these are the times...

Solid first week of practice, great job to everyone on reporting with a nice level of base fitness. Now, let's just stack one solid week on top of another. After the summer break, it's always great to get the team back together at practice. I subscribe to the sentiments expressed in the following quote - I hope you do too!

"These are some of the greatest moments of our lives. We may not see it yet, we may not even know it, but I think that we will look back as withered elderly men upon these times as some of the most profound of our lives. And if I don't, that's even better, because it would take a hell of a life to cloud over the shining, glistening days of collegiate cross country." - Adam Batliner, Univ of Colorado, 1998


monday (ON YOUR OWN)
dynamic warm-up
+ light aerobic running
+ 6-8 technique strides

tuesday (6:00 AM)
800j, mcmillan wu
(on park grass adjacent to 10th Street)
women: 10-16 x 200 @ 6k xc pace, r= 90"
men: 10-16 x 300 @ 10k xc pace, r= 1.5-2'
+ general strength circuit at track
(+ TRACK team meetings at 3:30 PM)

wednesday
800j, dynamic foot drills
+ aerobic running
+ barefoot strides on grass
+ hurdle walkover, hip work

thursday
800j, dynamic wu
+ light aerobic running
+ 6-8 x fast striding in spikes
+ mcmillan core

friday (6:00 AM)
800j, mcmillan wu
(+ those competing: aerobic running + strides)
+ those not competing: 80% run on park lake loop
+ general strength circuit on track

saturday
COMPETITION, more info later in week

sunday (time-tbd)
long aerobic running at Kennesaw
+ cool-down exercises
+ recovery at training room

let's get this party started

monday (3:30pm)
light aerobic running
+ 6-8 x technique strides on grass

tuesday (w @ 6:00am / m @ 3:30pm)
300's @ xc race pace on park cinder loop
(1 x 300 per loop, steady running remainder of loop)
w= 6-10 loops / m= 8-12 loops
+ general strength circuit

wednesday (3:30pm)
aerobic running
+barefoot strides on grass

thursday (3:30pm)
light aerobic running
+ 6-8 x 100 fast striding
+ mcmillan core (I or II)

friday (6:00am)
5-8k anaerobic threshold running
+ general strength circuit

saturday (on your own)
aerobic running
+ stretching

sunday (time - tbd)
long aerobic running at Kennesaw
+ cool-down exercises
+ recovery at training room

last week of summer break

Summer break comes to an end. Some freshmen move in early in the week to attend the last two FASET sessions. Other freshmen and a number of returnees will move in Thursday, and everyone should be back by Friday. Our first team function will be a compliance meeting at 4pm in the Technology Center on the ground floor of the AA. We'll conduct our team meeting after compliance is done, then we'll all convene for a team dinner. Everyone was emailed a list of important dates and times, so make sure you check your email.

Along with the mandatory meetings and functions, on an voluntary basis people will be getting together for the 80% run on Friday morning and then carpooling out to the river on Saturday morning for an easy recovery run.

We're excited about seeing all of you! The first day of practice can't get here quick enough :)

commitment

I came across a quote by author and management expert, Ken Blanchard, that I really liked and wanted to share...."There is a difference between interest and commitment. When you're interested in something, you do it only when it's convenient. When you're committed to something, you accept no excuses, only results." That quote meshes well with a chapter in John Maxwell's book, The 17 Essential Qualities OF A Team Player, titled "Committed: There Are No Halfhearted Champions". As coaches, we approach a new school year that is filled with promise, and with a great team mix of improving upperclassmen and talented youngsters. We're excited about the continued development of all, old and new!

As you begin to fill your bags and boxes and containers for your return to school, we encourage you to bring more commitment than ever. More commitment than to just the big things, like aerobic development, sleep, and nutrition. Be committed to all the small things that ultimately play vital roles in the success of your and our season. Be committed to core work, hip strength and mobility, iron supplementation, technique work, teamwork, and our Sunday long run practices.

Be committed to excellence in everything. That's what it takes.

dog days of summer

The dog days of summer are certainly upon us. High heat and high humidity offer a challenging environment to prepare for the fall season. The Sept '11 issue of Runner's World has a good article discussing the topic, pick it up and read it if you can. Obviously we know it's smart to avoid running in the heat of the day and to stay well-hydrated at all times. But the article also mentions some other points to keep in mind, such as an approximate 20% difference in volume compared to training in cooler and dryer environments. For example, running 50 miles for a week in high heat and humidity is equivalent to 60 miles a week in a cooler and dryer environment. Also, keep in mind you will need to adjust the pace of your runs - you will be slower for easy runs, threshold runs, and long runs. Don't worry, you will see the positive result on some early morning practice when a cool front comes through in mid-to late-September. So, just focus on making sure the runs feel the right effort, and don't stress about what the watch says.

In less than three weeks we will be gathering as a team - I hope you are excited!

fall schedule

Just a quick post for this week...a solid jump in volume is ahead, looking forward to seeing how everyone handles it. Don't worry about pace on your easy days, just make sure you recover well. For the most part our fall racing schedule is set, please see below...

Saturday, Sep 3
UGA Invitational - Athens, GA

Friday, Sep 16
Clemson Invitational - Clemson, SC

Friday, Sep 30
Charlotte Invitational - Charlotte, NC

Saturday, Oct 15
Crimson Classic - Tuscaloosa, AL
OR
Sunday, Oct 16
Pre-National Inv - Terre Haute, IN

Saturday, Oct 29
ACC Championships - Clemson, SC

Saturday, Nov 12
NCAA South Regional - Tuscaloosa, AL

Monday, Nov 21
NCAA National Championships - Terre Haute, IN

biology vs chemistry

In the comments section last week I referenced a talk by a coach of recent championship teams. To me, the talk could be broken down into two parts - the biology of championship teams and the chemistry of championship teams.

Regarding biology, he spoke of the importance of the long run, calling it the most important run of the week. The tempo/threshold run was the next most important workout of each week, followed by a weekly fartlek, and finally finishing one easy run each week with strides. These were the summer ingredients that led to success in the following season. Any of that sound familiar?

Far more important though was the attitude of the team, the team culture. He identified several factors that needed to be present. They included a blue-collar mentality, a willingness to sacrifice, patience and persistance, being a student of the sport, and having a real passion for the sport - you have to live for it. Basically, each team member needs to invest, seriously invest.

I think we have the biology right. And I challenge you to think about where our team chemistry is. Do we have the right formula, and what is your part in the equation?