I need to run a 5:00 1600 in order to get onto my high school track team. My time last week was 5:35. Any advice?

If my school required its runners to hit those times in the pre-season, we'd have like 7-8 guys on the entire team.

Perhaps they're doing this on purpose so that they can get a small team, claim that there's no interest, and eliminate track as a sport at that school.

0/10

That's pretty crazy making 5:00 the standard to make the team. This potentially takes away motivation and development of a 17:30-18:00 min 5k xc runner.

This doesnt sit right with me. I understand a coach not wanting to take time to coach someone who doesnt care, but in my high school we had overweight and slower kids - running 25-30min 5k's who wanted to improve and worked just as hard as the kids running 16 mins. Especially once those runners caught the running bug and embraced the team culture, they were just as important to the team as anyone else.

I dont expect a coach to bring slower kids to top level meets, but there are plenty of jv meets. This also isn't a "participation trophy" for every kid comment. The sport already Charles Darwin's that: some kids get medals, respect from competitors, and additional attention from the coaches; some dont. And im fine with that. But this coach is robbing kids the joy of competition, something we need now more than ever. Shame on him.

I would focus on the mile and run both events in every competition.
Running the mile first might even help you to run the 800 faster later on.
At the least it will help your conditioning for the next competition.
I ran both with about an hour between in high school and both were season bests.

Bro what kinda of highschool team are you trying to walk on to? IMG academy?

I thought hs track team was open for every and anyone, didn’t know their were requirements, let alone 5:00 1600 requirement

Honestly, I think you'll make it if you put in the work this winter. I don't even think you need to do anything crazy.

Just start training like you're getting ready for the season and build to a peak in May, not February. For now just focus on building a base of mostly easy mileage plus maybe one longer run. Do some strides a couple of days per week. Try to run 6 days per week consistently through the end of December.

In January maybe add 1 workout per week (something like 1 to 1.5 miles at goal race pace broken up into 200s, 400s, or 600s with plenty of rest). Then just jump in the meets and run 2 events at each (1600, 800, 400 you pick and mix it up). With some consist training plus some workouts and races and the competition of race day you'll be under 5:00 in no time.

5:00 is one of their easier requirements. For most people, their 2:10 800 requirement is much tougher.

The craziest part of all this is that Santa Monica isn't even a powerhouse school or anything. It certainly isn't Newbury Park 2.0, and even if it were, that wouldn't justify the insane sprint requirements. Who the hell requires HS freshmen to run a sub 12.5 100 in winter to make the team?

Keep training if you don't make the team. There are many D3 schools with good academics that would love to take you.

Not buying this at all.

’walk on’ to a high school team

running a track time during xc season

track season is still months away

Also insane that if you follow the link, the standards for cross are not even close to comparable.

Seniors only need to break 20 in the 5k to make the cross team but need a sub 2:10 800m or sub 5 1600m to make the track team?! Doesn't make any sense unless there are kids lining up left and right to participate.

I would probably run both events atleast the first meet just to see where you are at and you'll know that your 800 could be like 1-2 seconds faster

It's actually even more lopsided since California schools run a 3-mile for XC and not a 5K

"Athletes then must attend at least one try out and hit the below standards for 3 miles to make the team. If they make the team their first try they do not need to try-out again. If you are unable to attend one of these sessions you may run a 5k that is approved by one of the coaches and has a comparable time to the below standards. Subtract 40 seconds to your 5k time to get your 3 mile time."

XC was never really my thing, though.

I don't mean to be rude, but if you are running for years and can't reach any of those soft times, my advice would be to try another sport.

If you just time trial out of no training at all, it's a different story and you can expect huge and fast progression from training.

OK, I'll bite.

What sport(s) would you suggest him to try? The fall and winter sports would be ruled out since the season is either already over, or tryouts have already occurred. He's a HS senior, so trying out next school year isn't an option.

Aside from track, that leaves spring sports like baseball, swimming, golf, and tennis. Which one does he pick? Baseball is probably the most competitive of them, and while track ability and fitness may translate into cycling, it certainly won't translate much to swimming.

So that leaves tennis and golf. Hey OP, I know you've never held a golf club before, but could you pay for golf clubs, a private coach, and regularly drive yourself to the nearest range? In less than 3 months, you'll be going up against people who've been doing this for the past 10 years, so you better work on that swing...

I have minimum standards for the travel team, and do not require freshmen to hit the standard. I had not considered FR/SO as exempt. Maybe that would be a good idea. However, a JUN/SEN should be able to hit those standards, or they are wasting the time of the coaching staff.

And again, in what school would you need to break 5 to make the program

I don’t know of any team with that requirement

Is this school trying to beat NP for who has the fewest guys over 5?

You think a junior who can't run a sub 12 100, 55" 400, 2:10 800, or 5:00 1600 before track season would be wasting the time of the coaching staff? If this were college, I'd agree, but to have those standards for a HS junior in winter? Seriously?

I couldn't run a 2:10 800 in my entire junior year of HS. I did dip under 5:00 that year, but that was a late-season time and not a pre-season one.

I went on to run a 3:58 1500 in college. Glad my coaches weren't like you or the OP's coach.

My team had a kid run 6:38 as a frosh, as a soph he ran 6:12 or so and a 24 min 5k, he was slightly special needs too. The covid summer I was the team captain and had a hard time getting people out but he always showed up, sometimes twice a day when I’d run twice. That summer He ran a 5:47 in a time trial, and in xc season he only got to race once and ran 19:57, 4 minutes PR. By the end of spring he ran 5:12, a minute improvement in a year, and as a senior he ran 18:48, 2:09, and 4:52.

yet this kid would’ve never been let on the team in the first place, and would have never had the chance to really improve, he wasn’t a waste of my time and he wasn’t a waste of the coaches time. Anyone who turns away kids at a first glance just doesn’t get it.