So, I ran cross jr and sr year of high school. Both of these seasons ended badly for me. I was hoping as a college freshman, the different, more consistent, training would break the cycle, but here's what happened:
Jr. year: (5k) SB 19:48 (sept), dist 19:56, reg 21:21 (I was sick, but still)
Sr. year: SB 19:11 (sept), reg 19:30, state 19:58
this year: (6k) SB 22:55 (sept), last 3 races: 24 flat
How can I prevent this from happening next year? This year, I kept my mileage at 40 until 2 weeks before the Regional meet. In the last few weeks of the season, I did a 6x1k @ 3:45 with 2 min recovery, which adds up to a 22:30! Also, we had a mile time trial and I ran 5:12. Why do my workouts not translate to my races?
Coach did tell me that I am too tense when I race, but not when I workout.
Granted, I'm more of a track girl and this never happens to me there. I've had a nice progression on the track to peak at the regional or state meet every year. (so 60/2:19/5:40, jr 59/2:18/5:13, sr 57.5/2:12/5:10)
Any tips for a cross country season that doesn't end in disappointment for me? Thanks LetsRun-ners :)