you used to have to average sub 18:00 at the Southern 6 stage to be amongst the top three teams
you used to have to average sub 18:00 at the Southern 6 stage to be amongst the top three teams
To the outside observer, this would be more convincing if you could back it up with your name. Furthermore, nobody is in any doubt that the standards have declined: please post further training suggestions as to how the country can improve. Thanks.
solid team but your are deluded if you think that six will beat THE BEAGLES
Stop listening to all the rubbish about 'top coaches', distance running is relatively simple and those who claim to have some kind of superior 'method' are kidding themselves aswell as their athletes, many of the people in this country who are coaching very good youngsters are simply massaging their own ego's. If you look at the published training programmes of many top performers these days, Mottram, Bekele, Tegat, Brown and co. there is not a great deal of variation, the sessions differ to an extent but the base remains the same. I cannot think of a single world class distance runner who is logging less than 100 miles per week above 5000 metres.
It is easy to run 100 miles per week, its 5 miles in a morning and 10 miles at night or visa versa, if you are at a decent level thats 1hr 40 out of your day. Everybody can give up 1hr 40 of their day. When you can do this without breaking down (and I'm not suggesting you start doing it straight away without a gradual build up) then you can think about adding some pace work. You will gain far more from doing this alone in the long term even without the pace work thatn you will by running 60 miles per week with 2/3 sessions. Running is a long term game.
In my opinion one of the problems now is the 'over emphasis' on coaching and the almost 'celebrity' nature of some coaches. When I see coaches talking about 'my athlete' it makes me despair. Running is simple, it should be about individual sessions, programmes, when I hear about people coaching 20-30 athletes it doesn't make any sense, in my opinion it isn't possible. Put the emphasis back on the athlete and off the coach, there are no silver bullets.
I think the biggest problem in terms of the actual training is that too many athletes are running their easy days too hard and their hard days too easy. The one thing I do think has moved things on is the HR monitor, it is a good investment.
Indeed.
Make your easy runs easy and your hard runs hard. That's my mantra.
who are running for teams like tipton bristol birchfield bedford notts sale etc...?
sensible post.
I do four or five in the morning and ten or eleven at night and have improved over 10k by about 2 minutes down to 30:05 over the last two years.
When I used to do 60 miles and a few sessions, no way could I have even been a 31:30 guy. It's about the mileage. The top guys at the road relays next weekend will be mostly doing 100+ miles (minimum). It's just a simple matter of numbers, there arn't as many people running volume these days...........the more you have running 100+, the better the chances of having a few break through to world class.
These boys at the front end are doing alright, it's just we don't have as many lads out there doing it
Bedford's team used to be solid but recently they have seemed to field weaker teams. Bedford just don't have any really quick runners. I think Bedford have had there best days. They did well for a small town.
Like most teams we've had a lot of injuries, but didn't have the strength in depth to bring through the back up like some teams. Also a few of the guys are getting older and the juniors / u17 we had doing well when I first joined have given up or had problems. As with a lot of clubs it depends who you get out on the day.
Don't write us off yet though - Southern XC champs last 2 years (nothing to do with me though!).
I heard that McCormick is battering out 12x400 in 58-60 with 30s recovery and the great thing is that there are five or six guys hanging on to his coat tails.They were at Gateshead fying this week. The women are bombing too with Chester's McDonnel repping 5 min miles and pulling Ali Dixon, Freya Murray and Diane Hennagan with her.
Whoopee.
I'll be impressed when he runs anywhere near as quick as Mo Farah in a track 5k.
After reading the Nic Bideau article and Wejo's article on why he didn't achieve until way after college, I think we should realise running fast sessions mean at lot less than many think.
NorthernRunner you clearly heard incorrect didnt you!! Nick wasnt churning out 400s in 58-60 with 30s rec he was doing 10x400m in 57 with turn around recovery!!
And as for the girls that wasnt McDonnell doing the miles it was Dixon with Simpson follwoing (oh and they were 4.50's again with turn around recovery!!)
Diane and Freya were belting out a little session of 400, 300, 200 in 60s, 45s and 27s although they did have a little longer recovery with 30 seconds!!
Just shows you should NEVER believe everything you read on the internet!!
North EastRunner wrote:
NorthernRunner you clearly heard incorrect didnt you!! Nick wasnt churning out 400s in 58-60 with 30s rec he was doing 10x400m in 57 with turn around recovery!!
And as for the girls that wasnt McDonnell doing the miles it was Dixon with Simpson follwoing (oh and they were 4.50's again with turn around recovery!!)
Diane and Freya were belting out a little session of 400, 300, 200 in 60s, 45s and 27s although they did have a little longer recovery with 30 seconds!!
Just shows you should NEVER believe everything you read on the internet!!
!!!
Don't think Bedford have the team anymore to win races like the Southern cross and will struggle to medal in the 12 stage. Other clubs have become stronger. Can Bedford really strengthen on the team they had last year at the 6 stage, 12 stage and cross?
Whose to say McCormick bomb on the day like he did in the summer though? Its all the athlete on the day.
dont understand that - our entire team from last year's southern champs is still going ok, plus we have a couple of 14.13 5k boys who werent there but fingers crossed will be this year. Oh, and a certain champion of the event in 05, who isnt shabby at the marathon.
12 stage is admittedly a bit harder due to the depth needed and the 6 stage has never been our forte bar one yr when we got all the boys out.
Matt Raw wrote:
plus we have a couple of 14.13 5k boys who werent there but fingers crossed will be this year. Oh, and a certain champion of the event in 05, who isnt shabby at the marathon.
Maybe you will still be in with a shout in cross country but I don't think Huw Lobb and Martin Yelling will make you that much stronger. As someone who used to do the southerns before I moved up north from Reading I know there are plenty of strong teams out there.
never mentioned Yelling - he's a triathlete now.
as I said Lobb (2.14, Southern champ) plus 2 guys who've both run 14.13 and are still mid-20s.
Plus all the guys who have been team winners last 2 years. Didn't say other teams werent strong either - just stating facts!
Holy cr*p batman. Those are some sessions. Is it true? How long is a turn around recovery? Do the dope fairies give out free samples in the north east or is it the mushroom pie?
Good team though with nobody above 4 foot 6 inches. As for the women they will make a good team too.
a top runner from the eighties wrote:
Stop listening to all the rubbish about 'top coaches', distance running is relatively simple and those who claim to have some kind of superior 'method' are kidding themselves aswell as their athletes, many of the people in this country who are coaching very good youngsters are simply massaging their own ego's. If you look at the published training programmes of many top performers these days, Mottram, Bekele, Tegat, Brown and co. there is not a great deal of variation, the sessions differ to an extent but the base remains the same. I cannot think of a single world class distance runner who is logging less than 100 miles per week above 5000 metres.
It is easy to run 100 miles per week, its 5 miles in a morning and 10 miles at night or visa versa, if you are at a decent level thats 1hr 40 out of your day. Everybody can give up 1hr 40 of their day. When you can do this without breaking down (and I'm not suggesting you start doing it straight away without a gradual build up) then you can think about adding some pace work. You will gain far more from doing this alone in the long term even without the pace work thatn you will by running 60 miles per week with 2/3 sessions. Running is a long term game.
In my opinion one of the problems now is the 'over emphasis' on coaching and the almost 'celebrity' nature of some coaches. When I see coaches talking about 'my athlete' it makes me despair. Running is simple, it should be about individual sessions, programmes, when I hear about people coaching 20-30 athletes it doesn't make any sense, in my opinion it isn't possible. Put the emphasis back on the athlete and off the coach, there are no silver bullets.
I think the biggest problem in terms of the actual training is that too many athletes are running their easy days too hard and their hard days too easy. The one thing I do think has moved things on is the HR monitor, it is a good investment.
Good post. That last paragraph though is a bit vague. I think I can write a better summary:
Slow running for recovery, the pace is not important, recovering from stiff legs is the aim, getting the bounce back in the stride, however long that takes.
Steady pace running up to about marathon pace is the most effective way to train the slow twitch fibres.
Race pace sessions should be ambitious, but only attempted when the body is ready for it. Slavishly conforming to regular sessions is a recipe for disaster, if proper recovery is not prioritised.