The hardest part of indoor track is dealing with the cold days when there is no practice. Having a day or two off of practice is hard enough - it's easy to say "I deserve a day or two off", but having the temperature in the teens or lower makes it extra tough.
The important thing is to deal with it. Bundle up and get out the door if it's your only option. Use a treadmill or cross-train if you can. But, get some training done!
Of course, I'll have to practice what I preach. Not so much with the training - that has held up pretty well, despite the cold and the overload at work; however, it has been almost two weeks since a posting here - I have to be more consistent. Of course, you can all help with that: I am always willing to include a guest posting, so take your best shot and send it over.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Monday, January 12, 2009
Weekend Upsets
What a wild weekend in the NFL! 3 of the 4 favored home teams went down in defeat.
But that result was no competition for the real upsets of the weekend.
First, Chelsea's time in the women's 800m race at the MIT Alumni meet was beaten by her old man's time in the men's race immediately afterwards. That was a pretty stunning upset, since her old man had not raced that distance since about 1984.
The real upset of the weekend came at the Rochester Relays, where the Schroeder boys pulled off an unlikely win, aided in large part by the performance of the WDR! The final score was:
1) Webster Schroeder 70
2) McQuaid 69
3) Edison Tech 65
3) Rush Henrietta 65
5) Pittsford Sutherland 39
21 other teams scored 1-34 points.
The 4x1600 relay scored 5 points:
11 Piacentini, Anthony 11 Webster Schr 4:58.38 1.25
15 Mauro, Chris 11 Webster Schr 5:03.56 1.25
16 Miller, Kenny 12 Webster Schr 5:04.60 1.25
17 Whittemore, Steve 11 Webster Schr 5:05.73 1.25
The 4x800 relay also scored 5 points:
1 Rush Henrietta 8:29.25 10
2 Pittsford Sutherland 8:33.69 8
3 McQuaid 8:36.47 6
4 Webster Schroeder 8:36.66 5
5 Spencerport 8:47.17 4
The short DMR (1000-800-600-400) scored 6 points:
1 Rush Henrietta 7:28.86 2 10
2 Pittsford Mendon 7:31.96 2 8
3 Webster Schroeder 7:34.22 2 6
4 Victor 7:35.30 2 5
5 Greece Olympia 7:37.53 2 4
Congratulations to the Schroeder Boys for such a fine effort.
The girls distance points were limited to 4, in the walk:
5 Irwin, Rebecca 10 Webster Schr 8:19.45 2
11 Doherty, Alaina 11 Webster Schr 9:02.97 2
And the girls finished just 2 points behind Rush-Henrietta and Mendon, who were tied for 5th.
But that result was no competition for the real upsets of the weekend.
First, Chelsea's time in the women's 800m race at the MIT Alumni meet was beaten by her old man's time in the men's race immediately afterwards. That was a pretty stunning upset, since her old man had not raced that distance since about 1984.
The real upset of the weekend came at the Rochester Relays, where the Schroeder boys pulled off an unlikely win, aided in large part by the performance of the WDR! The final score was:
1) Webster Schroeder 70
2) McQuaid 69
3) Edison Tech 65
3) Rush Henrietta 65
5) Pittsford Sutherland 39
21 other teams scored 1-34 points.
The 4x1600 relay scored 5 points:
11 Piacentini, Anthony 11 Webster Schr 4:58.38 1.25
15 Mauro, Chris 11 Webster Schr 5:03.56 1.25
16 Miller, Kenny 12 Webster Schr 5:04.60 1.25
17 Whittemore, Steve 11 Webster Schr 5:05.73 1.25
The 4x800 relay also scored 5 points:
1 Rush Henrietta 8:29.25 10
2 Pittsford Sutherland 8:33.69 8
3 McQuaid 8:36.47 6
4 Webster Schroeder 8:36.66 5
5 Spencerport 8:47.17 4
The short DMR (1000-800-600-400) scored 6 points:
1 Rush Henrietta 7:28.86 2 10
2 Pittsford Mendon 7:31.96 2 8
3 Webster Schroeder 7:34.22 2 6
4 Victor 7:35.30 2 5
5 Greece Olympia 7:37.53 2 4
Congratulations to the Schroeder Boys for such a fine effort.
The girls distance points were limited to 4, in the walk:
5 Irwin, Rebecca 10 Webster Schr 8:19.45 2
11 Doherty, Alaina 11 Webster Schr 9:02.97 2
And the girls finished just 2 points behind Rush-Henrietta and Mendon, who were tied for 5th.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Winter Running
I was hoping to follow up the last entry with some of my goals for 2009, but that will have to wait until I have a little more time. I hope that you are working on your goals!
In the meantime, I'll just share a few random bits of information about winter running. First, be careful on the roads. When conditions are on the slick side, give the cars a wide berth. Note that when there are a couple of "dry" spots where most people drive, people tend to drive a little faster than they should, and when the tires leave those dry lanes (for example, to go around a runner), a spin can start. Run facing traffic! It's not like you could actually get out of the way if a car came at you, but it does give you a chance to see if you've been seen.
Dress wisely! In the winter, runners tend to wear too much, but I've seen plenty of high school kids severely under-dressed. Use layers that can be peeled off or added back on, as necessary. A "technical" layer underneath a wind-resistant layer often works well. A hat and decent gloves are key. The hat does actually keep extra heat in your body, and the hands are the first things to become painful when running in the cold (well, unless the wind is severe, then the face or other parts may chill first).
Speaking of wind, make your route selections such that you run into the wind early in your run and with the wind later in the run. There is nothing worse in the winter than doing an out-and-back where you go with the wind, getting all hot and sweaty, and then turning around and having the wind turn the sweat into ice (well, not literally, but it seems that way) - try doing a negative split in those conditions!
I usually do not promote doing short loops (for example, coming back past your house after 2-3 miles, with the intention of doing another loop or two), I prefer forcing the commitment by running as far away as possible, so you don't wuss out. However, in the winter, such a route may not be a bad idea, since you could add or remove clothes as necessary, between loops.
Don't lose those long runs during the winter. Spring will be here soon enough, and you'll want your base endurance to remain high, heading into the outdoor season.
In the meantime, I'll just share a few random bits of information about winter running. First, be careful on the roads. When conditions are on the slick side, give the cars a wide berth. Note that when there are a couple of "dry" spots where most people drive, people tend to drive a little faster than they should, and when the tires leave those dry lanes (for example, to go around a runner), a spin can start. Run facing traffic! It's not like you could actually get out of the way if a car came at you, but it does give you a chance to see if you've been seen.
Dress wisely! In the winter, runners tend to wear too much, but I've seen plenty of high school kids severely under-dressed. Use layers that can be peeled off or added back on, as necessary. A "technical" layer underneath a wind-resistant layer often works well. A hat and decent gloves are key. The hat does actually keep extra heat in your body, and the hands are the first things to become painful when running in the cold (well, unless the wind is severe, then the face or other parts may chill first).
Speaking of wind, make your route selections such that you run into the wind early in your run and with the wind later in the run. There is nothing worse in the winter than doing an out-and-back where you go with the wind, getting all hot and sweaty, and then turning around and having the wind turn the sweat into ice (well, not literally, but it seems that way) - try doing a negative split in those conditions!
I usually do not promote doing short loops (for example, coming back past your house after 2-3 miles, with the intention of doing another loop or two), I prefer forcing the commitment by running as far away as possible, so you don't wuss out. However, in the winter, such a route may not be a bad idea, since you could add or remove clothes as necessary, between loops.
Don't lose those long runs during the winter. Spring will be here soon enough, and you'll want your base endurance to remain high, heading into the outdoor season.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Happy New Year!
There is no wrong time to stop and think about goals - in fact, success in any area is facilitated by establishing goals that are specific, measurable and achievable - but the changing of the year gives one an easy excuse to do so.
I would encourage each Webster Distance Runner to take the time to write down goals for 2009, and place them somewhere where they can be revisited occasionally. These goals should cover different durations: immediate (next competition), short-term (end of the winter sports season), mid-term (outdoor track season, summer training, XC season) and long-term (high school and college careers, and beyond).
Your goals should cover both results measures (such as a race time or place) and process measures (such as training distance or duration). Tracking your training allows you to verify that you are on track for your race goals, and can allow you to make adjustments to your training when you hit the inevitable obstacles along the way.
In addition, your goals should include individual goals and team goals. It is important to think of where you want to be, as an individual. It is more important to consider where you want the team to be. This is true whether you are the top varsity athlete, the 5th or 7th runner, or the 8th runner on JV. Every team member contributes to the team in some manner (positively or negatively) and every team member should feel good about results that exceed expectations.
Let's set and achieve goals that make 2009 a year to remember!
I would encourage each Webster Distance Runner to take the time to write down goals for 2009, and place them somewhere where they can be revisited occasionally. These goals should cover different durations: immediate (next competition), short-term (end of the winter sports season), mid-term (outdoor track season, summer training, XC season) and long-term (high school and college careers, and beyond).
Your goals should cover both results measures (such as a race time or place) and process measures (such as training distance or duration). Tracking your training allows you to verify that you are on track for your race goals, and can allow you to make adjustments to your training when you hit the inevitable obstacles along the way.
In addition, your goals should include individual goals and team goals. It is important to think of where you want to be, as an individual. It is more important to consider where you want the team to be. This is true whether you are the top varsity athlete, the 5th or 7th runner, or the 8th runner on JV. Every team member contributes to the team in some manner (positively or negatively) and every team member should feel good about results that exceed expectations.
Let's set and achieve goals that make 2009 a year to remember!
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