Kit
I was in cross country at my high school, now in track. I'm not competitive in the slightest, and I don't really care about winning all the meets or anything like that. I'm in cross country because I like to run, to stay in shape, and so I can eat a lot. I know these are probably the wrong reasons to be in XC but I don't care. Additionally, my friends and I aren't very fast runners and we don't care about that either. Anyways, in track, I've been feeling a lot of pressure to run really fast. I'm not in the top five of my team, so I wouldn't hurt the team if I ran slow. Yet, I always feel like less of a runner if I don't run a six-minute mile. Is it wrong that we run slow? We are able to run far (around 6-7 miles a day) and we never walk, but I always feel the pressure to run super fast. All in all, I'm just wondering if I should care that we don't run very fast.
Sorry if I've confused you!
Answer
good , I get to yell my minority opinion really LOUD!
First, running is not a team sport(except relays). No one helps me run. It's an individual sport!
At High School, the coach should help each "individual" reach their personal bests. Only one person wins a race. Why do the others run then? i know, XC keeps team stats for the "win", LOL What if I dont have a team full of competititors, why do I run? i had a chance to win races. So that was improtant to me. But when I had to race against Prefontaine why did i run? For personal bests. For improvements. Most of my coaches supported each individual's effort each week. My coach would run up to me with his clock in hand and congratulated me for busting my best by 3 seconds. LOL I felt great. someone would always ask, on the bus ride home, "how'd we do as a team?" but it was an after thought. The coach was still pointing out eachrunners improvements, and the seniors would say like, alright KID , and tell us not bad when they heard my average time/personal best. we all supported each other. As a senior, I could win a race, get into my warmups, completely cool down, then realize some of our guys were still crossing the finish line. So I'd go and yell them in! They'd be spriniting in against an opponnent like it was the olympics. and the coach would run over to them with theclock, and I'd smile as he was telling that 51rst place runner he'd busted his best by 3 seconds. and the guy had a huge smile on his face, completely out of breathe, just like i was when i came across. I was revelling over my time, and those guys in the back of the pack were doing the same. THATS how xc SHOULD be. Sadly, my track coach , my senior year, was a reaplcement coach, and a football coach. he ruined trakcfor me, for my senior year, and ruined my college opportunities. that coach should go to hell when he dies. xc runners are not competing as football players, not the same mentality. as a sport optin in HS, focus should be on supporting the runners as they attempt to achieve their personal goals. i spent years running, and I cant tell you about a team win, but i have a volume of runners individual achievements. the road work can be loneyl, and hard. weather beats ya down, cowboys throw bottles at ya, and if people wonder why i am running 6-8 miles in that environment, I want to get better. I want to improve my times. Im not doing it for the school. but i apprecaite my own running coach, a great guy who spent a good part of his life timing me, watching me, making suggestions on improving my form. encouraging me. he should go to Heaven when He dies. I had problems with my annual allergies, getting enough air, coming back from a 2 week break, for the first time, I ran off the track and ran my cool down. The fast pace at half mile was led by the guy who won state, and a 2nd (a 4:19)miler. i could have faced them a month later at district. but i wasnt gettig enough air...allergies. (I dont quit because of competition, won 19% of every race I was in), and that FOOTBALL coach kicked me off the team, losing interest from the many colleges that had previous written to me. NO, the TEAM in xc is not important. its an individual support. we TRY to support our fellow runners, MORE than the football players i think. But we have little in common with that kind of coach.
you and your friends should be able to enjoy your running experience. AND your coach should be helping you with your form, encouraging you individually about your times, and your personal goals. The coach might come up to you privately and say, you know, this opp isnt all that stong, you might be able to place this race if you pick it up some. just a gentle nudge, if another goal can be achieved.
for track, well you have a bunch of football players mixed with long distance runners etc LOL I had a separate room for LD runners, while the football players were in their rah rah room snapping towels on each other, my crew were quiet, listening to Hey Jude etc. My success, and my opinions did separate the "team" LOL but I never brought it up, or promote it. I let them be..them. and my group were quietly cool.
6-7 miles!!!! you ARE a runner! you might not be a great Team player, but you are making a better YOU! a healthier you. obviously having fun! and if you help the team win, great! But you should be encourage by coach and school alike, to get out there setting personal goals. better than being in a gang! or hanging out at the mall 24/7! you stay in the best shape you can be! you make friends for life! THAT should be the school's goals. as for teams in xc, oregon papers list something like the top 10-15 Individual runners with their times, and after that, a 1-liner giving the team score results.
and if a small band of friends run together , having fun, but not impacting the team score, great for them! God bless them! I pray their coach thinks so too.
What makes running a mile easier?
TaylorHotn
I'm 16 female, 280 pounds and trying to run. What makes running a miles easier?
Answer
The simplest way to make running a mile easier is just to run. Run, run and run. It's the only way you're going to be able to improve your stamina so that you can run faster without getting tired. The reason that you're feel so tired after your runs is because your body is out of shape, and when you're out of shape it really hurts to exercise. But here's the good news, anyone can be a good runner, you just have to be willing to put the work in so that you can build up your endurance. Endurance is the key to all running, it's the foundation for everything that you'll do whether it's long distance or short sprints, if you don't have endurance you're not going to be able to do either very well. I suggest that you start where you can, if you can only run 1 mile, than run 1 mile 4-5 times a week until it gets easy for you to do, then increase your distance to a full mile. Keep running that mile until it gets easier for you to do, start with what you can and allow your body to adjust and grow stronger. Remember you don't have to run fast, in fact you can run as slow as you want, just don't walk. Do this for a couple of weeks and you'll find that it's much easier for you to do, you won't have cramps or stitches, your legs will start feeling better and your times will be dropping. This is a sign that your endurance is starting to grow, at that point you can start upping your mileage and trying to drop your times.
Usually it takes about 6 weeks for your endurance to really build up and and for it to start having effects on your stamina and cardiovascular health. But I guarantee you'll start seeing results WAY before then, after only a couple weeks, of running 4-5 times a week, you'll start to notice that running a mile is much easier, cramps are much less frequent and that you're not nearly as winded. So by the time that you run the race at your school you should be able to drop your times substantially. But I cannot stress enough, the only way you're going to build up your endruance is through continued running. You can't run once a week and believe that you're going to be in good shape, you have to be out at least 3-4 times weekly.
Set a mileage goal for yourself, DON'T go by time. That way you have an actual goal instead of simply running until your time is up, it's much more motivating to be running a preset distance and it doesn't feel quite as long. Try using this website: http://www.mapmyrun.com/ Here you can map your runs and figure out where and how far you need to go, I find it's really helpful if you don't have a gps sport watch.
So, as for a training plan, your schedule could look a little something like this:
For the first month or so I would focus mainly on building endurance, the only way you're going to be able to do that is through running often. Don't feel like you have to go out and run three miles on your first day, you're the only person who knows your body and knows what it can and can't do. So for right now, do what you can, and start building up your strength. Then, when you feel like you're in better shape you can start upping your distances.
Monday: Distance run (1-3 miles as slow as you would like, without walking)
Tuesday: Distance run (1-3 miles as slow as you would like, without walking)
Wednesday: Distance run (1-3 miles as slow as you would like, without walking)
Thursday: Distance run (1-3 miles as slow as you would like, without walking)
Friday: Distance run (1-3 miles as slow as you would like, without walking)
Saturday: Rest or distance run
Sunday: Rest
If you follow this schedule for a couple of months you'll find that running 2 or 3 miles is not big deal at all, you won't have cramps, you won't run out of breath and you'll feel great. That said, the only way you're going to improve is to work hard and stay dedicated, running once a week is not going to build up your endurance. Stick with it and I think you'll be amazed at the results. I hope that helps, feel free to message me if you have anymore questions!
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