5/29 Newsletter

Time Off

Many athletes are looking for recommendations for what to do between now and the start of official summer training on June 16.  Athletes definitely want to give their mind and body a break so that both can recover.  However, going too long without activity will sacrifice some of the fitness gains they've made this spring and will put them at greater risk of injury when they do start running.  

For those who have done little running this spring, be very cautious and conservative with any running in the coming weeks.  Simply doing our dynamic warmup, would be a good start.  They could eventually work to a few short easy runs a week, with a couple strides at 5K pace afterwards.  Resist the temptation to overdo things.  Athletes in this camp are going to feel like they need to either make up for lost time or prove themselves, but from experience they'll do more harm to themselves than good if they buy into those mindsets.

For those who have been running, take one week of zero running.  They can be active with other things:  cycling, swimming, roller blading, other sports, but try to keep things recreational and not too intense.  Doing some the dynamic warmup a couple of those days or some of our ABCs would be fine.  

The second week they can start to incorporate in some running, but keep it to every other day.  The running days shouldn't be intense:  15-20 minutes of easy running with 3-4 strides of 15s woven into the run.  Afterwards they could do something like the lunge matrix, big five, or our staple ABCs (ABCDFGHI).  The days in between runs should be off days or light activity of another kind.

If athletes have been dealing with any minor injuries or soreness (niggles as we call them), now is a good time to pay attention to them.  If they're still present during this period, we probably need to take a closer look at them.  Most runners should stay in this pattern of running every other day up until we start on June 16. The goal is to feel hungry to start training hard before an athlete jumps into it.  Summer and our official season combine for five months of running.  That's a long time, and so it's better to take an extra week now than feel the burnout in September.  But if a runner with two or more years of experience wants to start doing something more a week or so early, reach out to Mr. McLain to talk about a plan. 

Pre-Summer Survey

Every athlete needs to complete the pre-summer survey. This helps coaches determine training volume/intensity this summer and know of any pre-existing issues that need to be navigated.  Most athletes have already done this, but if they haven't, the survey can be found here and should be completed by May 31.

Strength/Mobility Screenings

We're trying to make our strength and mobility work a bit more targeted to each athlete's needs.  Part of that process is completing an initial screening to identify any weaknesses or limitations.  The screening takes roughly an hour and can be completed at one of multiple available slots in the first two weeks of June.  If they have not already, athletes should sign up for a slot here no later than 5/31.  If none of the times work, please contact Mr. McLain about alternative options.

Sports Physicals

MSHSAA requires that all athletes have a physical on file.  The form was updated in 2023, but some doctor offices use outdated or non-MSHSAA forms.  Please use the current form, which can be found here.   The form consists of five pages.  The first two pages are completed by the student/parent prior to the physical examination.  The third and fifth pages are completed by the physician during the examination. The physician should keep copies of all of these pages in their records.  Due to health privacy concerns, only the last page should be returned to the school. 

Our school requires a physical every year, but MSHSAA only requires one every two years.  To fill their void, MSHSAA requires a second form that they refer to as pre-participation documentation.  This form does not require a physician and is completed by the athlete and a parent/guardian.  That form can be found here.  

Hard copies of both forms will also be available when summer training begins.  Both forms must be completed and submitted to the school prior to the first official practice on 8/11.   They can either be turned in to Mr. McLain or the school office.

Iron Testing

In conjunction with the physical examination is a good time to talk with an athlete's doctor about iron testing.  There are well-respected coaches with national titles who ask all athletes to get tested.  For sure, returning female athletes and any male athletes exhibiting symptoms of low iron levels should strongly consider getting tested.  

Early summer before training ramps up is the best time to be tested.  You can find a full explanation of the importance of ferritin for endurance athletes here.  But as a rule of thumb, testing in the morning at least 48 hours removed from a hard workout and while free of any infection/illness is the ideal time.  For a cross country runner to be successful the goal is a ferritin level over 40, with 30 being the absolute minimum tolerable level.  Levels lower than that might be fine for the general population, but they won't end well for a runner.  If you have any questions, feel free to reach out.

Summer Camps

Spots are still available for both our boys and girls team camps.  The goal of these camps is to immerse runners in what our team culture stands for, to bring our runners together and build team unity, and to equip athletes with the skills to be healthier and happier runners and human beings. 

You can find more info about the boys camp here, and the girls camp here, but if you have additional questions feel free to reach out to Mr. McLain.  If you haven't signed up but would like to attend, please contact Mr. McLain.  Sign-ups for the camps will close June 30 or earlier if capacity is reached.  

Team Breakfasts

Our hope is to have team breakfasts once again this summer following our Friday long runs.  These would function much like our in-season pasta dinners and would last from roughly 9-11AM.  The dates for these are the following:

6/20
7/11
7/18 (Boys only)
8/1

If you would be interested in hosting/helping provide food for one of these, please contact Mr. McLain

Course Mowers

We are in need of volunteers to help keep our course at the picnic grounds mowed this year.  We use the back loop throughout the summer for our aerobic workouts and the full course from August on for the majority of our practices.  Our hope is to split the work up by month as follows:

July (back loop only)
(August will be shared during course build days)  
September  (full course)
October  (full course)

If you would be interested in taking one of these shifts, please reach out to Mr. McLain.

Additional Summer Dates

A few additional dates have been released by the school.  They are already on our Google Calendar as well as the school's, but I wanted you to have them here:

8/10  Fall Sports Parent Meeting:  6pm in the school gym.  Mandatory for at least one parent to attend.
8/16  Media Day:  9am on football field.  Attendance mandatory for athletes.  Cameras mandatory for parents.