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Distance Running in Season Training

By Joel Pearson, Digital Track and Field, 03/19/19, 12:00PM PDT

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 During the middle of the season as the team approaches conference championships, athletes are running intervals that add up to race distance and are at race pace or goal pace per repeat. 

What happens when the regular season begins varies tremendously among the top programs. Some have succeeded with high mileage programs (this term includes distances from 50 miles per week to well over 100). Others emphasize fast runs, and still others base their workouts on a very small amount of running with high emphasis on a series of drills.

Fortunately, there are a large variety of activities available to steer your athletes toward success. Physical fitness can be improved in more ways than simply running. Core strength can be increased through specific exercises, various drills can improve neuromotor skills, correct stretching exercises can increase stride length, and specific running drills can increase stride rate and efficiency.