Week of March 30-April 4

*AN IMPORTANT NOTE...* 

ALTHOUGH WE ARE ENCOURAGING EACH ATHLETE TO CONTINUE HIS/HER SCHEDULED WORKOUT PLAN AS BEST AS POSSIBLE, PLEASE DO SO SAFELY AND IN A SOCIAL RESPONSIBLE WAY. WE ARE NOT ENCOURAGING ATHLETES TO MEET IN GROUPS AND DO THEIR OWN GROUP PRACTICES. DO YOUR OWN WORKOUTS. SPREAD YOURSELVES OUT IN PLACE, TIME AND DISTANCE.

Hope everyone is doing well - mentally and physically. A reminder of the great benefits of exercise in a time like this. Regular exercise is proven to help relieve stress and improve your mood as well as strengthen the immune system. So build it into your schedule.

We're looking for ways to help us keep in contact with you during the break - just to talk, encourage and be there for eachother, to answer any questions you might have, and whatever else. If you've got an idea for a good way to do this, let us know through text or email.

 Thought of the Week: "The best time to do what you really wanted to do may have been yesterday. But the second best time is today."
-Brad Stulberg
Most of us don't really know what everyone is doing over these past two weeks of shut down. We can hope we are doing workouts and practice as best we can given the situation. We hopefully are reaching out to teammates and saying some encouraging words and keeping touch with each other. But we don't really know if everyone is doing all the track stuff we can. Without the team meeting together, and sometimes having negative thoughts creep about if there is really any point to working out and looking forward to a questionable season, it is probably true to say that some of us have missed a workout or two (or more). Often we use this as a barrier to ever getting going again. We say, "I've already missed so much. What's the point of starting now?" There are tons of reasons to start now... go find one: maybe you use the fact that we still have hope of a season and you want to contribute to a championship team, maybe you just need to get out of the house (in a responsible way), maybe you need to burn off some energy, maybe you just want to start prepping for another season next year, maybe you just actually love what it is you do in this sport. Whatever the reason, don't look at struggles getting going in the past as a barrier to the present. You can't change whatever happened. But you can start up new and try your very best today.

Schedule for the Week:
Practice (so again... no team/coach led practice, this is all on you) -

Short Sprints: 

WILL BE UPDATED - Continue these drills/workouts
Week SIX –

DAY WARM-UP WORKOUT COOL-DOWN

Monday, March 23rd Warm-up jog (TE I) 4x200 [2 min. Rest between each run/70% Static stretching, 

& all drills (plyometrics)  burpees 4x @45 sec, lunges 2x50m 

Tuesday, March 24th Warm-up jog (Speed III) 50 m, 80 m, 120m, 80m, 50m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics)  [3/5 min rest between each run/Speed is 90% lunges 2x50m  

Wednesday, March 25th Warm-up jog (TE II) 50m, 100m, 150m, 200m, 300m, 350m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics)  [70% speed & walk same distance between each run  lunges 2x50m 

Thursday, March 26th Warm-up jog (Speed III) 50 m, 80 m, 120m, 80m, 50m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics) [3/5 min rest between each run/Speed is 90% lunges 2x50m    

Friday, March 27th Warm-up jog (Special Endurance)  Cool down walk 400m,

& all drills (plyometrics)  Set #1 - 100m + 100m + 100m Static stretching

Set #2 – 100m + 200m + 100m + 100

Set #3 – 100m + 100m + 100m

Key Points on this workout 

Use training flats, 70%

The + symbol represents a 50m slow walk

Walk 200m between each set 

Saturday, March 28th Light Walk ~1.5 miles 

Notes Get at least 8 hours sleep a night, keep hydrated

Long Sprints: see long sprint workout schedule

Throws: Monday 16th  and the 23rd
WILL BE UPDATED - Continue these drills/workouts
SHOT: repeat 2 to 3x

Progression drills:

Placement Drill:  Using a softball. Place the ball where you would the shot, make sure your thumb is pointing at your collar bone (clavicle) and palm out. Shift from static position to power position quickly (have someone time you) 10x (throw the ball keeping your hand and elbow in the proper position, don’t let the elbow come down)

Power Position drill: quick feet drills will help you transition from a regular stance to a power position. Stand up straight with your knees slightly bent and feet right next to each other. From this position, lift up, quickly moving into a power position with your knees bent and weight balanced. Bounce in this position for several seconds to make sure you are balanced. 10x\

Med Ball Drill:  Hold the medicine ball like a shot. In standing throwing position project the ball up and out. If you can put a rope up 7 or 10 feet above you. Every time you clear the rope take a step back

Discus: repeat 2 to 3x
Progression drills:

PVC Pipe/broom handle Drill: Hold a broom handle on your neck with your arms wrapped around. Practice turning keeping your arms angled correctly do power position moves. Using the broom/pvc pipe will help you understand keeping your arms consistent. 10x

Cone Circle Drill: You guys have all done this, find a line and arms out, throwing arm holding a shoe. Rotate on the line. 10x

South African Drill: Same one you have done at practice like the circle drill. Use a shoe 10x

Hula Hoop Lead up Drill: Hold the hula hoop in your hand, with your arm extended. Step into your throw, driving your legs, hips, and chest while swinging your arm around the body. Keep the arm slightly below your shoulder, and release the hoop in front of your body around eye level. 5x

Javelin: repeat 2 to 3x

Progression Drills: 

Basketball throw: Kneel on the ground with your upper body extended. Hold a basketball behind your head and lean backwards as far as you can without falling over. Pull forward starting with the waist, midsection, upper body and shoulders and follow through with the arms to throw the basketball forward. Release the basketball when you are square and leaning forward at 45 degrees. 10x

Tennis ball Release: You guys have all done these. 10x

Rhythm Drill: Practice the run up to the throw without the javelin. Run the length and add cross overs (start with 3 cross overs) Vary the rhythm of your steps as you run up to the release slightly on each pass until you feel comfortable. If you can get the practice Jav (the plastic ones) then use them for release. 10x

Tuesday the 17th and 24th 
All throws:

Weight lifting or resistance bands

If you don’t have access to weights do as much as you can:

3 rounds of

10x sumo deadlift

10x bench press

10x burpies

10x push press

10x lunges (use resistance bands if you have them)

10x dumb bell snatches

10x squats

Wednesday March 18th and 25th

All throws:

Core strength

Med ball throws: Lying on your back, hold the medicine ball on your chest, throw the ball up extending your arms completely, catch the ball bending your arms. 10x

Planks: 10x 30 sec

Side Plank: 10 x 30 sec

Drills: Shot do your chair drills, fence drills

Discus: do your release drills

Jav: hurdle drills with something like the hurdles 😊

Practice your form as if you were in the ring or throwing the Jav.

Thursday March 19th and 26th

All throws

Running day:

5x striders

10x 15 yard run (starting from a different position each time, push ups, sommersaults, mountain climbers and so on)

2x stadiums or 30 meter hills

Friday March 20th and 27th 

Repeat Monday. If you can use implements then please practice your throws. If things are going wrong then go back to the drills until you feel like you can do it correctly. 

Distance: see distance workout schedule (Scroll over on spreadsheet to see updates for the week)

Athletes of the Week: We got many nominees for last week and this week. And since this is a strange time with no rules, I am going to put everyone up here that was nominated! Remember, you nominate someone... if you feel a teammate is deserving of recognition for hard work, great performances, leadership, being a great teammate, whatever, nominate him/her.
     Luke Huddleston (JSr. / Distance) - "He's tyring to (keep us together)... and has a great attitude."
     Pyper Holt (Jr. / Distance) - "She has (done a great job at keeping us together)."
     Marcus Mckenzie (So. / Sprints) & Dom Mckenzie (So. / Sprints) - "I saw them a couple times doing their workouts."
     Alli Baker (Jr. / Distance) - "She continues to push herself with a great attitude!"

And, it's great that all of these members of our team were nominated again (that shows something about them and their work ethic and attitude), but we know there are many other deserving teammates out there! Let's nominate our teammates!

Youngsters: Youngsters will be postponed until further notice. Get out and run a bit. A great workout is to find a short hill and run hard up it and jog/walk down it real easy. Do a bunch of them. Or run around your block a few times. Maybe run hard on one street and then easy on another. Get outside and have some fun!

PV Invite: We won't stress about this until next year I guess!

Some strengthening exercises to do

Some workout ideas if you feeling like... hey you've got some time.

These videos are by one of my fav running coaches Jay Johnston - he's kind of a nerdy running dude (maybe that's why I relate to him!).

The first set of videos is called a Running Circuit . Maybe you don't do all the running parts with this (because you maybe already have some running workout assigned to you) or maybe you do because your coming back from injury or maybe just getting started, but the drills that go along with these are some real busters!
Intro and Rationale
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Doc with all the exercises (and demonstrations)

This next set is a very tasty core workout - give it a shot... I know you have the time!
Core X

The last set is a set of videos called SAM (Strength And Mobility) and Leg Swings and the Lunge Matrix. The distance runners do some of this, but there is a lot of benefit in everyone doing it. It is another great set of strengthening drills. There are a lot of videos that go with this set - so I'll just post the first and then you can look through them on Youtube.

Week of Mar. 23-28

*AN IMPORTANT NOTE...* 

ALTHOUGH WE ARE ENCOURAGING EACH ATHLETE TO CONTINUE HIS/HER SCHEDULED WORKOUT PLAN AS BEST AS POSSIBLE, PLEASE DO SO SAFELY AND IN A SOCIAL RESPONSIBLE WAY. WE ARE NOT ENCOURAGING ATHLETES TO MEET IN GROUPS AND DO THEIR OWN GROUP PRACTICES.

It's PV Invite Week... but not really. That was probably the weirdest Spring Break most of us have ever been a part of. Hope this finds all of you and your families doing well physically and mentally. Not having been back to school yet, I haven't really heard any answers to all the questions we inevitably are wondering. We obviously won't have organized practice this week again. So a huge thumbs up to those who are doing their best every day and getting workouts in. Keep on keeping on. I've heard/read a lot of different takes about what route athletes and coaches should be taking during this time and to me it keeps coming back to the idea (that we've mentioned before) of controlling what you can and not stressing about what you can't. Can you control if you get a good workout in today? Yes, so be in charge of that. Can you control if a meet is cancelled? No, so don't worry about that. Can you control if you are going to create a good schedule for yourself as school gets going again (we'll talk more about that in a minute)? Yes, so create a schedule and stick to it. Can you control when/if school will be back in session? No, so no need to stress about that.

So speaking on schedules... I think it would be very sound advice for all of us to identify the demands on our time with school and workouts and whatever else, and then make a schedule that works for you. Try to make your schedule as close to your normal routine as possible (if you normally get up and go for a run, do it). It might not be exactly the same, but going to bed at a good time and waking up at a good time is something that will help you thrive right now. Those that are going to struggle are those who are treating this whole thing like some big extended vacation and are up all night and sleeping all day with eating habits all over the place and no "normalcy" in their lives. So control those things you can and make a "normal" schedule for yourself.

All of us coaches miss you guys like crazy. You are the reason we coach - not the big fat pay checks or the loss of every weekend and family time. And not being around each of you is tough. And we're sure its the same for you with your teammates. So reach out to them. Send a teammate a text or DM or whatever and just say hi and chat for a second. Maybe even do that to a teammate that isn't in your normal circle of friends. We've also tried to do a few other things to help us keep connected: keep nominating teammates for Athlete of the Week (send me a text with the name and a short reason why you're nominating someone), send a text about why you love track and we'll add it to our social media (like we did with about 10 comments yesterday on Instagram), write up a favorite memory of a teammate doing something awesome and I'll add it to our blog (or just shoot me an idea and I'll write it up). Each of these things helps us connected in a time that we need it most.

 Thought of the Week: "It's times like these, I try to focus on the opportunities as opposed to the negatives. How can I adapt and adjust to put myself in the best position to succeed."
-Christian Taylor
I had the opportunity to watch this guy participate in the triple jump at the Prefontaine Invite in Oregon a few years ago. It was awesome... he and Will Claye put on one of the most amazing performances I'd ever seen. Taylor put up a big first jump to take the lead. Then Claye passed him on his second jump. They went back and forth until the final jump. Claye had taken the lead on his final jump and Taylor came in and got the crowd of over 10,000 totally rocking and then unleashed a huge jump of over 58' to take the win! I'll say it again... It was awesome! Anyway, what a great quote by an Olympic and World Champion. You might think that someone who may not get a final Olympics because of this would be more down. But instead, he is looking at this hiatus as an opportunity to better himself. I can pretty much guarantee he is thinking what are the little things I can to take myself from the 2nd best all-time performer in my event to become the world record holder? That's the kind of attitude that makes a person great. We may not have competitions right now, but now I can use this time to work on something that I might label a weakness and turn it into a strength in the long term. Maybe I can take time to watch more technique videos of my event on the internet. Maybe I can build a little stronger base mileage here. Maybe I can work on some form and core stuff that I often rush through because I don't feel like I usually have the time. Maybe I can work on better sleep habits. I don't know what it is for you, but if you look at this time as an opportunity instead of a negative and use it to improve yourself, you'll be a better person and athlete when this inevitably all ends.

Schedule for the Week:
Practice (so again... no team/coach led practice, this is all on you) -
Short Sprints: 

Week SIX –

DAY WARM-UP WORKOUT COOL-DOWN

Monday, March 23rd Warm-up jog (TE I) 4x200 [2 min. Rest between each run/70% Static stretching, 

& all drills (plyometrics)  burpees 4x @45 sec, lunges 2x50m 

Tuesday, March 24th Warm-up jog (Speed III) 50 m, 80 m, 120m, 80m, 50m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics)  [3/5 min rest between each run/Speed is 90% lunges 2x50m  

Wednesday, March 25th Warm-up jog (TE II) 50m, 100m, 150m, 200m, 300m, 350m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics)  [70% speed & walk same distance between each run  lunges 2x50m 

Thursday, March 26th Warm-up jog (Speed III) 50 m, 80 m, 120m, 80m, 50m Static stretching, planks 4x1 min.,

& all drills (plyometrics) [3/5 min rest between each run/Speed is 90% lunges 2x50m    

Friday, March 27th Warm-up jog (Special Endurance)  Cool down walk 400m,

& all drills (plyometrics)  Set #1 - 100m + 100m + 100m Static stretching

Set #2 – 100m + 200m + 100m + 100

Set #3 – 100m + 100m + 100m

Key Points on this workout 

Use training flats, 70%

The + symbol represents a 50m slow walk

Walk 200m between each set 

Saturday, March 28th Light Walk ~1.5 miles 

Notes Get at least 8 hours sleep a night, keep hydrated

Long Sprints:

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
5x400m	5 long hills	8x80 grass sprints Weights	7x200m	1x70 sec run 1x60 sec run 1x50 sec run 1x40 sec run 1x30 sec run
M:68-75 W:70-80 Rest:5min	Fast Rest 3min.	Fast 90-100% Rest: 30-60 sec.	M:24-29@200 W:29-35@200 Rest walk 100m	M:15@100 W:17@100 (80%) Rest: 4:00 min.

Throws: Monday 16th  and the 23rd
SHOT: repeat 2 to 3x

Progression drills:

Placement Drill:  Using a softball. Place the ball where you would the shot, make sure your thumb is pointing at your collar bone (clavicle) and palm out. Shift from static position to power position quickly (have someone time you) 10x (throw the ball keeping your hand and elbow in the proper position, don’t let the elbow come down)

Power Position drill: quick feet drills will help you transition from a regular stance to a power position. Stand up straight with your knees slightly bent and feet right next to each other. From this position, lift up, quickly moving into a power position with your knees bent and weight balanced. Bounce in this position for several seconds to make sure you are balanced. 10x\

Med Ball Drill:  Hold the medicine ball like a shot. In standing throwing position project the ball up and out. If you can put a rope up 7 or 10 feet above you. Every time you clear the rope take a step back

Discus: repeat 2 to 3x
Progression drills:

PVC Pipe/broom handle Drill: Hold a broom handle on your neck with your arms wrapped around. Practice turning keeping your arms angled correctly do power position moves. Using the broom/pvc pipe will help you understand keeping your arms consistent. 10x

Cone Circle Drill: You guys have all done this, find a line and arms out, throwing arm holding a shoe. Rotate on the line. 10x

South African Drill: Same one you have done at practice like the circle drill. Use a shoe 10x

Hula Hoop Lead up Drill: Hold the hula hoop in your hand, with your arm extended. Step into your throw, driving your legs, hips, and chest while swinging your arm around the body. Keep the arm slightly below your shoulder, and release the hoop in front of your body around eye level. 5x

Javelin: repeat 2 to 3x

Progression Drills: 

Basketball throw: Kneel on the ground with your upper body extended. Hold a basketball behind your head and lean backwards as far as you can without falling over. Pull forward starting with the waist, midsection, upper body and shoulders and follow through with the arms to throw the basketball forward. Release the basketball when you are square and leaning forward at 45 degrees. 10x

Tennis ball Release: You guys have all done these. 10x

Rhythm Drill: Practice the run up to the throw without the javelin. Run the length and add cross overs (start with 3 cross overs) Vary the rhythm of your steps as you run up to the release slightly on each pass until you feel comfortable. If you can get the practice Jav (the plastic ones) then use them for release. 10x

Tuesday the 17th and 24th 
All throws:

Weight lifting or resistance bands

If you don’t have access to weights do as much as you can:

3 rounds of

10x sumo deadlift

10x bench press

10x burpies

10x push press

10x lunges (use resistance bands if you have them)

10x dumb bell snatches

10x squats

Wednesday March 18th and 25th

All throws:

Core strength

Med ball throws: Lying on your back, hold the medicine ball on your chest, throw the ball up extending your arms completely, catch the ball bending your arms. 10x

Planks: 10x 30 sec

Side Plank: 10 x 30 sec

Drills: Shot do your chair drills, fence drills

Discus: do your release drills

Jav: hurdle drills with something like the hurdles 😊

Practice your form as if you were in the ring or throwing the Jav.

Thursday March 19th and 26th

All throws

Running day:

5x striders

10x 15 yard run (starting from a different position each time, push ups, sommersaults, mountain climbers and so on)

2x stadiums or 30 meter hills

Friday March 20th and 27th 

Repeat Monday. If you can use implements then please practice your throws. If things are going wrong then go back to the drills until you feel like you can do it correctly. 

Distance: see distance workout schedule 

Athletes of the Week: We got many nominees for last week and this week. And since this is a strange time with no rules, I am going to put everyone up here that was nominated! Remember, you nominate someone... if you feel a teammate is deserving of recognition for hard work, great performances, leadership, being a great teammate, whatever, nominate him/her.
     Jacob Nobili (Sr. / Jumps and Sprints) - "Been to practice everyday this week. Coming and working hard."
     James McArthur (Sr. / Hurdles) - "He ran finals in the 110, ran the 300, and after that still not feeling too well ran our 4x4 and pulled a 52 carrying the team to get 8th."
     Hunter Edwards (Jr. / Sprints) - "He went to both meets and did his best with a positive attitude despite conditions."
     Pyper Holt (Jr. / Distance) - "She has been super good about getting the girls together for practice and reminding us to do everything we're supposed to." and "Throughout it all she's stayed positive and has been easy to communicate with and still has a desire to do great things. You can tell she cares about the team and is working hard to get everyone at practice. The girls attendance this week has been phenomenal and I think she's played a big role in that."
     Marcus Mckenzie (So. / Sprints) & Dom Mckenzie (So. / Sprints) - "They have worked a lot to organize practice for short sprints."
     Luke Huddleston (Sr. / Distance) - "He noticed I was slacking and got me to run with him. We even planned a run together and invited a few others to join us. It's obvious he cares about the team and is trying to keep up together."
     Josh Heinrich (So. / Sprints) & Jasmine Larson (Jr. / Sprints) - "They both have worked very hard at practice, especially this last week. They have been there every day even when most people aren't."
     Alli Baker (Jr. / Distance) - "She comes to every single practice and does her best. She hasn't missed a day. It inspires me to come to practice too!"

I owe all of you a gatorade or a shirt! You read the comments about 10 of our teammates and you see the same thing... teammates who care. They care about the team, each person on the team, and they care about the sport. These are all great examples for all of us. Thanks to those who nominated them.

Youngsters: Youngsters will be postponed until further notice. Get out and run a bit. A great workout is to find a short hill and run hard up it and jog/walk down it real easy. Do a bunch of them. Or run around your block a few times. Maybe run hard on one street and then easy on another. Get outside and have some fun!

PV Invite: Obviously our invite has been postponed as well. We are hoping that we'll be moving our meet to April 17th and 18th. This will be in place of the Dixie Invite that was scheduled for that weekend. But for now, like with so much else, we are just kind of on hold.