Base training

What are your other/current prs

800?

1600?

3200?

Find the Summer of Malmo. (Use the search function or Google.) Follow it, except make it the Winter of Malmo. And look for the threads on LRC that discuss SoM--there are some good tips/discussion about how to accommodate people of varying abilities.

Assuming you're a soph or junior in high school: Yes, a weight lifting class over the winter would probably be a help at your stage of development.

You upperclassmen should go for 60 miles a week (excluding your race, which would bring your total to 65 because mile warmup mile cooldown and 5K race). The two underclassmen can stick with 40-50 for now, in order to ensure they can still grow later in the season, and they've got quite a bit of extra talent compared to those 2 juniors, and I'd assume they're better at soccer as well so they've got some better conditioning.

At the high school level in my opinion, its best to be doing a lot of doubles if you can fit them in your schedule. You should do some of your easier runs with the underclassmen, recovery runs with the 2 juniors, at least in terms of pace. Meaning that anyone sub-18 should have easy runs be 7:30 at the fastest (of course you could go down to an average of 7-flat pace), while the two high-18 kids should not be running much faster than 8 min pace for their easy days (perfect for your recovery days).

You could all do your long runs together, but you would make them a little bit progressive. Say you all stick together for the first 4 miles, then you and the underclassmen take off for the next 4 miles, then you solo the remaining 4 at a faster pace. The 18min 5K runners would average 7:45 pace or less for the 12 miles, the underclassmen would be 7:15, and you would be 6:45. If you want to go longer, you could then "cool down" by running back to finish with the underclassmen or even the upperclassmen.

Weightlifting would definitely help you, but of course that's more time taken off your schedule. Do a lot of form-based and support-based exercises, like Romanian Dead Lifts, Step Ups, Single Foot Lunges, etc.

Shoot for at least 4 weeks of this type of base. Stay at this mileage throughout your season until 3 weeks before your last race or first championship level race.

Please note that I'm 100% basing this off of my own training experiences in high school, and what I've learned so far from running. In high school I was a senior at 17:3x, and then trained at 50 miles a week with a senior at about your level (he was doing 60). He ran 9:2x, and I ran 9:5x. for the 3200m.

James Handcock wrote:

What are your other/current prs

800?

1600?

3200?

800: 2:08

1600: 4:42

3200: 10:14

Thank you guys. I really appreciate your help.

Yeah, winter of Malmo.

Might play out something like this for you

M: Progression run - 8 miles, last 4 steady to moderate pace. (the young guys can do 6). This is nice on an out and back run, you can all start together. For you top guys, you can make this day a double. Weights wouldn't be bad on this day either.

T: Easy, maybe 5-6

Wed: 3-4 miles easy run, easy reps with lots of rest (maybe 10 x 200 @ 33-34 at the beginning of the winter with a slow walk recovery (90 sec) at the beginning of the winter progressing to 10 x 300 at 50-51 with a quicker recovery run (300m in 1:30 ish) by the end of the winter. (this could be another day to double)

Th: 1 hour easy (so like 8 ish for you

F: Easy (maybe 4-5 miles) + strides, could be a double day, but make it easy.

Sat: Long 10-14 @ easy to moderate pace, no hammering though.

Sun: Off or very easy or cross train.

If you are going to add weights, keep it really simple and do them on your hard days also

The low end of that schedule should work for your young guys and you older guys can add the doubles or go with the higher end of the mileage range on the runs.