So, I´ve always been a coach who uses track workouts (mile repeats, Tinman CV workouts, late season goal pace training, etc.). But, my kids are responding to hill workouts & want to do them instead of going on the track. I love it!
We have a hill circuit near the high school (think triangle): a 400 meter uphill with an immediate 200 meter downhill & a 300 meter jog to the bottom of the original hill. The kids can do it in reverse too. So, we´ll do this as a weekly workout now:
*10 minute warm up
*4 X 400 Hill (w/ 200 downhill afterwards & 300 jog recovery to bottom of hill)
*4 X 200 Hill (w/ 400 downhill afterwards & 300 jog recovery to bottom of hill)
*6 X 100 on the track
*10 minute cool down
But, my kids--all of them--attack the hills with a ferocious pace, both up & down, really going after the hills. They run absolutely controlled & possessed at the same time. It´s exciting to see them on the hills. And, after their races, they talk about the hills helping them.
Is it the hills? I don´t know. Is it 4-5 weeks of racing? I don´t know. Is it the past month of single leg squats? I don´t know.
I remember seeing Chris Fox (former Syracuse University Coach) at the Villanova Coaching Clinic talk about his kids running Sweet Road. He said he didn´t know what it was doing for the kids, but they bought into Sweet Road so they were going to run it weekly.
I just wanted to post that sometimes the science of coaching can & maybe even should get replaced by the art of coaching.
Thanks for listening.