Friday, May 30, 2008

Summer Training Thoughts

I just got a new book in the mail today from the college coaches I met in Iowa this winter. I have been waiting two weeks for it to come in, and when it arrived, I ripped it open and literally read the whole thing in an afternoon. It is called "Take the Lead" by Will Freeman, head running coach at Grinell College and Scott Simmons, head running coach at Queens University. Now, I usually re-read books a second time with a pencil/highlighter, and I haven't had a chance to do that yet, but I do want to roll out my ideas for some summer training. I think I am going to just list my thoughts in bullet points, with some being short ideas, and some being long explanations. So, bear with me. (I have a little High Five going on through iTunes, so I might not make any sense.)

1. I was so pleased with our success in training this winter and spring that I want to continue using this model throughout the summer via the WTAFC (Wolverine Track And Field Club). What I learned in Iowa (and was re-iterated in my new favorite training book) was that using the summer to build up huge miles and save your speed work for later is totally wrong. You need to train your aerobic system, your anaerobic threshold system and your anaerobic system ALL YEAR LONG! It makes sense, you are in great shape when you are at Track State meet, why let all your speed go to waste and have to build it up again in the winter/spring? Why not just keep it, in fact, why not build it up more! The problem with this is they work-outs need to be monitored very closely, so that progression does not result in injury, burn-out or even regression. They really just can't be done without a systematic, well thought-out plan.

2. Another great aspect of this type of training is that it is NOT ONLY FOR DISTANCE KIDS! I am encouraging all track athletes to attend. Tell your friends to attend, older siblings in college, CHS alums, younger siblings planning to run for Sierra; the more the merrier. Event discipline does not matter! I know that Coach Maroney will expect his vaulters to be there, and I sincerely hope that athletes that jump, that sprint, that even play other sports and want to get into shape will attend. The base work-outs will be the same for all athletes, but the actual details of them will vary depending on the individual athlete. Coach Simmons calls it "athlete-centered", and it is the only way I know how to coach. I look at the individual athlete and work with them to help them achieve their goals. The opposite of this philosophy, "coach-centered", cannot work if a successful track program is to be built.

3. The tentative schedule for executing this looks like I will see you three days a week this summer. Tuesday morning for Red Rocks, Thursday evening for shorter intervals, Saturday mornings for longer intervals. Of course, all of this can be adjusted quite easily to meet the athletes needs, and no athlete is mandated to attend every single practice. That is the beauty of training. It is intrinsic motivation that makes you train and makes you better. So, if you put your all into it, you will improve. I do very little mandatory stuff, I seem to have pretty good luck by making it fun instead of mandatory. As for races, we will not be doing any five kilometer races as a club during the high school cross-country season. The summer and fall will be primarily for training, with maybe a few shorter one mile community races thrown in to keep it fresh. However, WTAFC would potentially like to do Nike Team Nationals in Arizona in November as a club, or maybe head out to Wisconsin for Foot Locker Nationals the following week. I would also like to try and get a group to go to Simplot Indoor Games in Idaho in February. (It all depends on the athletes goals!) This is very far in the future, however, but it is something to think about. A little closer in the future is our expected first day of training. That would be Tuesday the 17th. meet at CHS early to carpool over to Red Rocks. (More details on that will be forthcoming.)

4. This training falls under an extension of the Wolverine Track And Field Club, a private USATF club that anyone can join. You do need a USATF membership to belong to the club, go here to find out more about that. If you ran winter track with us this past year, you should be all set. (USATF is a very good organization to belong to, it is worth the membership money.) I hope to turn the WTAFC into a full time training operation, similar to Advanced Training Systems (ATS) in Littleton, or the Fort Collins Track Club. I want to train kids to run fast all year, especially in spring track, and the fact that Littleton and Ft. Collins have year-round clubs of their own, and we do not, puts us behind the eight ball big time. We still beat them, but that is a testament to the sheer determination of our kids, not a credit to our training system. That means not only summer training, but well-designed, individualized fall training as well. This training can lead into winter track, then spring season. Running fast is a lifestyle, not something you can just pick up and put down. Our club is technically not affiliated with Chaparral at all, which means kids from other schools, or members of the community can train with us if they wish. Like I mentioned it, is a private USATF certified club.

UPDATE: It seems like the USATF website is not being co-operative. How to fix that, I don't know...

5. This is my most important point. NO ONE is forcing any athletes to run with WTAFC. There are NO repercussions in spring track if kids do not train with the club in the summer or the fall or the winter. (For proof, see Evans, Jazmin. She was our Wolverine Award winner, a crucial part of our track team, and played basketball full time as well.) This is NOT a pre-requisite for any winter track or spring track. WTFAC is simply offering an alternative for kids that want to train with track season in mind. If athletes want to train a different way, they are totally free to do so!!! Bottom line: WTFAC is trying to offer an alternative training philosophy/style for those athletes looking for one.

I hope that this post is not too rambling. If any one has any questions, complaints, or compliments, please feel free to email me so I can explain further.

Thanks,
SEP

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