Run-Down Forums

[Guest]

Since the track season is almost over, it's about to time to think of the upcoming cross-country season. I find that I have more sucess in track than I do in xc. I have the 1600 in 4:34 and the 800 in 2:02. But my pr in the 5k is only 17:15. I was wondering how I can improve this time, since this coming year will be my last year of xc in high school. Oh yeah I aslo train over the summer too. Any suggested workouts or training runs that can help me out would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[Anonymously Posted by: 'Mark Wilkins']

[Dan]

That's a little outside my area of expertise, but I would recommend 20-30 minute tempo runs and long intervals like 6 x 1 mile repeats. The goal is to translate your speed into a comfortable tempo into 3.2 miles.

Dan

[Guest]

Thanks for the info. I will certainitly give the 6x1 mile repeats a try. I have done those in a long time. Hopefully that will help me get over my plateau.

[Anonymously Posted by: 'Mark Wilkins']

[Dan]

You're welcome. The shorter the recovery you can take while keeping the times consistent, the better.

Best of luck!
Dan

[mjsbossman]

Hey Dan, I am also going to be doing Cross Country. My coach said not to do any interval training this summer, just to get a good base. Hey, are Tempo runs okay to do? Seems like those will help alot. Also, Dan, instead of doing interval training, such as 800m repeats, how would 3 mile repeats be? I could do 3 3 mile repeats, so I can run at a faster pace, and maybe take a 5 minute break between each one. Dan, please help!

[Dan]

If you read through my answers to similar questions, you will see that I'm strongly against quantity at the expense of quality. There's no reason why faster paced running cannot be incorporated into a base building phase. Whether this means tempo runs, intervals geared toward endurance and pacing, or strides, I definitely recommend making it a part of your summer program.

Personally, I would lean toward tempo runs over three-mile repeats. The idea with intervals is consistency and even pacing, which is rather unachievable for most people over three miles.

Dan

[Guest]

Ive always worked up to 60 mpw durring to summer and incorperated longer tempo runs and lots of hill repeats and we dont begin speedwork untill september and it has worked well-ive also always trained twice a day surring summer and cross country-in track too but to a lesser extent

[Anonymously Posted by: 'anne']

[carr_a]

hey dan,
i am not sure how much i should do this summer. last summer i only ran 3 days a week and still managed to run a 15:57 by the end of the season off of no more than 30 mpw. i just started to get serious about running this winter and started running 35-40 mpw after XC. Now i have run 9:32 with one more race to go. I am definitely going to run 2 times a day in the summer but am not exactly sure how much to run in the morning and the afternoon, or what pace to run at. One time in the winter i ran into my rival and we ran a couple of miles together and i noticed he ran at 6:30 pace, while i usually ran at about a 6:50 pace. With one more year in high school, my main goal for the summer would be to run as many miles as possible at 6:30 pace. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Dan]

Hi Allen

First of all, three days a week is basically a maintenance level. It usually takes 5+ days a week to see improvement. Is your 9:32 a 3k, 3200m, or two mile?

As far as pacing and mileage, the two will be somewhat dependent on each other. If you are trying to significantly up the mileage, it's probably not realistic to also quicken the pace by that much. Ask yourself whether a 6:50 or 6:30 pace will make any difference when it comes to running 3.1 miles at 5 minute pace. It probably won't. What it will do is make you stronger for training later on and possibly keeping you healthier by being prepared. I would keep your pace at its current level, build up the mileage to where you want to be, then focus on picking up the pace. If you adjust the pace too early, it will be hard for your legs to catch up and adapt.

How you split your morning and afternoon runs isn't overly important. It's normal to have your harder workouts in the afternoon, unless it is too hot then. If you are planning on running in college, you might want to do harder morning runs, as most collegiate cross country races are around 10am.

Cheers,
Dan

[Guest]

Hi I have a question. I am going to be a junior and I do track and cross country. Only have done cross country one year and was totally unprepared last year, I ran like 1 week before we started. I actually did pretty good and lettered. This summer I want to be really serious and train hard. I am planning on running with a some of the other girls and lifting 3 times a week. What are tempo runs? I have heard of you guys talking about them but don't know what they are =). So basically I am just wanting to know some advice on things I can do (ie...weight training and workouts) to help me next cross country season. Any help would be awesome, thanx!
Meagan

[Anonymously Posted by: 'Meagan']

[Dan]

Hi Meagan,

Tempo runs generally consist of an extended period at a bit slower than race pace, often 15-20 minutes. Obviously, if your race is a 3k, the tempo runs would have to be shorter than that to be anywhere near race pace, probably more in the 5-10 minute range. Tempo runs are similar in effect to intervals, but they stress the endurance more than the speed and pacing. Both are intended to get you race ready.

Dan

[mjsbossman]

Make sure you do one long run a week, it should be about 25 percent of your weekly mileage. If you run 25 miles one week, you weekly long run should be 6-7 miles. This run will really give you more endurance.

Make sure you run consistently.

[Dan]

I was just thinking about the wording of my last statement above. They can be used to get you race ready, but are often early season toughening/conditioning workouts.

Dan

[Guest]

Hi,
Thanks Dan and MJS!
How many miles a week do you think I should do before I start doing tempo runs? I really just yesterday (ran like 2 1/2 miles) started training for distance. This last week I have been at a Track camp and in track I do mid-distance and hurdles, so didn't go with distance. How many miles a week is good to start with and how many should I get to before mid August when we start practices?? Thanx for your help guys!
Meagan

[Anonymously Posted by: 'Meagan']

[Dan]

I don't think anyone should run a specific mileage just because someone (who has never seen them run) told them to do so. Your mileage has to be appropriate for you, and the only way to discover that is to experiment. To get much out of tempo runs, I think you need to be comfortable with 5-6 mile regular runs. If you're not used to much mileage, break your legs in gradually and don't try to overdo it by piling on the miles early. Remember when you want to be in your best shape and prepare with that goal in mind.

Dan