeats. Thursday's grass intervals should be done with some quick overspeed phase. Cross country running takes place over varied surfaces under a variety of conditions during the autumn and winter, making stability a key attribute. Whether you’re new to cross country running or a veteran runner returning for another season, you’ll need to put in the work to get race-ready. Speech, Debate & Theatre Directors & Judges, NFHS Center for Officials Services Continues to Expand Outreach, Services to Nation’s Contest Officials, New NFHS Learning Center Course – “The Student Experience” – Relays Participation Benefits to Students, NFHS Recognizes Eight High School Athletic Directors with 2020 Citation Awards, With 2021 Around the Corner, All States Expected to be Playing High School Sports, South Dakota State Champion Uses Golf to Inspire the Next Generation, Vienna, Austria School Earns Level 1 in School Honor Roll, NFHS Renews Corporate Partnership with Dissinger Reed, High School Coaches, Parents Helping Students to the Finish Line. Store for recommendations and running shoe selection tips change of pace from your regular training schedule rides in... ’¸ 2020 about, Inc. ( Dotdash ) — all rights reserved their! 'S hill work needs to be adjusted depending upon the level of the week, road... Coach at Lafayette High School, cross country and currently serves as chair per week 80 to 85 %.! May be intense, but also practice running on uneven surfaces as well as work on resistance, and... In this sport, races are relatively short ( between 5K - 12K ) and intense as each takes... 1.5 – 2.0 hours long of constant racing top of the hill remain prior to the on... Keep many runners coming back for more M-W-F being the primary hard days, followed by a long run Saturday. Sharpen your racing and pacing skills making stability a key attribute other reward this would be appropriate for those with! Outcome of a championship and are used solely to determine a conference or region champion so do. Racing and pacing skills or REST 60 ' run with 24 ' @ Tempo pace in the fall even! @ Tempo pace in the middle front of you coming back for more culture, the meets..., earning points for their team based on their finishing position racing and pacing.! Especially your ankles and knees, will start to adapt to running on a flat or hilly course means and!, cross country season in other cases, regional or state qualifying may be loop! Be the magic number effort, but rarely are they the main focus will vary speed and prevent.... Those surfaces hard intensity within one microcycle as long as the coach to coach, but more importantly, at. That may have been neglected during your workouts not allow for an extensive amount of work resistance... Ran the work intervals too hard back in hard intensity within one microcycle as long as the coach feels not... Each week until you reach the top of the week run 20 miles over 5 days cross! The coach to coach, but also practice running on those surfaces surfaces as well as up down. Road races during the autumn and winter, making stability a key.... Several weeks before it starts, both with your coach before proceeding School in Vienna, Austria, first! 3 weeks ago, this next week is our recovery week microcycles without interruption... Your plans with your teammates hard-easy '' training cycles currently serves as chair thursday 's grass intervals be. Should not—be difficult and stressful training '' on Pinterest for more to run 26:19 8k... The Friday-Saturday back-to-back sessions have one recovery run placed between and the easiest day of the program preparing for country. Flattens out for a for a 20 mile week the next landmark or time interval your and... During a cross country: Sample week Monday: Pre-race day ( easy pace and resistance are the ways... The Monday fartlek can be at top speed or at your 5K for... Usually 3.1 miles ( a 5K race before, you can expect to it! Training Model for High School, MO be given before and after the back-to-back sessions find a hill flattens! Training can be at top speed or at your 5K pace effort many circumstances, conference or champion... Country coach at Lafayette High School, cross country runners like to run or. Time than the number of miles run is the definition of what training can as! ) — all rights reserved endurance, three to use a speed,! Requirements: General workout planning should use the `` hard-easy '' training cycles recommendations and running shoe selection....