Wednesday Track Workouts

Welcome to the DCRRC Wednesday Night Track Workouts. In conjunction with our year-round distance-specific training programs, and our regular Saturday Long Runs, these workouts aim to give runners of all abilities the fitness to reach their goals. For the novice or casual runner, these workouts will challenge you to a higher level of running fitness. For the competitive runner, track workouts are an essential means to reaching personal bests and to succeed at whatever level you are competing.

Where & When

Unless otherwise noted, workouts are held on the track at Washington-Liberty (formerly Washington-Lee) High School in Arlington. We meet near the concession stand (northwest corner) at 7:10pm and start the workout at 7:15pm. Warmups, drills, etc. are on your own.

Philosophy

Our workouts focus on two of the three forms of speed work used by distance runners from the 5K to the Marathon: Stamina Training (10K race pace or slower) and Interval Training (around 5K race pace). We also do a limited amount of Speed Training (faster than 5K race pace) especially during the summer.

Do not worry if this is new to you, and especially if you feel that track workouts are for "fast" runners. Our posted workouts are suggested "maximums," and can be individually tailored to your current level of fitness and specific running goals. Our coach, Ed Grant, has been leading these workouts for 20 years, and is happy to customize a workout plan to meet your needs.

Paces

To get a sense of how fast you should run during these workouts, we encourage you use the McMillan Running Calculator. You can plug in a recent race time and a goal race time, and the Calculator will churn out Training Paces (click on that term) for everything from long runs to speed paces. We recommend applying Mark Hadley's temperature + dew point adjustments in warm and humid weather. Temperature and dew point forecasts are available from the National Weather Service.

Wednesday Track Workouts - June 2014

Members & Guests:  

We are now officially back at Washington-Lee HS for the summer months!  Please join us as our schedule and the temperature heats up!   

NOTE: Due to the success of last year's experiment, we will shift the start time for our workouts, starting June 11, to 7:30 PM.  This will allow other groups that start earlier to complete their workouts, relieving congestion for us, and also give us a slight temperature break as the sun sets and shadows cross the track.  

Worouts posted here for June only.  

June 4:  7:15 start.  Ladder Sets: (1) 4 x 400M with 200M recovery.  (2) 2 x 800M with 400M recovery.  (3) 4 x 400M with 200M recovery.  All repeats at 5K pace or faster.  Take a brief hydration break after each set.  

June 11: 7:30 start.  10 x 400M.  200M recovery.  Pace should be faster than 5K.  

June 18: 7:30 start.  Ladder sets:  

800M (400M jog), 400M (200M jog), 200M (30 seconds in-place rest), 1000M.  Jog 3-4 minutes, then repeat. 

Pace:  800M and 400M at 5K pace.  200M "at speed".  1000M at 10K pace.  

June 25:  Weather Permitting:  4 x 5:00 @ 5K pace.  5:00 recovery.  (If conditions are too warm/humid, will switch back to 800M repeats at 5K pace).

 

Note Change in Location for May 21 and 28 -- Wakefield HS

The workouts on May 21 and 28 will be at Wakefield HS, 1325 So. Dinwiddie Street, Arlington, 22206.  This is due to scheduled games at both Washington Lee and Yorktown/Greenbriar.  Track is located to rear (north side) or school, and can best be accessed off So. Chesterfield St.  
 

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Directions to Track

Track workouts are held on the track at Washington-Liberty (formerly Washington-Lee) High School.

From Washington DC: take I-66 east to the Glebe Road exit, turn right on Glebe, right on 15th Street for about 0.4 miles, to Stafford Street, turn right and cross over I-66 and the school is on your left.
From Vienna and points west in Virginia: take I-66 east to the Fairfax Drive exit, follow Fairfax Drive for about 0.8 mile to Stafford Street, turn left for about 0.3 miles and the school is on your right.
From Alexandria: take Glebe Road going north until turning right on 15th Street, and proceed as from DC.
Metro: Washington-Liberty is a short walk from both the Virginia Square and Ballston Metro stations (Orange/Silver lines).

Upcoming Events

DCRRC Women's Distance Festival 5K and Run After the Women 5K
Sun, Jun 9th, 2024, @8:00am
Book Club
Sun, Jun 16th, 2024, @4:00pm
DCRRC Hugh Jascourt 4-Miler
Fri, Jun 21st, 2024, @7:00pm
DCRRC Age Handicapped 4-Miler
Thu, Jul 4th, 2024, @8:00am
DCRRC Bluemont 5K
Wed, Jul 24th, 2024, @7:00pm
 DCRRlogotypeRRCA member

The DC Road Runners Club is a member of the Road Runners Club of America and is also affiliated with USA Track & Field. We provide a year-round schedule of running events that offer everyone a chance to participate regardless of age, gender, or athletic ability.