The inaugural edition of the DCL Small Division Relays went well for us today at Franklin Park. The boys' A-team (aka "This Is Not Basketball") won the race, with the B-team ("Is This Football?") taking third place. Throughout the lineup there were strong performances as well. I've sent out a spreadsheet with the split times of everyone who raced today. If you're not on the mailing list and would like to receive it, send a note to me at llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com.
In the W-day "race within a race" the boys Varsity (A+B) and JV (C+D)
teams topped Weston, while their girls' Varsity and JV returned the
favor. So we're even on that score. The remainder of the W-day contests
in the other fall sports will take place on Saturday September 27th at
Weston HS. After we return from the Frank Kelley Invitational at
Wrentham that day, you might want to head over to watch.
Wednesday, September 10, 2014
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
DCL Small Division Relays - Wednesday 9/10/14
Meet Site: Playstead Field at Franklin Park, Boston.
Bus Time: 2:30 PM
First race 4 PM until you hear different from me (could be 4:15)
Girls will race first, followed by boys
Meet Information:
• Weather forecast: temperatures in the high 60s at race time, with winds from the east about 10 mph. Much more pleasant conditions than last Saturday in Newburyport. With the breeze, you'll want to wear more than just your uniform while warming up and cooling down. Let me repeat that: bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform.
• The race course will be the 5k (3.1 mile) course broken up into three equal chunks. A baton will be passed from one runner to the next in each three person team.
• The first runner on each team is responsible for getting a baton from me before their race; the last runner on each team is responsible for returning the baton to me. Unlike the relay meet on Saturday, we are providing our own batons for this one.
• After running your race and catching your breath and before the cooldown, you'll do 4-8 repetitions of 20 seconds hard followed by 40 seconds jog using the timer function on the team wristwatches.
• Return time to WHS is approximate, but we should be back by 6:30 or so.
What to bring:
• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• sunscreen
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Challenge)
for parents:
• There's a small parking lot at the corner of Circuit Drive and Pierpont Road; there's also a larger lot further down Circuit Drive, as well as on-street parking on Circuit Drive.
• If you're going to be at the meet and would like to take your child with you when their race is over, please send me an e-mail. My address is llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com
Bus Time: 2:30 PM
First race 4 PM until you hear different from me (could be 4:15)
Girls will race first, followed by boys
Meet Information:
• Weather forecast: temperatures in the high 60s at race time, with winds from the east about 10 mph. Much more pleasant conditions than last Saturday in Newburyport. With the breeze, you'll want to wear more than just your uniform while warming up and cooling down. Let me repeat that: bring clothes to wear at the meet besides your uniform.
• The race course will be the 5k (3.1 mile) course broken up into three equal chunks. A baton will be passed from one runner to the next in each three person team.
• The first runner on each team is responsible for getting a baton from me before their race; the last runner on each team is responsible for returning the baton to me. Unlike the relay meet on Saturday, we are providing our own batons for this one.
• After running your race and catching your breath and before the cooldown, you'll do 4-8 repetitions of 20 seconds hard followed by 40 seconds jog using the timer function on the team wristwatches.
• Return time to WHS is approximate, but we should be back by 6:30 or so.
What to bring:
• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• warmup clothes
• sunscreen
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Challenge)
for parents:
• There's a small parking lot at the corner of Circuit Drive and Pierpont Road; there's also a larger lot further down Circuit Drive, as well as on-street parking on Circuit Drive.
• If you're going to be at the meet and would like to take your child with you when their race is over, please send me an e-mail. My address is llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com
Sunday, September 7, 2014
Training Plan for Week 2: 9/8-9/14
With the first meet in the books, the next two weeks will each follow a similar pattern. In terms of volume, the pattern will be C-A-B-A-B-C, with A being the shortest length runs and C being the longest length runs. Note that on days with a workout or race there will be a warmup and cooldown, and the time you spend on those is counted in toward the total time. A cooldown jog of at least 8-10 minutes is an important part of your race day routine. Barring a medical situation it's not something to be neglected or skipped.
A couple of logistical notes before we get to the schedule:
• per athlete request, the warmup will now begin at 2:45. This is moved up from the previous 3 PM start time.
• the duration of the plank at the start of the warmup is now 45 seconds. Congratulations! You've leveled up.
• there will be a team picture taken on Thursday. Time and place TBA. The AD informed me that you're all supposed to be uniform for that picture, even though we have a meet the day before. I'll explain how we'll deal with that.
The week:
• Monday 9/8 - 40-70 minutes easy including a tour of the home course, followed by 3-6 x 200 meters on the track with varying length recoveries. Cooldown after the 200s are done, then core circuit before stretching. After the warmup, the captains will lead the rest of us on a tour of the home course in preparation for next week's home meet. Upon completing this tour, some people will go directly to the track to run the 200s. Others will run a bit more wherever they like and then head to the track. On the track, the 200s should be run at a pace similar to what those of you who were at the meet on Saturday ran. The recovery after the first repeat is a 300 meter jog; after the second, a 200 meter jog; after the third, a 100 meter jog. If you're doing more repeats than that, the recovery cycles back to 300 meters after the fourth repeat. And so on.
• Tuesday 9/9 - 20-45 minutes. Start out easy today, if you're feeling good pick up the pace later in the run, if not don't. Hill drills between the warmup and the run.
• Wednesday 9/10 - DCL Small Division Relays. This meet will be held at Franklin Park in Boston. The bus leaves at 2:30. As of this writing I'm not sure exactly when we should be back, but more information will be forthcoming in a future post on this blog. For this meet the standard 5 kilometer (3.1 mile) course will be broken into 3 equal chunks of just over a mile. Three person teams will pass a baton from one chunk to the next. For Wayland and Weston this meet will also serve as W-day, wherein the Wayland and Weston teams in each fall sport square off against each other. The rest of the teams will be doing this on September 27th; we'll be racing at an invitational in Wrentham that day, so it was decided to use this meet instead for W-day. Both varsity and JV results count towards the overall W-day scoring. The combined times of each school's A and B teams will be compared to determine the varsity winner. The combined times of the C and D teams will be used to determine the winning JV team. It should be fun. After running your race and catching your breath and before the cooldown, you'll do 4-8 repetitions of 20 seconds hard followed by 40 seconds jog using the timer function on the team wristwatches. Then a cooldown jog. Overall the amount of running you do today should be between what you did yesterday and what you did on Monday.
• Thursday 9/11 - Same length run as Tuesday. It doesn't have to be the same route however. After the run we'll do the core circuit. It's possible some people will be taken to the town beach today for aquajogging in lieu of running.
• Friday 9/12 - 10 minute mild progression jog, then 4-9 sets of 3 minute pickups with 2 minute jog recoveries. Hill drills afte the warmup and before the workout. For this session you'll run in groups that are assigned by me based on race results; the idea is that you'll be able to train with people of a similar fitness level. The pickups and recoveries will be measured using the timer function on the team watches; each group MUST have at least one watch with this function enabled. Every minute, the watch will beep. For the pickups, the idea is to pick up the pace after one minute has elapsed, and then again after two minutes have elapsed. Thus, starting out at a reasonably hard but not all-out effort is crucial. The pickups will be run on the school grounds, basically the area of the home course. However you don't have to follow the exact layout of the home course. Once the final pickup is done, cooldown 10 minutes.
• Saturday 9/13 - 45-80 minute easy run. There'll be an optional practice at 9 AM in Lincoln where you can do this, or else on your own. This run should be at a comfortable, conversational pace as you'll be recovering from yesterday's workout. If you feel up to it you can pick it up in the last 10 minutes or so but this is by no means mandatory. If the pace is too fast today you'll end up sabotaging the beneficial effect of yesterday's workout session.
• Sunday 9/14 - off.
A couple of logistical notes before we get to the schedule:
• per athlete request, the warmup will now begin at 2:45. This is moved up from the previous 3 PM start time.
• the duration of the plank at the start of the warmup is now 45 seconds. Congratulations! You've leveled up.
• there will be a team picture taken on Thursday. Time and place TBA. The AD informed me that you're all supposed to be uniform for that picture, even though we have a meet the day before. I'll explain how we'll deal with that.
The week:
• Monday 9/8 - 40-70 minutes easy including a tour of the home course, followed by 3-6 x 200 meters on the track with varying length recoveries. Cooldown after the 200s are done, then core circuit before stretching. After the warmup, the captains will lead the rest of us on a tour of the home course in preparation for next week's home meet. Upon completing this tour, some people will go directly to the track to run the 200s. Others will run a bit more wherever they like and then head to the track. On the track, the 200s should be run at a pace similar to what those of you who were at the meet on Saturday ran. The recovery after the first repeat is a 300 meter jog; after the second, a 200 meter jog; after the third, a 100 meter jog. If you're doing more repeats than that, the recovery cycles back to 300 meters after the fourth repeat. And so on.
• Tuesday 9/9 - 20-45 minutes. Start out easy today, if you're feeling good pick up the pace later in the run, if not don't. Hill drills between the warmup and the run.
• Wednesday 9/10 - DCL Small Division Relays. This meet will be held at Franklin Park in Boston. The bus leaves at 2:30. As of this writing I'm not sure exactly when we should be back, but more information will be forthcoming in a future post on this blog. For this meet the standard 5 kilometer (3.1 mile) course will be broken into 3 equal chunks of just over a mile. Three person teams will pass a baton from one chunk to the next. For Wayland and Weston this meet will also serve as W-day, wherein the Wayland and Weston teams in each fall sport square off against each other. The rest of the teams will be doing this on September 27th; we'll be racing at an invitational in Wrentham that day, so it was decided to use this meet instead for W-day. Both varsity and JV results count towards the overall W-day scoring. The combined times of each school's A and B teams will be compared to determine the varsity winner. The combined times of the C and D teams will be used to determine the winning JV team. It should be fun. After running your race and catching your breath and before the cooldown, you'll do 4-8 repetitions of 20 seconds hard followed by 40 seconds jog using the timer function on the team wristwatches. Then a cooldown jog. Overall the amount of running you do today should be between what you did yesterday and what you did on Monday.
• Thursday 9/11 - Same length run as Tuesday. It doesn't have to be the same route however. After the run we'll do the core circuit. It's possible some people will be taken to the town beach today for aquajogging in lieu of running.
• Friday 9/12 - 10 minute mild progression jog, then 4-9 sets of 3 minute pickups with 2 minute jog recoveries. Hill drills afte the warmup and before the workout. For this session you'll run in groups that are assigned by me based on race results; the idea is that you'll be able to train with people of a similar fitness level. The pickups and recoveries will be measured using the timer function on the team watches; each group MUST have at least one watch with this function enabled. Every minute, the watch will beep. For the pickups, the idea is to pick up the pace after one minute has elapsed, and then again after two minutes have elapsed. Thus, starting out at a reasonably hard but not all-out effort is crucial. The pickups will be run on the school grounds, basically the area of the home course. However you don't have to follow the exact layout of the home course. Once the final pickup is done, cooldown 10 minutes.
• Saturday 9/13 - 45-80 minute easy run. There'll be an optional practice at 9 AM in Lincoln where you can do this, or else on your own. This run should be at a comfortable, conversational pace as you'll be recovering from yesterday's workout. If you feel up to it you can pick it up in the last 10 minutes or so but this is by no means mandatory. If the pace is too fast today you'll end up sabotaging the beneficial effect of yesterday's workout session.
• Sunday 9/14 - off.
Saturday, September 6, 2014
Clipper Relays Results
Some good results for us on a hot and humid day:
Boys
Girls
As you can see from these links, only the school name and time are listed. I've generated a spreadsheet with individual split times which I'll be sending out to the team e-mail list momentarily. If you're not on the team e-mail list and would like a copy of this spreadsheet sent to you, send a note to me at
llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com
Boys
Girls
As you can see from these links, only the school name and time are listed. I've generated a spreadsheet with individual split times which I'll be sending out to the team e-mail list momentarily. If you're not on the team e-mail list and would like a copy of this spreadsheet sent to you, send a note to me at
llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com
Friday, September 5, 2014
Clipper Relays - Saturday 9/6/14
Meet Site: Maudslay Park, 74 Curzon Mill Road, Newburyport MA
bus time: 7:00 AM
girls race: 9:15
boys race: 10:10
Meet Information:
• The current weather forecast is for partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the mid 70s to low 80s at racetime, with light winds from the SW. It will likely be somewhat humid as well.
• When we arrive, the girls will begin warming up for their race; the boys will assist in setting up the tent.
• On each 3 person team, only the runner who goes last will wear a number; a baton will be passed from one runner to the next.
• Meet shirts will be sold for $25; there will also be a concession stand.
• While the boys are cooling down after their race, the girls will assist in breaking down the tent.
• Once the boys are done, we'll leave and stop for lunch at the Port Plaza on Storey Ave (rt. 113). There are various restaurants here including Panera, Papa Ginos, D'Angelo, and McDonalds.
• If all goes well, we'll leave Newburyport sometime around 1 PM and arrive back at WHS sometime around 2-2:30 PM.
for parents:
• There's a $2 fee for the parking lot. This fee is levied by the Mass DCR, not the meet management.
• If you're going to be at the meet and would like to take your child with you when their race is over, please send me an e-mail and cc the athletic director. My address is llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com, the AD is stephen_cass (at) wayland.k12.ma.us
What to bring:
• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• light warmup clothes
• sunscreen
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Challenge)
• money for lunch
bus time: 7:00 AM
girls race: 9:15
boys race: 10:10
Meet Information:
• The current weather forecast is for partly cloudy skies with temperatures in the mid 70s to low 80s at racetime, with light winds from the SW. It will likely be somewhat humid as well.
• When we arrive, the girls will begin warming up for their race; the boys will assist in setting up the tent.
• On each 3 person team, only the runner who goes last will wear a number; a baton will be passed from one runner to the next.
• Meet shirts will be sold for $25; there will also be a concession stand.
• While the boys are cooling down after their race, the girls will assist in breaking down the tent.
• Once the boys are done, we'll leave and stop for lunch at the Port Plaza on Storey Ave (rt. 113). There are various restaurants here including Panera, Papa Ginos, D'Angelo, and McDonalds.
• If all goes well, we'll leave Newburyport sometime around 1 PM and arrive back at WHS sometime around 2-2:30 PM.
for parents:
• There's a $2 fee for the parking lot. This fee is levied by the Mass DCR, not the meet management.
• If you're going to be at the meet and would like to take your child with you when their race is over, please send me an e-mail and cc the athletic director. My address is llayam (at) hotmail (dot) com, the AD is stephen_cass (at) wayland.k12.ma.us
What to bring:
• uniform
• everyday training shoes
• racing shoes if you have them
• light warmup clothes
• sunscreen
• water bottle - including a larger (24-32 oz.) bottle if you have one
• snacks for post-race (chocolate milk will be provided using proceeds from the Wayland XC Challenge)
• money for lunch
Thursday, September 4, 2014
2014 Captains
The captains of this year's girls team are Sophia Butler and Maddy Schwartz.
The captains of this year's boys team are John Cocce, Nick Galang, and Nick Greenwood.
Congratulations to them and thanks to all who expressed an interest in being a captain. Coach Lehmann and I are looking forward to a great season for everyone!
-Coach Mayall
The captains of this year's boys team are John Cocce, Nick Galang, and Nick Greenwood.
Congratulations to them and thanks to all who expressed an interest in being a captain. Coach Lehmann and I are looking forward to a great season for everyone!
-Coach Mayall
Monday, September 1, 2014
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.
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.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)