Training for Regional, State, and Footlocker Competitions

September/October Training

New training block. It's time to start really focusing on our harder days and taking recovery very seriously in this block of higher-intensity runs and frequent races. Try to get 8hrs of sleep each night, eat well, and stay hydrated to run at your best. Many runners will want to look into a commercial recovery drink to have after practice such as First Endurance Ultragen, Endurox R4, Muscle Milk, or good ol' fashioned chocolate milk. Time to get better!

Ancillary Routines

Before you take your first running steps, it is critical to have a firm background in athletic conditioning to prevent injury, adapt to training, and improve lean muscle mass for strength and power. Running requires functional movement and strength in all planes of motion and a high-level of muscular coordination to perform at your best. We will be using these routines (among others) on a semi-daily basis this year, and I wanted to post videos of them here for you to do on your own as desired.

Core X- Excellent routine for general core strength and stability.

Hip Routine- Hip and gluteal routine to help prevent a variety of injuries; can be used as a pre-run warm-up for those with existing hip, knee, or back issues.

Leg Circuit- Essential lower-body strength routine for all runners; I modified this to create our usual "Colorado Leg Circuit"

August- Period of Mixed Intensity Training

Training teaser for the month detailed above.

Developmental Training: July 12 - August 3

Sunday, July 13- Rest

Mon- Long Run: Moderate 70-90min, Core

Tues- Easy 30-40min, Drills, 8x100m Strides on Grass, 800m @ 5K Goal Pace on Greenway, Warm-Down to WHS

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, 3-4x Hill Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Moderate 30-60min


Sunday, July 20- Rest

Mon- Long Run: Moderate 70-90min, Core

Tues- Easy 30-40min, Drills, 8x100m Strides on Grass, 1K @ 5K Goal Pace on Greenway, Warm-Down to WHS

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, 4-5x Hill Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Moderate 30-60min


Sunday, July 27- Rest

Mon- Long Run: Moderate 70-90min, Core

Tues- Easy 30-40min, Drills, 12x100m Strides on Grass

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, 3-4x Hill Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Moderate 30-60min


Sunday, August 3- Rest

Monday, August 4- Resume Daily Team Practice at WHS

***Doubles as desired 2-4 days per week. Keep these runs to 20-30min on a soft surface when possible. This could also be 30-50min of cross training.

Developmental Training: June 8- July 12

Team,

This block of training will follow the Hunter's Heroes 5K for those of you who are participating. If you are racing Saturday, June 7, be sure to see Michael Holland after the event so he can record your time for me to review. This will serve as a great marker for the start of our summer training. Remember, practice begins at the high school on Thursday, June 19 at 8am. Make every effort to come to these Monday, Tuesday, Thursday meetings. They aren't mandatory unless you want to get better!

Period of Aerobic Development and Technique Improvement


Sunday, June 8- Rest Day

Mon- Easy 30-60min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-40min, 2x Drills for Technique (50-60m Each; High Knees, Tail Kicks, Caraoka, Backwards Running, Ankle-Over-Ankle, Straight-Leg Run, Power Skipping for Height)

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 30-50min, 6-8x 12sec Max Hill Sprints, Colorado Leg Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min, 2x Drills for Technique (as above)

Sat- Easy 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Monday, June 16- Long Run: Moderate 50-80min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-50min, 7-9x 12sec MHS, Drills

Wed- Easy 30-50min

Thurs (First Summer Practice!)- Easy 30-50min, Drills, 6-8x 100m Strides on Grass, Colorado Leg Circuit, Core

Fri- Easy 30-50min

Sat- Easy 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Monday, June 23- Long Run: Moderate 50-80min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-50min, Drills, 8-10x 12sec MHS

Wed- Easy 30-50min

Thurs- Easy 30-50min, Drills, 8-10x 100m Strides on Grass, CLC, Core

Fri- Easy 30-50min

Sat- Moderate 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Mon, June 30- Long Run: Moderate 60-90min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-50min, Drills, 8-10x 100m Strides on Grass

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, 1-2x Kennedy Trails Hill Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Moderate 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Monday, July 7- Long Run: Moderate 70-90min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-40min, Drills, 10x100m Strides on Grass

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, 2-3x Hill Circuit (Easy 10-20min if racing The Bear in the evening)

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Moderate 30-60min

Sun- Rest

Coach's Notes: If desired, additional easy running ("doubles") can be completed as the summer progresses. This applies only to older athletes with a good base of training. Be sure to stay well-hydrated not just around your runs, but throughout the course of the day. Eat well, and get plenty of rest amid this training plan.

2014 Post-Track/Early Summer XC Training

The below training should follow the track season and a rest week. We will reorganize as a team in June for summer practices. The Hunter's Heroes 5K is on June 7. This race begins at the Watauga County Sheriff Department at 8:30am, and features a very fast course down King Street and onto HWY 321. This will be a great way to test your 5K fitness after track, and give us a good benchmark for summer training. Consult with Coach Hoyal or Coach Mac if you have questions about the training below. You will notice a large gap of time for some of the easy runs; this is meant to allow those recovering from injury, etc. to ease back into things, and for those 100% healthy a chance to develop their aerobic base.

Also, we are trying to create running logs for everyone to track their work-outs and races for the next year. These are great for college recruiting, tracing injuries, and monitoring progress. We want to have a 500ml club for boys and a 300ml club for girls over the summer with awards to those who hit these marks. Let us know your interest.

Period of Regeneration and Developmental Training for Fall Cross Country

Monday, May 12- Easy 30-60min Run, Core

Tues- Easy 20-40min, Drills for Technique (50-60m Each; High Knees, Tail Kicks, Caraoka, Backwards Running, Ankle-Over-Ankle, Straight-Leg Run, Power Skipping for Height)

Wed- Easy 30-50min, Core

Thurs- Easy 30-50min, Colorado Leg Circuit

Fri- Easy 20-40min, Drills for Technique (as above)

Sat- Easy 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Monday, May 19- Easy Long Run: 40-70min, Core

Tues- Easy 30-50min, Drills

Wed- Easy 30-50min

Thurs- Easy 30-50min, Drills, Core

Fri- Easy 30-50min, Colorado Leg Circuit

Sat- Easy 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Monday, May 26- Long Run: Moderate 50-75min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-50min, Drills

Wed- Easy 30-50min + 4-6x 12sec Max Hill Sprints with Full Recovery (~2:00 jogging recovery)

Thurs- Easy 20-50min, Drills, Core

Fri- Easy 30-50min, CLC

Sat- Easy 30-50min

Sun- Rest

Mon, June 2- Long Run- Moderate 50-70min, Core

Tues- Easy 20-50min, Drills

Wed- Easy 30-50min, 5-7x 12sec Max Hill Sprints

Thurs- Easy 20-40min, Core

Fri- Easy 20-40min

Sat- Hunter's Heroes 5K @ 8:30am

Sun- Rest