800m Training Periodization

Find the actual date you want to run fastest.

Reduce and fluctuate your milage and find a mpw your "comfortable with". 20-45 mpw approx.

Train for indoors but run CC. Races.

Just some ideas.

McMillan is a bit lost. Stop saying aerobic base, outdated orientation.

1:55 requires 54 4x400 split and < 4:20 1600 if decently conditioned..

Mileage is fine, don't increase.

You need to add quality to your distance work and vary paces more frequently.

Give yourself a star for every 5:30 mile you run this summer. Try for 50.

Keep 30x 100 ~13.5 on turf in the schedule weekly, a few here a few there but pile up 13.5s

You need to add volume to your speed work, dropping the intensity to medium hard.

Go find some hills.

You seem like a pretty speed based 800m runner, it’s rare for an 18-mid guy to break 2:00. Kudos to you!

What does your 400m look like? Can you run sub 54 without working on speed? I think you could benefit from low-moderate mileage with one Vo2Max and one speed endurance session a day. In season, do what your team is doing, out of season, do something like this:

Monday: 5-6 miles at an easy pace. This can seriously be as slow as you need it to be. Just miles under feet.

Tuesday: 1 mile WU 3 miles 200m on/off 1 mile CD. Don’t take splits during your 200s, start out around mile effort and either maintain this effort or close the last few at 800m effort if you feel good. Do lifting or bodyweight strength work after this session if you aren’t fried.

Wednesday: 3-4 miles easy, do 4-6 strides at a distance and pace that feels appropriate for the level of fatigue you feel.

Thursday: 5-6 miles easy

Friday: do a speed endurance session. One of my favorites is 2-3x(100-200-300-200-100) at decently faster than goal 800m race pace. Rest down to a HR of under 120 or until you feel ready to hit pace again. All of the 300s and the second 200s of the last 1-2 sets should be the only hard part of this workout. Should feel pretty smooth. I like to do these workouts spiked up.

Saturday: 6-8 miles easy or 3-4 miles at a harder effort. You’ll probably be decently sore. Go off of feel and not pace, don’t be discouraged if the pace isn’t what you’d like. Lift or do strength work after

Sunday: rest, cross train, or get a 20-25 minute easy jog in.

This training will come out to 30-40 mpw which seems like a solid range for you.

Would you say that McMillan is kind of not it for high school training? I followed his plan for the 800 and I also feel like he prescribed way too much volume. His winter training plan also made 0 sense, it kept me so out of shape all winter and claimed that it was “building a good base for me”. I feel like I’ll be much better off next year training as an actual sprinter with year round stimulus that I’ll actually improve from. Also, I don’t think I was remotely close to 4:20 mile shape, maybe like 4:55-48 at best. And for the 100m workout you’re prescribing, what would you give as rest? I did a high-volume workout similar to this which was 20*15s on 1 min jogging rest starting on un-even grass and moving onto the track for the second half and I was splitting between 15.25 and 14.8 per 100. I feel like with the low rest it was obviously around 800 pace but how much should I take between the workout that you’re prescribing?

Thank you! What would you consider to be a “VO2 Max” workout though? Should it be something like 6*800 w/ 400m rest + 3*200m sprints, or something with a lot less volume? Also should I mainly rely on VO2 Max workouts when the season starts and slowly add in speed as competition season gets closer or do them side by side as you are suggesting?