Coaching Correctly -- Paces for your H.S. Runners

meant to put 13 minutes for 2.5 at Van Cortlandt where we run a lot.

im running 7, 8 & 9min miles depending on how im feeling and im in the 16s

So if you were going to a new mileage, let's just say 60 mpw and you had never been that high before, you would slow your runs down in that buildup because you'd probably be tired? I could see 9 minute miles for you on recovery days after workouts but nothing should be THAT taxing in base building right?

Orangemen wrote:

So if you were going to a new mileage, let's just say 60 mpw and you had never been that high before, you would slow your runs down in that buildup because you'd probably be tired? I could see 9 minute miles for you on recovery days after workouts but nothing should be THAT taxing in base building right?

i just finished my base period and i was consistently running 50-60 miles per week at 7:50-8:10. when i first started though, my pace was around 8:20 but as i became fitter, it became more comfortable to pick up the pace. as of a month ago, my 5K pr is 16:21 so that might be able to help you somewhat

What about female high schoolers? Say running 20 and 21 for 5k?

bump for more help

Try the McMillan running calculator. It gives all kinds of paces.

I would NOT use McMillan. It seems way too fast for everything.

And for base building I say divide paces into moderate and easy days. Moderate for a 16 runner would be ~7 and easy at 7:45-8. For an 18 runner probably more like 7:45 and 8:15-:30. Then have 1 or 2 easy runs per week with the rest moderate and a long run thats moderate and a tempo. But especially because it is for base building, the miles shouldn't be too fast. There are too many guys who are in the mid 17s that always run at low 7's but don't get that much better, or get injured over time.

15 min 5k and 7:00-7:30 feels good to me.

Geez. I have been doing this all wrong. I have never broken 19 minutes and here's a sampling of a random week prior to a 25 minute 4 miler. This is when I split every mile with a new Garmin.

Monay - 8:15, 7:19, 7:29, 7:39, 7:30

Tuesday- 8:16, 7:17, 7:06, 7:06, 6:28

Wednesday - 8:49, 7:35, 7:12, 6:27

Thursday - easy run

Friday - 8:41, 7:46, 7:21, 7:07, 6:40, 7:30, 7:16, 6:58 (In Central Park)

Saturday - 8:13, 7:34, 7:19, 7:02, 6:36

Sunday -easy 3 but still 8:58, 7:46, 7:15

I just start slow and once I'm warmed up this is my rhythm effort, where I feel like I'm not inefficiently plodding. Granted, these are fairly short runs so I guess I would have tied up after a few more miles, but I only wish I was a 17 minute guy doing this.

Is that a high school training plan? That is crazy low and slow. Jogging everyday ain't gonna get you under 19 minutes. You need to throw in one tempo day, and one day of intervals or at least fartlek, and a long run. Run the other days as above on your chart, but double the mileage.

I'm a junior in high school, my 5k PR is 16:43, and I rarely run slower than 7:15 per mile. Most runs are around 7:00 pace.

I ran 15:10, and I rarely crack 7:30 pace. Put on 8 minutes and I'm good to go.

If your coaching correctly, then the subject of pace during base building doesn't even come up. Find something like the "summer of malmo" to establish the right mentality for high school kids in the summer.