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381

Warm weather over the summer might help your legs -although some off-loading from track running might do the trick, too! Are you near the sea? Use it!

That’s a good enough excuse for you! :wink:

Just to make it short, with bold you’ve got your answer… Stef, you shouldn’t even ask such questions! Is it worth it for anyone on this planet??? Don’t let her (is it she?) complex about certain issues be passed over to you…

What Kras says is true! I suppose the forum will do their best to help you , if needed!

Enjoy your stay over there!

382

Thanks to the both of you.

(yes, my coach is a she)
(trips to the sea will come soon enough, I’m near the sea :slight_smile: )

For the time being I’ll just practice with my coach, the reason is because in order to go to competitions here you need to be in a club, and the coach holds my “athlete ID” that lets me compete. Of course, I could just ask for my ID and do whatever I want, but for the time being I’ll just go to her practice and ignore any comments she says about weight. I’m POSITIVE I won’t let it get to me. I always watch my diet, maybe I need to watch it a little more, but I’m not going start eating poorly just to reach a number at the scale. I’m smarter than that.
Another reason I want to practice in a team is because 1) it keeps it a lot more fun (disregarding the coach) and 2) it is more likely to prevent me from getting re-injured because this coach is extremely careful with injuries. If I train alone, I’ll just over train every day and I know it.
I’m not sure if and how much I’m going to compete here, I’m just trying to keep it as fun as possible. And being on a team IS a lot of fun! All I have to do is not pay too much attention to the coach (except for the workouts that she gives me, although a lot of times I disagree with those too, expecially the long 20min runs that we do very often as “cool down”/recovery days, luckily followed by many strides).

So aaanyways, today’s workout was:
3 laps WU
stretch, drill
2*200m (against the wind), w/ walk back recovery. The first was high 27 or low 28 and the second was 30.
One lap cool down.

383

I can see your points!
If you can control the situation, as you seem able to do so, stay with the team and enjoy it!

384

Oh: I have another reason to stay with the team that I forgot to mention: If I train with them, I can get to tracks more easily. Finding a place to train is very hard here since most tracks are private, and when you’re with a team they let you in. Plus, some training facilities are across town and my teammates can drive me there when we all practice together :slight_smile:

Today my coach had to go watch some teammates running a meet, so she told me to run 20minutes on grass and then do grass field diagonals, 6 of them (fast stride/sprint). BUT it started pouring, so I did a stair workout at my building, which is 5 floors (85 steps). I went up 10 times and it tiiiired me…I haven’t done stairs in months.

I rested 20minutes and then I did the Triplet Circuits, which are getting easier to do :slight_smile: Burpees are fun now!

385

Today in the rain we did:
23minutes running, at 1:30 per lap or so…
6*100m fast strides, while walking the curves.

I decided to start skipping practices with the coach and train on my own (too many long runs that I know are no good…)

NOW I need some help:
There’s this track meet a week from this Saturday and it would be nice if I broke 60secs. Then I would have the option of going to the national meet. There’s one in June for all ages and one in July for my age group (19-22 years old).

What should I be doing until a week from this Saturday?
Is it ok if I only do body weight exercises for weights? (jump squats, burpees, circuit stuff, etc?) The reason: I’m not a member of a gym. If yes, how often should I be doing those?

386

i think that is fine. coming up to big meets, neural priming stuff has worked well for me- light and fast lifts like push press or even jump squats… just making sure that the weight is light enough that i wouldn’t feel any soreness the next day. If you are doing just bodyweight then that should take care of itself. Personally if I were in your position I would do normal circuits as often as you normally would up until wednesday, then on friday do pushups for speed, jump squats for speed, keeping volume low. Keep in mind I don’t have all kinds of research to back me up here, but that is what i would do.

same goes for running, which i’m sure you know… taper off and do only starts the day before. taper means TAPER… not like, 2000000 hours of tennis and rollarblading and then 100000 x 100m strides and 4000000 hours of circuits like you normally do :stuck_out_tongue:

387

:smiley: haha

Thanks Kras

388

All day was warm and sunny, then as soon as I decide to go to the track with my friend (NO COACH practice cause I just don’t like her and I can practice better on my own right now - I know I know I made all those points about staying in the team, but I guess they don’t count :rolleyes: )
This morning I did an hour tai bo in my living room, it’s called “flex”, so I suppose I flexed some muscles and broke a sweat too.
Then since it started raining in the evening, I did circuits at home again.
My left quad is very sore from doing stairs two days ago by the way.
Then I did hip strengthening exercises with the resistance band, which is what I was doing with my physical therepist.

Since I want to train alone now, my friend made me a program for the following week, until the meet. She is about to get her degree in physical education with a concentration in track and field and especially running events. Eventually she will be a coach.
This is what it looks like:

Saturday:
2*300s at 400m pace (the first 300meters) and 3-5min rest between

Sunday: rest

Monday:
5*500m tempo at 70%, triplet circuits for weights (jump squats, push ups, sit ups, burpees, lunges, back exercises, dips, kangaroo hops)

Tuesday (speed):
530m
280m at 95%, walk back recovery (slowly), then 20min rest, then
2*150m at 95%, walk back recovery

Wednesday:
2 or 3 200s at 400m race pace
OR: one fast 350m (at 400m race pace)
(what do you guys recommend?)

Thurday:
warm up, drills, stretch, etc

Friday:
warm up, drills, stretch, and maybe one 150m (like i would run the first 150m of a 400m race), only if I’m feeling well.

Saturday: TRACK MEET

Please let me know what you think.

389

Since you haven’t been that consistent lately with training -due to travelling, I mean and settling down over there- you can’t do a “proper” tapering anyway; as far as the above is concerned you could try the following:
[ul]
Definitely a longer recovery between the 300s on Saturday -as long as you like, put on trainers again, a bit of stretching, etc; the 2nd one should be as good as the 1st one -or almost anyway- don’t die on it…

[/ul] You can do the 500s, but really easy and preferrably not on track, especially in your case (i.e., knee, shins, etc); if you could also do this on Sunday as a good active recovery after Saturday’s session, it might be even better with a rest day on Monday before the speed session on Tuesday; if the 500s are too many, or too long a distance for Sunday and you don’t feel right for it, split the session into an really easy tempo/warm up on Sunday and a normal one on Monday -you should feel just fine for the speed session!

For the speed session, have full recoveries -especially for the 80s and I suppose, you could live with just one 150, provided it’s of quality

Not sure if you would want to do the next session at all, as it would be the second Special Endurance session in a short period of time with the most difficult one following on Sunday; but if you decide to do something like that I would go with the 2 x 200s at race pace and again with plenty of recovery between -just to have the feeling of it…

If all is ok, PERHAPS another very easy tempo 1-2 days before the meet, but if you don’t feel for it, leave it…

I would also try and minimise the rest of the little exercises you are doing, the small circuits, I mean -only a few, if any; they are of low intensity, but…

Hope it helps!
Let us know how it goes!

390

I would have a minimum of 15 minutes rest inbetween, with a max of 45 minutes rest.

Weights should be stacked with Saturday’s workout or Tuesdays. You will run into problems tomorow if you have weights the day before a speed workout…especially with exercises like Jump-squats.

This is more of a speed endurance + special endurance workout. Essentially you are running 5x30m, 1x160m, and 1x300m. Splitting them up with just a walks rest in between is fine if you are finding your last 150m of a full 300m is dropping off more than is expected, but otherwise I would just run the full distance.

I would go with 2x200m at 100% intensity with 20 minutes rest. Forget about the 400m race pace thing…it doesn’t really work that way if you are trying to improve any one particular aspect of the 400m race. Otherwise we would all just run 400m over and over instead of cutting it up into pieces. When you run a 200m, it should be to increase your 200m times so that in a 400m you have more speed reserve.

Drills? I would do a tempo workout and strech with maybe some ab work.

I would again just do tempo here and not worry about any fast running.

Saturday: TRACK MEET[/QUOTE]

Good luck. Any questions?

391

Would you do these two sessions back to back at the pace you are suggesting? It sounds a bit too much to me. Wouldn’t it be better to have more of a speed endurance session (session 1) and then a short special endurance one -if any that close to a race?
Thanks!

392

No I would not do them back to back. I was focusing more on the specific workouts themselves, than the overall picture. I would move Weds workout to Thurs and have tempo on Wed. Depending on the race importance I wouldn’t form my workouts around regular in season races.

It would be good to know where Stef is heading with track this season eg., what is the most important race this season from here on.

393

OK, I understand!
A target date/race would help, yes!

394

Well if I run a good race on Saturday (sub 60s), then I can go to Nationals. There is nationals for all ages June 10th I think, and then nationals for my age group July 9th I think. I’m not set on going to those meets, I just wanted to run this meet on Saturday to prove to myself that I can run a good 400. It’s also going to be my first track meet competing in Greece and I thought it would be fun. So for now I’m just focusing on Saturday’s race, which might seem kinda weird.

Well, I tried doing those 2*300s today (by the say, thanks guys for your help on my program). I tried to run the first one fast, but 1) I’ve never ran an all out 300m in practice before and I just don’t find motivation to do it right :rolleyes: , 2) It was HOT, at 11am (I know very bad choice of time), 3) I was doing them by myself, so the first one came out at 48seconds. Since it came out slow, I decided that the second one wouldn’t have been any better, so I changed teh workout and decided to only wait 5minutes and do another one, and the other came out 51seconds. I didn’t like that time either, so then I decided to wait another 5minutes and do a third one, but since I realized that during those 300s my pace slowed down by 100m/min (…) for the last 150meters of the race, I split the last 300m in two 150s with 5min break ( I know my break should have been shorter, but it WAS hot…). They came out 21sec and 22sec.

I know I know I did something completely different, but from now on I’m going to follow the guidelines that you guys suggested. So:

Sunday: tempo (5*500s)

Monday: tempo again?

Tuesday: 530s, 1160m, 1*300m, weights

Wednesday: tempo

Thurdsay: 2*200m with full recovery, at 100%

Friday: easy practice, maybe tempo

Saturday: track meet

Does this sound all right?

395

Perhaps you should concentrate on July 9th then…

No comments about Saturday’s session :stuck_out_tongue:

About Monday, it depends on how you feel; Tuesday seems a good track day, so try and be rested for it…

About Tuesday, since you’ve done all these 300s on Saturday, you could live with distances up to 150 m…

About Thursday, not sure about this session that close to your meet; Herb had suggested swapping the two sessions when I asked him -have a look…

Tempo whenever you feel ok for it in the days between is fine!

Good luck, Stef!

396

Ok, ok, so today I did NOTHING, other than do a good stretch session. I know I should have done tempo, but 1) I just needed a day of nothingness, 2) it’s Sunday… :rolleyes: , 3) it started raining again in the afternoon. Excuses excuses.
I’ll do my tempo 500s tomorrow morning, no question about it.

Nikoluski, about Tuesday, you said don’t do more than 150m. So what exactly would you recommend me doing other than the 530m? If I go back to the 280m and 2150m, does that count as more than 150m, since practically 280m is a split 160m and 2*150m is a split 300m?

397

No, I think 80s & 150s (with more emphasis on the latter perhaps) are ok and I don’t see them as 160 & 300 m, provided they are run with good recoveries between. You might have to deal with long delays in the race itself, so long recoveries might be a good “practice” for now and the future as well…

In terms of the volume it’s up to you -better stop earlier though, if you suspect performance is going to suffer (e.g., a 2nd interval), rather than run them at slower than the right speed, whatever this is for you.

Good luck!

398

Sounds good!

Today’s tempo went well. I really prefer doing tempo to doing pointless 20and 30 min runs followed my some 100m strides.

I did 5*500m and I concentrated on form. It was WARM, I know I always pick the wrong time of the day to do these (close to noon), but I like being done with my workout in the morning and I don’t think I’m waking up at 7am to do them unless I have no other choice. It’s summer… :cool:

399

Tuesday was my speed endurance session, but I kept no times.
I did 530m, walk a lap, then 280m, walk back recoveries, then walked two laps and then did 2*150s.
Weather comments: HOT

In the evening I did a 15 minutes very easy run followed by push ups, sit ups, jump squts and very light dumbbell arm exercises for weights.

Today (Wednesday): pool: free style swimming, running in water, etc. It was very low key, for about 40 minutes.

What should I do tomorrow? Should I do a couple of full 200s with full recoveries and then rest on Friday and compete Saturday?

400

If anything, I would do one 120m at about 95% and then do a nice long cool down and stretch lots. Drink lots of water.