about iron

Since it's been awhile, figured it was time to touch base on the importance of iron!  Below is a link to a really good article, for those of you who want to read up on this very important topic...

http://www.runningwritings.com/2017/04/low-ferritin-and-iron-deficiency-anemia.html

For those who don't want to read, because it's summer and all, here are some important bullet points:

*one study showed by the end of a cross country season (i.e. the point in the season where you want to be your best), iron deficiency had increased to 17% of boys and 45% of girls.  And in those who were not classified as iron deficient, the majority had a decrease in their serum ferritin levels.

*the above numbers were found in using the conservative standards for iron deficient serum ferritin levels used in the general population of less than 12 ng/mL.  A case can be made that for endurance athletes, serum ferritin levels less than 40 ng/mL should be consider iron deficient.

*ferrous sulfate, taken with vitamin C, is the weapon of choice to raise serum ferritin levels; while tea, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and antacids should be avoided as they inhibit the absorption of iron.  One study showed that simply putting a slice of cheese on a hamburger reduced the amount of iron absorbed by 50-60%!

*because of the above, the iron in a multivitamin is almost useless.

Suffice to say, your serum ferritin levels are very important to your aerobic performance.  If you are not managing your iron intake and absorption, you are putting your season at serious risk.

Now, on to training, this week's workouts:

Tue: 16-20 x 30" @ faster than 6k or 8k goal pace with 2' easy recovery
Fri:  8-10 x 1' @  6k or 8k goal pace with 4' easy recovery

*make sure you are taking the full recovery and running EASY during the recovery; you can follow the structure of the above workouts, or you can free fartlek them by just running up to one minute efforts at goal race pace followed by sufficient easy recoveries for forty minutes or more.

Lastly, a redux about the importance of sleep...new scientific studies have calculated that 9hr 14min is the optimal sleep time; also that anything under 7hr 30min severely compromises your ability to recovery and you will not get full effect of training.

switching gears

Time to switch gears a little and enter a new phase of training...aerobic short specificity.

Aerobic, because we want to stay aerobic, not anaerobic
Short, because the repetitions will not be long
Specificity, because generally repetitions are at 6k/8k goal pace

We're just trying to get used to running a faster pace again and you will need complete recovery between repetitions, so do not start another rep until fully recovered from the previous one.  The short repetitions combined with the long recoveries will prevent the build-up of any oxygen debt.

Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday stay the same as previous weeks.  The only exception would be Thursday where you could substitute 6-8 short (~10") hill sprints with a walk-down recovery for the 6-8 x 80m fast strides, if you want to.  Tuesday and Friday now become, for the most part, fartlek type workouts.

For this week:

Tue: 8-10 x 1' @ either 6k or 8k goal pace with 4' easy recovery

Fri: 5' + 4' + 3' + 2' + 1' @ ~85% effort w/ equal time recovery @ ~65%

For the women to determine their 6k pace, figure out your 5k pace in terms of minutes per mile, then add about 3".  For the men to determine their 8k pace, figure out your 5k pace in terms of minutes per mile, then add about 10".  These are off your XC 5k goal pace, not your current race pace.

For the 85% and 65% efforts, choose a current 5k time from the pace chart that you are confidant you could run right now, then look at the 85% and 65% columns for that 5k time.  You should adjust your times slower if your are running in hot and/or humid conditions.

Lastly, read the Tolstoy quote above...patience and time are always important, but certainly so at the beginning of a new phase.  Do not work too hard too soon!

building dat volume yo

Last week of just easy running and building our volume up before beginning the next phase, which will consist mostly of short fartlek-type efforts at xc distance race pace with sufficient aerobic recoveries.  Keep working to intentionally add cross-training volume, and sending pictures for the facebook summer roll call.

Full coaching staff in Asheville all week getting fired up for the fall...P45417!

one week at a time

In the mountains of western North Carolina and having connectivity issues, so short post tonight. Getting close to full volume, keep up the ancillary training, ie core, glutes, mobility, etc!

summer '17 roll call

Time to get the annual summer roll call going on our facebook page .  We're hoping for 100% participation!  It's always great looking through the roll calls of previous summers, so we can't wait to see this year's!

You may receive an email with instructions, but it's simple.  Send a picture of you wearing something Georgia Tech to Coach Megesi.  The idea is to take the pic somewhere and/or doing something that is representative of your summer.  We'll upload the pic to the Georgia Tech Track & Field/Cross Country facebook page.  Include an explanation of the trip so Coach Megesi can include some info with the pic when it gets posted.

from Panathenaic Stadium

Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, Greece, home of the first modern Olympic Games, is an awesome sight, one that makes you want to dream the biggest dreams, aspire to the highest of heights. I took this picture to share it with you because I want you to dream big and aim high! Why do anything else?

Keep that in mind as we tackle tbe upcoming fall season, with schedule below...

Fri, Sep 1 - Jacksonville State Opener, w= 4k, m= 5k / Oxford, AL

Sat, Sep 9 - UGA Invitational, w= 6k, m= 8k / Athens, GA

Fri, Sep 29 - Paul Short Inv, w= 6k, m=8k / Bethlehem, PA

Fri, Oct 13 - Crimson Classic, w= 6k, m= 8k / Tuscaloosa, AL

Fri, Oct 27 - ACC Championships, w= 6k, m= 8k / Louisville, KY

Fri, Nov 10 - NCAA South Regional, w= 6k, m= 10k / Tuscaloosa, AL

Sat, Nov18 - NCAA Championships, w= 6k, m= 10k / Louisville, KY

Hope to hear from more people on the blog!

P45417 in full effect

New training spreadsheets will go out in the next couple of days as the new training cycle begins week two.  Make sure you look everything over once you receive your training spreadsheet and make sure you understand everything.  There are no major changes to the spreadsheet from last year. Basically we'll build up to a full volume week, maintain that level with consolidation weeks every 2-3 weeks, and then taper toward championships. The first phase of six weeks consists of a gradual build up to your full volume mileage week.  During these first six weeks, run easily as you feel, DO NOT worry about paces, and there are no workouts.  One day a week, preferably on Thursdays, do 6-8 strides focusing on being relaxed and running with good technique.  Some mobility and stretching should be included both before and after your runs. Lastly, each week should be supplemented with one to two hours of cross-training.

Each week, starting with this one, you are encouraged to report your mileage for the previous week through the comment section of the blog.

Sleep and nutrition, as always, are integral parts of proper training.  Sleep times should be as consistent as possible, with at least seven hours each night, and shooting for that magical nine hours fourteen minutes! Nutrition should always include good sources of carbohydrate, lean protein, and healthy fats. Staying hydrated is obviously very important.

Strength & Conditioning will be sent separately.  The summer is a great opportunity to make gains in strength, and also to strengthen weak areas.  For returners, you can to the Taurus general strength circuit twice a week and squats once or twice a week.

The pace chart is included as a tab in the spreadsheets that will be sent. We'll begin to focus on the pace chart a little in the next phase, but mostly we will begin to use it extensively once we get back to school and practice starts.  The golden rule regarding the pace chart is that we ALWAYS look at it thinking about where our current fitness is...we NEVER use it thinking about what our personal bests are or what our goals are.

Lastly, at the end of the season we asked everyone individually "what do you bring to the team". Continue to think about that question.  For those joining the team next year, consider how you would answer that question. At some point you will very likely be asked!