 Happy Global Running Day! While we're not quite into our running just yet, it is right around the corner! The Week AheadMonday 6/8 (7:00-9:00AM)--Easy Run at Soccer Park: We'll meet at the concession stand by the upper parking lot. After some introductory points, we'll go through our daily warmup and complete and easy run followed by some small doses of 5K pace and some simple post-run mobility work.  Tuesday 6/9 (7:00-8:45AM)--Aerobic Workout at Course: Our first aerobic workout of the summer will be out on the back loop of our course at the Seminary Picnic Grounds. Athletes can park/be dropped off using the gravel drive highlighted in the map below.  Wednesday 6/10 (7:00-8:00AM)--Water Balloon Fight at School: Our first fun day of the summer will feature a water balloon fight on the football practice field. Athletes should not wear their running shoes or clothes they don't want getting wet. Towels are recommended. Athletes may do their recovery run later in the day, but it must be without coaches to keep within contact day restrictions. Thursday 6/11 (7:00-9:00AM)--Easy Run at City Park: We will meet at the City Park at the pavilion across from the Park Center and in front of the SV baseball field. We will do another easy run followed by some hill sprints.  Friday 6/12 (7:00-9:00AM)--Long Run at St. Joseph Church: This summer most of our long runs at St. Joseph Church in Apple Creek. We will meet at the pavilion across from the parish office (the old elementary school). This location offers plenty of miles of traffic-light gravel roads, which are less of a strain on the legs than pavement. Last year we had done these at St. Rose of Lima in Silver Lake, but getting from the church to the county road was a safety and logistic challenge, especially with so many runners this year. That won't be a problem at St. Joseph. Afterwards we will head to Hoeckele's for a team breakfast from 9:30 to around 10:30AM.  Saturday 6/13 (On Own)--Recovery Run: There will be no team-affiliated training. Runners who completed training last year are encouraged to complete a recovery run. All other runners should do some sort of active recovery. That could mean going for a walk or hike, a bicycle ride, a swim ... anything that involves movement besides running. Sunday 6/14 (On Own)--Rest: Even a lot of Olympic-level athletes don't train every single day. Especially for high school athletes, the body needs rest to allow adaptation and growth to take place and to keep injury risk low. This could be more active recovery, but it could just be a day to watch a movie, play board games with family, read a book, practice those driving skills. Just take it easy. Many of our athletes will be leaving for Operation Overhaul this day, and we wish you all safe travels! Google CalendarAs in previous years, all team events can be found listed on our team calendar, which can be found on our website here. Clicking on an individual event will open any additional information about the event. This includes things like location addresses, duration, and--especially for meets--attached course maps and other important details. Be sure to check this for any information.  Necessary Items for TrainingJust a reminder that athletes should bring the following things with them to summer training: -Watch: Preferably something with at least a stopwatch feature, as most of our runs will be measured in minutes. You can find a full write-up on running watches here. -Water: A water jug will be available at team-organized runs for refills, but athletes should still bring their own bottles. 24-32oz is recommended. -Running Shoes: These are essential as running volume accumulates to reduce injury risk. For athletes that used a pair throughout track season, they need to be retired. You can find a full write-up on running shoes here. -Comfortable Clothes: Moisture wicking, light colors, compression shorts, and sports bras for girls are all recommended. Training PlansAt this point each athlete should have a spreadsheet training plan that was shared with them on Google Classroom. The plan will be updated by coaches weekly with the workouts for the coming week for that athlete. Athletes should fill in the training plan with the workouts they completed as well as other feedback requested. This helps coaches make an ideal training plan for the following week that matches an athlete's progress. It should be possible for parents to see the training plan through Google Classroom as well, but athletes should also be able to share access to parents. If for some reason completing a training plan digitally is problematic for an athlete, please contact Mr. McLain about creating a paper-based version.  This is an example of what a week in an athlete training plan looks like. Maddie Riley's PresentationThank you to everyone who made it to the meeting on Monday. Hopefully Maddie Riley's presentation was informative and helpful. She did share the handouts she had alluded, and I have attached each of them below. The first is a compendium of parent resources, including recommendations for cookbooks, websites, 
The second document is guidance on grocery shopping for athletes, including some recommended snacks and meals.
The third document is a cheat sheet meant for athletes, with guidance on pre- and post-run snacks, hydration, intuitive eating and more.
Fuel TankIn her presentation Maddie alluded to our Snocker (snack locker) where athletes can purchase the school day. More info about that will be shared as the start of school arrives. But last year for meets we also introduced the Fuel Tank, which was a one-stop depot for all things snack-related. Just like summer training starts to give athletes a dose of race-pace running and helps build habits for when meets come, we want to do that for fueling as well. We want athletes to already have a successful nutrition system in place well before race season, and that comes with practice. For this reason, the plan is to have the fuel tank present this summer. At present the fuel tank will contain the following items, many of which you'll notice were included in Maddie's presentation: -Goldfish Crackers -Pretzels -Golden Graham Cereal -Animal Crackers -Cocoa Loops Cereal -Fruit by the Foot (Dye-Free) -Fruit Snacks (Dye-Free) -Rice Krispie Treats -GoGo Squeez Applesauce -Pop Tarts (Strawberry, Blueberry, Cherry, Brown Sugar Cinnamon, Chocolate Fudge, Smores) -Stroopwaffles (while they last) -Bananas Normally on race days athletes have access to the fuel tank at least 2 hours before their race. That's obviously not true for our summer workouts. For that reason, athletes will be encouraged to pick a snack the day before hard workouts to take home or have in their car where they can eat it the next morning before arriving at training.
Iron TestingAnother thing Maddie mentioned in her presentation was iron levels and getting tested. 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 (persistent fatigue/weakness, shortness of breath during light activity, chronic brain fog) 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. Pre-Participation PaperworkA good time to bring up iron testing with a primary care physician is during an athletes physical. MSHSAA requires that all athletes have a sports physical on file. The form was updated in 2023. Most doctors offices have the correct form on site, but that isn't guaranteed. Hopefully those at the parent meeting who needed a copy were able to pick one. I will still have hard copies available at training, and it 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, but it will also be available at training for those who didn't get it at Monday's meeting. Both forms must be completed and submitted to the school prior to the first official practice on 8/10. They can either be turned in to Mr. McLain or the school office. Mower SignupsWe are still in need of some additional help with mowing our course this summer prior to Tuesday workouts. Todd Welker has graciously signed up to help with several of the weeks, but I'm sure he would appreciate help. We currently have no one signed up to mow prior to the following Tuesday workouts: July 7 July 14 If you would be able to cover these weeks or help with the other ones, please sign up using this form. Team Breakfast SignupsWe are still looking for families to help host or contribute to team breakfasts in the summer following our Friday long runs. We can certainly do these at local restaurants, but athletes have shared that they enjoy them better when they are at athlete homes, as this gives a more laid back atmosphere and provides opportunities for games, swimming, etc. Typically these last from roughly 9:00 or 9:30 to 11:00 AM. The Hadlers (July 10) and Welkers (July 31) have generously agreed to host breakfasts, but they would appreciate help providing food or drink to the athletes. That could even mean sending something if you aren't able to be there for the actual breakfast. We are also still in need of a host for the June 19 breakfast, which should be a smaller turnout given the athletes at Operation Overhaul. If you would be interested in helping with any of these breakfasts, please sign up using this form. Team Camp SignupsSpots are still available to attend our team camp this summer from July 15-17. More information about the trip is available here. If there is interest in attending, please reach out to Mr. McLain to save a spot. Spots are limited, and sign-ups will close on June 12 to ensure availability of the cabins.  |
Archives
July 2026
Categories |
||||||||
RSS Feed