Welcome to the 2023 Summer Training Program for the

GHS Cross Country Team.

This is a 13-week program designed to elevate your mileage slowly and build your fitness so
you will be able to “hit the ground running” in September. The workouts are not set in stone, so
you can adjust them to suit individual needs such as vacations, random obligations, illness, or
injury. If you follow the plan diligently, you will be faster and in better shape than last year at the
same time.

The structure will be a good introduction to the way in which the season will progress for the
team. There are three very important points we will stress early and often.

1) Keep a running log of all the workouts you do, with comments about how it felt. This is a good
habit to develop because you can use it for reference in the years to come.

2) Whenever possible, avoid running on paved or concrete surfaces. Grass and dirt are much
easier on your legs.

3) Get a wristwatch with a stopwatch or use a running app (GarminConnect, Strava or

Runkeeper are my personal favorites) so you can monitor your pace and training times.

These are Varsity level workouts. Beginner runners and Jr High runners should begin
with cutting all times and/or distances in half until Coaches evaluate you in August to
determine your level changes, based on your summer progress. Harder, more important
workouts are emphasized with CAPITALS (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and
Saturdays).

The 40 to 45 minute easy runs between those harder days are for recovery; so don’t push pace
at all on those days because you don’t want to burn out. If you have to take a day off, make it
one of these recovery days, not a harder day, if at all possible.

EASY: Recovery pace, not ridiculously slow; an “as you feel” pace; “Talking” jog pace

EASY/MODERATE: Relaxed, picking it up to a little faster than easy pace

MODERATE: The pace you go when you are on a “regular run;” It’s not hard, just a decent
enjoyable effort (Note: If there is no “enjoyable” in your effort, Cross Country may not be for
you!)

LONG: You will do one long run of an hour+ every week, usually Saturday. These runs are done
at a relaxed pace, no faster than moderate effort. The long runs will make you strong, both
physically and mentally.
TEMPO: About 30 seconds per mile slower than your current 3 mile pace (about 15 seconds
slower than one mile pace for Jr High and beginners). These runs are to be done on a flat
course and the same pace be maintained throughout. “Comfortably hard” as we will call it,
tempo workouts are the most important tool for improving your fitness and endurance. Also
known as “Anaerobic Threshold Pace,” this run will raise the heart rate at which fatigue sets
in. Basically, you can go harder for longer. To get you used to how the season is structured, this
key workout is on Wednesdays.

WARM UP/COOL DOWN You will warm up for at least one mile, although it is better to go with
time. Your standard warm up for every run, including races, will be 10 to 15 minutes of easy
pace. Follow the run with a quick series of dynamic stretches of major muscles and anything
that needs it. For harder workouts, the warm up and cool down might be longer (20 minutes)
and is not included in work out time.

For easy runs, your warm up and cool down may be included in your total 45 minute run time,
but make sure you stretch after 10-15 minutes and follow up with cool down stretches. For these
runs, we will use the last mile or so as a cool down (same easy pace as warm up). After a
recovery run, we will do 6 to 10 strides of about 100 meters at a relaxed, moderate+ pace.
In addition to that, we will be doing core-strengthening exercises; so “easy” days aren’t
exactly easy, they’re just less difficult than the hard days. Strides and stretching after runs
helps prevent injury, so approach it as seriously as any other part of a workout. Stretch well
after every training session regardless of whether or not you are with the team. Also, be
sure to put ice on any areas that hurt or feel stressed during training.

XT: means “cross training.” Examples of cross training include, but are not limited to,
swimming, water running for 20-30 minutes (this is one of the best!!!), strength training upper
body, core stability exercises, hiking, rollerblading, yoga, rock climbing, or any activity or sport
that adds some fun to your workout week and breaks the boredom of your routine, yet targets
an area that you have not been able to develop in your regular workouts. On XT days, avoid
activities that can fatigue the calf muscles: stair machines, rowing machines, spinning or leg
strengthening exercises. These activities should be done on running days.

CADENCE or TURNOVER DRILLS: This is an easy drill that improves the efficiency of running,
reducing effort. This pulls all the elements of good running form together at the same time. Over
the weeks and months, doing this two or more times a week will naturally increase the number
of steps per minute (which means you run faster, easier).

HOW TO DO THE CADENCE DRILL

1. Warm up by walking for 5 minutes, and running and walking very gently for 10 minutes.
2. Start jogging slowly for 1-2 minutes, and then time yourself for 30 seconds. During this half
minute, count the number of times your left OR right foot touches (each runner chooses one).
3. Walk around for a minute or so.
4. On the 2nd thirty second drill, increase the count by 1 or 2.
….In the process of improving cadence or turnover, the body’s internal monitoring system
coordinates a series of adaptations molding the feet, legs, nervous system and timing
mechanism into an efficient team:
● Your foot touches lightly.
● Extra, inefficient motions of the foot and leg are reduced or eliminated.
● Less effort is spent on pushing up or moving forward, saving energy.
● You stay lower to the ground-becoming smoother and faster.
● The ankle becomes more efficient.
● Abuse of weak link areas is reduced.

FARTLEK: Swedish for “speed play,” these workouts are for building your ability to vary pace
when you need to. Putting on surges to break the competition as well as being able to respond
to their attacks is an important part of racing. These workouts consist of timed bursts of near
race pace with about equal amounts of easy recovery running in between.

HILLS: These workouts build strength and you will need it with the courses you race. Usually,
hill work is done at close to race pace and is fairly short, concentrated effort. They improve your
agility (ability to change directions quickly), toughness (make those hills your best friend), and
overall strength. We will typically do hill work on Fridays until race season begins.

REPEATS/RACE PACE: These are run at the pace you have most recently run a 3-mile
(Varsity) or 1-2 mile (Jr High) race or the pace you plan to run in the next one. In the later part
of the summer and during the season, we will do a mile repeat workout at this pace every
Monday to get you familiar with your level of exertion in races.

BASE BUILDING PHASE FOR BEGINNERS (4 WEEKS…MAY 29TH-JUNE 17TH)

● Run 30 to 45 minutes easy, as you feel, 3 to 4 days a week.
● DO NOT exceed tempo (anaerobic threshold) pace.
● Rest between run days or do some cross-training (XT).
● Use this time to build your aerobic fitness base (remember, the better you build your
base, the higher your potential).
● Run on dirt and/or grass and with your teammates as often as possible.
● Walk whenever you feel winded.
● No huffing and puffing during the base building phase.
● No sprinting.
● If you are breathing heavily at any point, slow down and take more walk breaks.
● Rapid breathing at the end of the run means that the pace needs to be reduced, from the
beginning, on the next run.
● After your run, log it, either in an app or on paper. Include distance and/or time you ran,
terrain, time of day and/or temperature, and how you felt about the run, noting anything
uncomfortable or what felt good about it.
● Keep in mind you have a lot of running ahead of you, so go easy and enjoy it!
KEYS TO SUCCESS DURING BASE PHASE
1) Make sure you have had medical clearance from your Family doctor before beginning a
strenuous training program.

2) Visit a specialty running shoe store to get fitted for proper training shoes and racing shoes,
based on your individual needs. They will test your running gait and tell you the style you need.
This is a free service. You do not have to buy the shoes from them; however, I do recommend
supporting local running stores as much as we possibly can.

3) Cross Training (XT) includes the following recommended activities on rest days. Avoid any
heavy stress to the legs on Rest and XT days. During pre-season, especially as a newcomer, it
is best to run 3 days a week, with a day off from running between days. The best mode of cross
training would be swimming, yoga, or water running, with feet not touching the bottom of the
pool. An aquajogger flotation belt is recommended.

Also, on XT days, avoid activities that can fatigue the calf muscles: stair machines, rowing
machines, spinning or leg strengthening exercises. These activities should be done on running
days.

Note: Strength training is to be done on running days. Research has shown that runners
should lift at least twice a week for 30-60 minutes, and involve about 6 exercises with 3 sets
of 10 reps at most. Runners should lift heavy!!!

When you lift weights it is really important as a runner, as the stress you put on your muscles
can have a direct impact on your performance, you should:
● lift weights after running
● wait 3 hours before lifting weights after a HARD workout
● lift on hard running days
● never lift before a hard running workout
● and, not lift on easy running days (unless in a base phase)

A good strength training program for runners will include:

● lifting heavy objects using common moves such as a squat, lunge, deadlift, suitcase
hold, calf raises, or split squat.
● explosive exercises such as a medicine ball slam and kettlebell swing
● upper body moves and bodyweight exercises such as push-ups and pull-ups that work
the whole body
● core exercises such as plank variations
● ***and plyometrics such as single-leg hops, jumping lunges, jumping squats, box jumps,
and any other type of jump.
STRENGTH BUILDING PHASE...JUNE 19th THRU AUG 25th - 9 WEEKS

VETERANS--Follow the schedule listed below

BEGINNERS—Follow the schedule listed below, but cut the distances and time in half

JUNE 19th THRU AUG 25th - 9 WEEKS

WEEK 1 - 4 Days (June 19th-24th)

Mon - 40 to 50 mins easy conversational pace a.k.a. “talking” jog
Wed - 3 to 4 miles with 6 hills or so, moderate
Fri - 45 mins easy
Sat - LONG, 55 mins+, nice and easy “talking” jog

WEEK 2 - 5 Days (June 26th-July 1st)

Mon - 40 to 45 mins easy - easy/moderate
Wed - TEMPO RUN - 20 mins @ 30 sec/mile slower than race pace. Long warm up & cool
down.
Thurs - 40 to 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Fri - 40 mins moderate with hills
Sat - LONG, 55 to 60 mins relaxed

WEEK 3 - 6 Days (July 3rd-July 8th)

Mon - FARTLEK - Timed hard efforts mixed with slower recovery of similar time. 4 mins on
(hard), 8 off (easy) x 4
Tues - 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - TEMPO RUN - 20 mins @ 30 sec/mile slower than race pace. Long warm up & cool
down.
Thurs - 40 to 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Fri - HILLS - 6 to 8 x 200m OR 4 to 6 x 400m depending on the incline at race pace, 2 mile
warm up and cool down
Sat - LONG, 60 mins relaxed

HILL TRAINING 101

Uphill Running
1. Go up a hill smooth and steady. Don't charge up it.
2. Only lean into the hill slightly. Don't hunch over.
3. Crest the top of the hill and pick up the pace.

Downhill Running
1. Go down a hill quickly, but in control. Don't run on your heels.
2. Keep your chest upright. Don't lean too far forward.
3. At the bottom of the hill, stay on your toes and use that forward momentum as long as you
can.
STRENGTH BUILDING PHASE...JUNE 19TH THRU AUGUST 25th - 9 WEEKS (cont)
WEEK 4 - 6 Days (July 10th-July 15th)
Mon - FARTLEK, 5 min on, 5 min off x 4 sets
Tues - 40 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - TEMPO RUN - 20 mins @ 30 sec/mile slower than race pace. Long warm up & cool
down. Thurs - 40 mins moderate pace + core strengthening exercises
Fri - HILLS -6 to 8 x 200m OR 4 to 6 x 400m depending on the incline at race pace.
Concentrate on form, technique, and cresting.
Sat - LONG, 60 mins relaxed + core

WEEK 5 - 6 Days (July 17th-July 23rd)

Mon - FARTLEK, 1 min on, 1 min off x 15 sets. End with 2 min off, 3 min on.
Tues - 40+ mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - 20 min TEMPO RUN w/ Long warm up & cool down.
Thurs - 40 to 45 mins easy / moderate pace + core
Fri - HILLS, 20 min warm up / cool down, then 6 to 8 x 200m OR 4 to 6 x 400m depending on
the incline at race pace.
Sat - LONG, 65 to 70 mins easy / moderate as you feel + core

WEEK 6 - 6 Days (July 24th-July 29th)

Mon - FARTLEK, 3 min on, 3 min off / 1 min on, 1 min off x 5 sets, then 10 min on, 10 min off
(60 minutes total)
Tues - 40 to 45 mins easy / mod + core strengthening exercises
Wed - 3 mile TEMPO RUN, 2 mile cool down.
Thurs - 40 to 45 mins MODERATE+ core strengthening exercises
Fri - REPEATS 3 x 1 mile on home course (Houlden Farm), pushing hills.
Sat - LONG, 70 mins moderate on rolling trails First day of team practice!!

WEEK 7 - 6 Days (July 31st -Aug 5th)

Mon - FARTLEK, (33 minutes total) 3 min hard, 3 mins moderate
Tues - 40 to 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - 22 min TEMPO RUN, 10 x 100m strides on grass
Thurs - 40 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Fri - HILLS, 6 to 8 x 200m OR 4 to 6 x 400m depending on the incline at race pace. OR 6 to 8
loops of 10 flights of stairs. Finish with 6 mins moderate+
Sat - LONG, 60 to 70 mins easy as you feel + core

WEEK 8 - 6 Days (Aug 7th-Aug 12th)

Mon - REPEATS, 3 or 4 x mile at race pace on dirt course.
Tues - 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - 22 min TEMPO RUN w/ Long warm up & cool down.
Thurs - 45 mins easy / moderate pace + core
Fri - HILLS, 20 min warm up / cool down, then 6 to 8 long hills
Sat - LONG, 75 to 80 mins easy, relaxed + core
WEEK 9 - 6 Days (Aug 14th-Aug 19th)
Mon - REPEATS, 3 or 4 x mile at race pace
Tues - 45 mins easy + core strengthening exercises
Wed - 22 min TEMPO RUN w/ Long warm up & cool down.
Thurs - 40 mins easy / moderate pace + core
Fri - FARTLEK, (33 minutes total) 3 min hard, 3 mins moderate
Sat - LONG, 75 to 80 mins easy, relaxed + core

Week 10 - 6 Days (Aug 21st-Aug 26th)

Recovery Week
Easy Runs every other day