Evaluating Summer Training

[Crystazul]

So I am doing summer training runs, mostly long distance ot build a strong base for XC, But I was wondering what the best was to determine the progress of your training, other then upping millage. Does going to 5K's and such help to show that?

[werner]

Yes, running a 5k (or other distance) road race can be a solid indicator of your fitness.

[KS Roadrunna]

Are your day to day runs getting easier? Is it easier for you to run longer/harder than before? That's how you should measure your fitness. Be patient.

[centnjrunner]

Would it be a bad idea to go to your xc course and do a "Time Trial" at the end of every month to check progress?

[freddy 459]

Would it be a bad idea to go to your xc course and do a "Time Trial" at the end of every month to check progress?
I don't see a problem with it. The only suggestion I have is to race some teammates or something so you have competition. Otherwise just enter a road race/summer xc race.

[sjm1368]

I use a 5, 7.5, or 10mi tempo.

[RUNHockinson1]

I use a 5, 7.5, or 10mi tempo.

QFthisguyknowshisstuff

[spitfire@OPRF]

Keeping track of your morning heart rate is another way to track progression. It'll vary from day to day based on the run the day before, but trends become apparent after some time.

[stop_mow]

Keeping track of your morning heart rate is another way to track progression. It'll vary from day to day based on the run the day before, but trends become apparent after some time.

im guessing the lower it is in the morning the more "in shape" u are in?

my resting heart rate is from 50 - 60 during the day so should it be around 30-40 when i wake up?

[SJtrack10]

im guessing the lower it is in the morning the more "in shape" u are in?

my resting heart rate is from 50 - 60 during the day so should it be around 30-40 when i wake up?

It's hard to say but your resting heart rate is probably in the mid 40's. Like SJM said I find 10 mile tempo runs to be a very good indicator of fitness. Usually I run them as a steady state run instead of my true tempo pace but I like to do a hilly 10 mile block by my college every few weeks when it fits into training. I've noticed my times on it drop from 64 or so to 61. Like everyone else said, you will probably feel improvements and a relative ease about things that used to be fairly taxing.

[WOOLYRUNS]

I use a 5, 7.5, or 10mi tempo.

Can a speed workout be used as an indicator too? And what kind of speed workouts would it be if I were to do any this summer. I read your site but I'm still learning....

[njrun740]

it seems there is a lot of discussion about summer training on dyestat and i was wondering, does everyone else pay attention strictly to the number of miles they are doing?

my coach has it all planned out for us, it obviously varies a bit, but i thought most people just usually increase milage at a comfortable pace, with long runs and tempos for base and some harder workouts towards the end of the summer. im only going into my junior year, but i never was under the impression that mileage in the summer had to be so strict?

I really had to think hard most of the time to figure out about how many miles i had done between tempos and minute runs. and also, does eveyone include warmup as part of their weekly milage? i didnt think it did count/made a difference in training, but i guess it should.

[RUNHockinson1]

it seems there is a lot of discussion about summer training on dyestat and i was wondering, does everyone else pay attention strictly to the number of miles they are doing?

my coach has it all planned out for us, it obviously varies a bit, but i thought most people just usually increase milage at a comfortable pace, with long runs and tempos for base and some harder workouts towards the end of the summer. im only going into my junior year, but i never was under the impression that mileage in the summer had to be so strict?

I really had to think hard most of the time to figure out about how many miles i had done between tempos and minute runs. and also, does eveyone include warmup as part of their weekly milage? i didnt think it did count/made a difference in training, but i guess it should.

First of all, i'm not an expert, but this is my opinion from the research that i've done, sjm1368 can probally add to or correct me if im wrong, but...

I think that as long as you have a goal for the summer ex. run 500 miles, drop xc time, etc. and as long as you feel as a runner that the workouts you are doing are helping you reach that goal, then following the mileage you or your coach has set for you should not totally effect the way you train. On the other hand, you should go out, or at least i do, and have a plan of what you want each workout to accomplish; i go by the slogan of RANDOM TRAINING=RANDOM RESULTS
For ex. i go out knowing i want to run an a 6 or 7 mi run with a goal pace of 640's, but i feel really good so i go out and run 8 or 9 miles at 620. Its not the end of the world, I did my workout based on feel and i was able to work a little harder and get a little better than i thought

as far as warmup/cooldown for weekly mileage, why shouldnt you count it? In many ways its the most important part of the workout as it sets the tone and prevents injury.

Spark notes version: Keeping track of mileage is important but should not have a complete grip on what workouts you complete for your summer base

[sjm1368]

Spark notes version: Keeping track of mileage is important but should not have a complete grip on what workouts you complete for your summer base

Excellent advice.

You've got to be flexible in your training because you never know how your body will adapt and react to different runs/workouts. Adjusting to how you feel is critical during the summer.

[Adrenaline]

i do all the workouts my coach tells me to do





...+ 5 miles

[sjm1368]

That's funny every varsity kid at a HS I helped out at could do a 10miler on a hilly course at a solid pace... even most of the JV kids. Hell even a couple of the better freshman did it and benefited from it.

Same thing back when I was in HS, the 10 miler was a staple of my coaches.

You build up to it and it is no big deal. Once a month, stop at 5miles for a drink if they want to. Start with a 5miler in the mid-summer phase, next do a 7.5miler in late summer and start a 10 miler right before they go back to school. After that, one every 3-4 weeks or so and they'll get great benefit from it. Ask them for a solid aerobic effort and the pace gradually drops throughout, sometimes dramatically. It's a huge mental boost too once someone busts a good 10 miler.

DUring late track season 10 milers like this are great for maintaining aerobic fitness while your in a peaking phase. Generally at this time, you do it more relaxed. For example a kid who ran 58min, would do it in the 60-61min range.

[Crystazul]

Not all XC programs are the same. I go to a small school with barely 800 students in attendance. Right now we have 8 current sophmores, soon to be juniors and we have realized that senior year, we will have an excellent team. (most schools inour small classifications never have full teams of seniors if you are really lucky, you may get 3...

So we just came to the revaluation a few months ago that is we want to be good, we are going to train hard. My coach is too worried about injuring us to make us run even slightly hard, most days are like 2mi... So we have taken it upon ourselves to train.

[Runnerguy88PAXC]

DUring late track season 10 milers like this are great for maintaining aerobic fitness while your in a peaking phase. Generally at this time, you do it more relaxed. For example a kid who ran 58min, would do it in the 60-61min range.

QFT, I did this for all of the late season and peaking, I was able to PR 4 weeks in a row

[PeteM]

I don't keep track of miles as much as I do hours of total effort, mainly because I run low mileage in relation to others (50-60) and usually crosstrain consistantly throughout the summer/season.

10mi tempo=excellent meter of fittness