Location: State park with trail system
Terrain: Rolling on grass, dirt and cinders with some
flats and 1-2 sustained hills about 800 meters
Length: 5-10 mi (45-90 min)
Pace: relaxed
Frequency: once a week, early to mid-season
Summary: One of the team's favorites. The park is large enough where it's possible (but unlikely) to get lost, and the trails rough enough where it's possible (but unlikely) to get hurt. In other words, enough adventure to make the run seem more like a romp in the woods than cross-country practice, with few real hazards. Advanced runners can go the longer distance, beginners the shorter distance. All trails lead to a parking lot where water is available.
Objective: Provides runners with a long run that is fun and challenging without the boredom of long runs. Surface and terrain is comparable to many cross-country race courses.
Location: Local park with 2-mile loop trail
Terrain: Flat stretches broken up by challenging 200-600
meter grass and dirt hills
Workout length: 4-8 mi
Pace: Strong, steady effort on uphills; recovery on
downhills and flats
Frequency: once or twice a week, early to mid-season
Summary: This workout "sneaks" in a tough day with the athletes hardly noticing. Runners do 2-4 loops, with each loop including 4 hills. The run seems easy at first, then becomes hard. The loop is well-shaded, making this workout a good choice for a hot day.
Objective: Hills build strength necessary for good racing and build confidence for races on hilly courses. Surface and terrain is comparable to many cross-country race courses.
Location: Local cross-country course with measured 1-K
loop.
Terrain: Gradual up, flat, then gradual down, all on grass
Workout length: 4-7 mi
Pace: "90 percent" effort
Frequency: once a week, mid to late-season
Summary: Advanced runners can handle up to 6 x 1-K, with beginners around 3 x 1-K. Jogs between repeats should be long enough for full recovery. The 1-K distance (.62 miles) seems to be the ideal speedwork happy medium between 400/800 runners out for XC and the pure long-distance runners on the team. Long enough for the distance guys to not to feel like they're sprinting, and short enough not to freak out the sprinter-types, as 1-mile repeats would.
Objective: An excellent workout when you're harnessing speed for the big meets at the end of the season. The 1-K repeat distance is also good training to prepare runners to handle the mad sprint at the start of cross-country races.
Source: www.highschoolrunner.com
