Finished up XC season. We don't really have a school funded track program but some of my better runners tend to go out for track as well.
My top guy is a senior who improved ~40s between last year XC and this year XC (17:30s-16:50). Personally, I think he could have run faster but we've had an incredibly rainy year and he kind of doubted himself at some of the faster races.
Past Training:
He went from doing ~30-35mpw on 4-6 days of training last year to 50ish most of this summer and early XC season. He saw a big jump in his times early despite pretty slow easy day paces (7:20-7:45) and one light workout a week over the summer. He had a few flashes of brilliance over the XC season but kind of stagnated. Truthfully not sure if it was over training (really doubt) or a little but of under training the second half of the year, or if it was outside stresses, or simply he needed more time than we had to adapt to the work load (most likely in my opinion).
Training outline for the year
He's taking 7-10 days off after his XC season ended, and November will mostly just be building up easy mileage and getting back into lifting / core etc.
December:
Reach peak mileage during the month (55-60mpw). Have a couple days be at a more steady / uptempo easy pace. Occasional track work simply for turnover, such as 10-15x200m at mile pace etc. Nothing this month is super strict other than the emphasis on building the mileage and running faster when feeling up to it.
January:
Add in structured long runs. Alternate between a longer one at easy pace and one a few miles shorter at a steady effort (marathon pace +20-45s). Start adding in structured tempos and CV type workouts. Alternate between cruise intervals and straight tempos and add shorter reps or sprints after the tempos or CV workouts.
February
Continue with long runs and CV workouts every week. Lengthen some of the CV reps and continue shorter faster reps after. Other weekly workout with either be a tempo of sorts or some kind of cut down / mix paced workout with a range between 3k and 10k pace.
March
Cut out the steady long runs and only implement easy long runs as we are getting closer to racing season. Starting cutting the volume of CV workouts down here and there and add 5k pace to those workouts. Add in 800m-3k pace workouts for the other weekly workout. Pace workouts will likely be a little high in volume but unitlize shorter reps overall. Think 400m-600m reps for 3k pace stuff and 150-200m reps fr 800m stuff, etc.
April
Outdoor track season starts this month. Depending on the week there might be 0-2 meets, so workouts will vary depending on that. Will try to maintain some aerobic stimuli with tempos or progression runs, etc. When meets allow, workouts with longer reps at race pace or faster than race pace will take place with tempos or steady states here or there. intermixed with recovery runs, of course.
May
Last few meets and the state qualifying meet. taper time.
1600m PR last year as about 4:40 (when he was a 17:30 guy). Looking to make it to states and that will take ~4:30-4:32 most likely. So, big goals, but I think they are obtainable.
Any questions i'd be glad to answer.