Training Plan for Week 1: 9/1-9/7

The season begins in earnest this week with the beginning of school and the first meet. Also, this week will feature the first timed, structured workout, on Wednesday. Note that the temperatures will continue to be on the hot side this week; as such, there will be visits to the town beach on Thursday and possibly Tuesday as well. In terms of training volume, the pattern for this week from Tuesday through Saturday is A-B-C-A-B where A is a shorter run, B a medium length run, and C a longer run. For workout and race days, the overall time of everything added together--warmup, workout/race, cooldown--should fall in the appropriate time range.

Also worth noting, when a run is indicated as "easy" it means you should be able to carry on a conversation with your training partners/teammates without getting out of breath! Running too fast on days that are intended for recovery will sabotage your fitness gains. Knowing when to push it and when to back off is key in this sport.

Finally, we will be distributing uniforms and voting for captains this week so it will be busy.

• Mon 9/1 - last day of Labor Day weekend. As per the instructions in the previous post, this was either a day off, a medium length run, or some form of cross training.

• Tue 9/2 - 25-40 minutes easy. Hill drills between the warmup and run, core circuit after the run and before stretching. It's going to be hot today, so omit the 5 minute jog from the warmup and go straight from the lunge matrix to line drills. If your run is long enough and you want to go to the beach to cool off as part of an out and back run you can do so. Also, after doing the hill drills we will be playing the ever-popular game "What's In the Box?" which will hopefully educate people on the importance of proper post-workout recovery nutrition.

• Wed 9/3 - 5-10 minute mini-progression jog, then 6, 8, or 10 x 400 meters with a 100 meter jog recovery. 10-15 minute easy jog cooldown. This is an example of interval training, i.e. bursts of faster running interspersed with recovery periods. While most people on the team who've run competitively have done repeat 400s, perhaps you haven't done them with this kind of short rest. How many repeats and how fast they should be done will vary from person to person but in general the repeats shouldn't go any faster than your 5k race pace, and likely will be a bit slower particularly if the forecast for hot weather holds. Best to start conservatively at a speed you know you can hold for the entire length of the workout and if that feels totally controlled think about picking it up later on. Don't forget tonight is the Spike Night at Marathon Sports in Wellesley (225 Washington St.), after practice until 8 PM. If you're planning on going please arrive by 7:30 at the latest.

• Thu 9/4 - 40-70 minutes easy with 10-15 minutes of aquajogging mixed in. Core circuit before leaving the beach. This is the longest run of the week. Don't overdo it on the pace today. Some people will be driven part of the way to and possibly from the beach, but everyone will be getting there. You might want to wait to take off your shoes until you've reached the dock if it's still there or the water's edge if the dock's gone. That way you can avoid having to walk in sand to get back to your shoes and socks afterward. Just saying!

• Fri 9/5 - 25-40 minutes easy, with 4 sets of (30 seconds race pace/90 seconds jog) near the end on the fields near the school. Hill drills between the warmup and the run. Again, easy. The days of jogging 15 minutes the day before a meet simply because it's the day before a meet are over, for reasons that I'll explain. Also, captains will be announced today.

• Sat 9/6 - Clipper Relays at Maudslay Park in Newburyport. Between the warmup (which will be a jog of the 2 mile course for most people), race and cooldown you should total somewhere in the 35-55 minute range. Be at the school at 7 AM to meet the bus. We should be back by 2 PM at the latest. More information about the meet will be forthcoming on this blog later in the week. The bus time is definitely quite early, but please don't plan on sleeping on the bus for the trip there as you'll still be groggy when it's your turn to toe the line, which of course has a negative impact on your ability to race well.

• Sun 9/7 - off unless you took Monday off, in which case do a shorter length run (25-40 minutes) on your own.

Labor Day weekend training plan

With the long holiday weekend ahead of us, here's a recommended training plan for the next three days:

• A longer, easy run on one of the three days. This might last anywhere from 40 to 75 minutes depending on the person. Start off with the lunge matrix before you go. Like last week, there'll be an optional Saturday practice at the Lincoln commuter rail station (145 Lincoln Road, Lincoln MA) at 9 AM when you can get this done if you like.

• A medium length run (30-50 minutes) or an equivalent amount of time spent cross training on another of the days. For my money aquajogging or an elliptical machine are the best options for alternate forms of training, with cycling or rollerblading/rollerskiing also being good options.

• One day off.

Which workout you do on which day is up to you. If you've been meeting me directly at the town beach the past week for aquajogging I'd recommend doing that on Monday if you have access to a pool or pond and the weather allows for it.

See you Tuesday.

Getting to know you

I'd like to know more about everyone who's signed up for the team this year, not least of which since it's my first year here and I'm meeting everyone for the first time. Copy and paste the questions below (with your answers of course!) and send them to me at

llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com

1. How many seasons of cross country have you done before this?

2. Do you run either indoor or outdoor track? If so, what events have you done and what are your personal records (PRs)? Do you do any other sports either at the school or outside of school?

3. What motivated you to come out for the team this year?

4. What personal and/or team goals do you have for this season?

5. Were you able to run over the summer? If so, how long would you say your average run was in terms of time? How many days per week did you run on average? If you have a training diary or log bring it to practice sometime soon so I can see it. If you have an online training log let me know the URL.

6. What's the furthest you've ever run in terms of either time or distance?

7. What's the furthest you've ever raced in terms of distance?

8. What other interests/hobbies do you have?

9. Between grape, cherry and strawberry which flavor do you like the best?

Training Plan for Week 0: Aug 25-31

The first few days of organized practice are behind us, with school not starting until next month the upcoming week can be devoted to continuing a pattern of training similar to last week. A couple of things to note:

• Overall the pattern this week is A-B-C-A-B-C, where A is a shorter run, B is a medium length run, and C is a longer run. Not everyone will be running all six of those days however, those that are adjusting to the amount of training will go directly to the town beach on Tuesday and Thursday for aquajogging in lieu of running. This leads me to my next point...

• The forecast is for increasing temperatures through midweek, particularly Tuesday and Wednesday. Not coincidentally everyone will be at least stopping by the town beach at some point on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday if only to cool off. Bring your water bottle and carry it with you on your runs, especially the longer ones.

The week's plan as it stands, any changes will be announced on this blog:

• Monday 8/25 - shorter run, 20-40 minutes. Between the warmup and the run we'll be doing hill drills on the short steep slope near the student parking lot.

• Tuesday 8/26 - medium length run, 30-50 minutes (in all likelihood, to and from the town beach) or aquajogging 30-40 minutes. Those that are meeting at the school can add in some aquajogging if they like, I recommend it. Practice at the school starts at 3 PM, Those meeting at the town beach should show up at 3:45. Before leaving the beach, everyone will do a core circuit on the grassy area near the parking lot.

• Wednesday 8/27 - longer run, 40-60 minutes. It's going to be hot, be prepared with your water bottle. Take it slow to start and perhaps slow throughout.

• Thursday 8/28 - shorter run or aquajogging, 30-40 minutes. Practice at the school starts at 3 PM, Those meeting at the town beach should show up at 3:45. Before leaving the beach, everyone will do a core circuit on the grassy area near the parking lot. The coaches hope to begin distributing uniforms to registered athletes today at the end of practice.

• Friday 8/29 - medium length run, 30-55 minutes, with a conscious effort to progress the pace over the course of the run. This is the closest thing we've done yet to an organized, structured hard workout. The idea is that the pace starts out quite slow and the last 5-10 minutes are at or close to a race effort. I'll explain in further detail after the warmup, but a good description of this style of running can be found here. Hill drills like Monday between the warmup and the workout. We hope to continue distributing uniforms today.

• Saturday 8/30 - longer run, 45-75 minutes easy. Once again we'll meet at the Lincoln commuter rail parking lot for those that can make it; otherwise, do this run on your own. If your family's travel plans make running today inconvenient or impossible, do the run tomorrow instead.

• Sunday 8/31 - off.

See you Monday afternoon!

Update on practice Friday 8/22 and Saturday 8/23

Good morning!

The first day of practice went quite well aside from the head coach showing up 10 minutes late. Those of you who were there yesterday are aware of the fact that we'll be visiting the town beach today, either directly at 3:45 or after meeting at the high school at 3:00 and running over. If you're going to be aquajogging as part or all of today's practice, you should bring a towel and wear a bathing suit or shorts suitable for the water. The intermittent rain won't keep us from the lake. Thunder or lightning, in the unlikely event it happens, is another matter.

Tomorrow we'll be having an optional practice on the trails in Lincoln, leaving from the commuter rail parking lot. We'll meet at 9 AM and hit the trail soon after that. This is NOT a mandatory practice, I won't be taking attendance or holding grudges if you can't come, but you're encouraged to join us. There are miles and miles of trails, and the area is a favorite with runners from all over the Greater Boston area. The address for your GPS is 145 Lincoln Road, and the commuter rail lot is an area just off the main parking lot with numbered spaces. If you get there and can't find us give me a call at 617 two eight three 4591. If you can't make it to the practice in Lincoln, please try and get in a run slightly longer than the run you did at yesterday's practice over the weekend. This can be either Saturday or Sunday depending on what suits your schedule. Don't forget to do the plank and lunge matrix before starting out, and the post-run stretching routine afterward.

Preseason practice schedule - starting Thursday August 21st

The official start of practice will be this coming Thursday the 21st, followed by practices on Friday 8/22 and an optional practice Saturday 8/23. The following week practice will be held Monday through Friday 8/25-29, with an optional practice on Saturday the 30th.

All weekday practices will be held at the high school starting at 3 PM, meeting near the track.

Saturday practices are strictly optional and will start from the Lincoln MBTA commuter rail parking lot (145 Lincoln Road). Time TBA. We're using this location because it's the trailhead for miles upon miles of trails and open space in Lincoln and Concord, including the Walden Pond area and Mt. Misery.

Remember you need to be registered with an up to date physical before you can practice with the team.

Just over a week until practice starts - check the status of your physical!

Hope everyone's had a good summer so far, and that your training has gone well. As of this writing 13 people have registered, hopefully that number will increase over the next 8 days!

Part of the registration process is having a current physical on file. Your physical is valid for a year from when it occurs. Some of those who have registered have physicals that have either expired or will expire between now and the end of September. If you have any questions about the status of your physical, you can confirm them with the Athletic Director Mr. Cass. He can be reached at 508 348 7488. If necessary, please get your physical updated so you don't end up missing any time once the season begins next Thursday.

-Coach Mayall