Can't Race Anything Less Than 3200m

And also, what should I be doing for my ankle this season? What kind of strength training? I assume that I should be icing after every run even if it doesn't hurt, would that hurt anything? Should I lose a little weight? I'm 5'7" and weight about 130 right now. Could losing 5 pounds help with the increased distance? I ran about 30 mpw in cross country, should I try to ease into 40 this season? Coach said warmups and cooldowns should be about 20 minutes each? Is this right?

Was it the training for 800/mile that hurt your ankle, or just racing? If you really don't have much range, maybe long term a Strength/ mobility/ x-trainng based mid-d program will work. Maybe it would solve the ankle problem too.

I have seen some old guys using cross training programs and winning national age group middle distance titles. It might not be the best thing for any young person, but could be the only thing for some.

Keep your eye on the long term. This isn't necessarily a bad thing to happen to you. Like a lot of newer runners, you do better at shorter distances. Maybe you're a speed-based runner - or maybe you're just aerobically underdeveloped. Now you get to spend a whole season trying to improve by focusing on one of your weaker areas.

If you need to avoid fast running, then save all your fast running for your races. That means doing as little running at 3200 pace in workouts as possible, maybe none. The most important thing is to stay healthy. Instead, focus on developing your aerobic engine: tempo runs, cruise intervals, 5K/CV/10K-paced stuff if you can handle it. Increasing your weekly mileage is one of the most important ways to increase aerobic development - but only if your ankle will let you. Your coach's plan to have you do long warm-up and cool-down runs is excellent, as it increases your mileage substantially (20 minutes up/down = 4-5 miles extra!), but with easy running that is less likely to strain your injury. If you can handle it, a longer long run is a good idea, too.

But don't limit yourself. If you can only do, say, 800m of work at 5K pace without setting off your ankle, then do it after running 5 miles for extra stimulus. Or do a tempo run with 8 x 100m surges. Or do 8 x 100m with 25m rests. Or do something else. The point is to maximize your gains with the training you're able to do and stay healthy.

And be sure to consult with knowledgeable doctor or physical therapist. Why are you icing your tendon? Tendons don't swell - they aren't muscle tissue. Ice (and Advil) are just blocking out pain that you need to be aware of so you can stop aggravating the condition. When you're running, you've got to back off before you aggravate the injury, even if that means you bag a workout after half an interval, or jog-walking a mile or two each day for a while. Good luck and get healthy.

I'm not entirely sure what caused it. What kind of strength program would you suggest?

I agree, in the end, this is going to be good for me to develop aerobically (the place where I'm lacking most.) Coach said that all of my speedwork will be at 2 miles pace rather than mile pace but I feel confident that that won't hurt my ankle as long as I back out if/when I have to. I've been icing it because that's what my schools athletic trainer told me to do. It's tendonitis and that's inflammation so icing and ibuprofen help reduce the inflammation. Thanks by the way.