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Distance Ladders 1200/400/800/1600

Fellow Endorphin Junkies -

The weather Thursday will be terrific again this week, cool with Temps in the low 50s and with lower humidity at 72%, with wind at 5 MPH, and no chance of rain. We will remember this run fondly when it gets hotter! The Coach is heading to Austin Tonight, so Coach Andrew Golden will step in to do a better job than I could ever do leading the workout!

In spite of the great weather, you should still remember to bring fluids because you need them whenever you run – tomorrow at least after every other interval! Accordingly, the Thursday Morning DCRRC Track Practice in Arlington hopefully will begin at the Greenbriar Park around the corner from Yorktown High School at 6:00 AM sharp, with announcements before 6 - so please get there early to warm up – say by 5:40 AM. Workout as follows:

April 24, 2025 – Distance Ladders – 1200m/400m/800m/1600m, all followed by 400m easy jogs – 400/800 in 5k Pace, 1200/1600 in 10k Pace Two Sets for Most, One for Newer Track Runners

This is a great workout to build Speed AND Stamina, but you still do NOT want to go out fast, as the benefit to this sort of workout is increasing your speed, cadence and pushing past your lactate threshold, particularly on the 400 & 800in the middle of the workout. At these medium to long distances, correct speed form is the key. 8 to 12 degrees lean, lifting knees higher, core still, no crossover with your arms, and do not clench your fists. Make sure you are up on your toes, and increase speed by increasing cadence, which counter-intuitively may involve shortening your stride.

And now the Coach Big Guy Report!

Greetings Thursday Morning Track Fans. I hope you all enjoy the beautiful weather as it is making a glorious end to Spring. Summer racing is right around the corner, but first – the Mountaintop – BOSTON 2025!

At least three TMBC runners I was following starred at Boston. Rodrigo did the one-week turnaround – racing in Europe at Rotterdam Marathon last week (2:37), then flying to Boston to race this Monday and still threw down an awesome 2:44 – which we will call a "DamBoston Double!" ;-) Dexter S had a great race and finished in 3:25, which I believe was another BQ for him – way to go Dex!

Coach Anna has been recovery from a leg injury all Spring but still managed what she is calling the Boston "Dacus Double" – a 3:41 marathon in the morning, followed by a two hour "marathon" concert by Lucy Dacus that night – Impressive!

There were many TMBC Alumni running Boston, including Cassandra D, who threw down a 3:18, Lauren F, who smoked a 3:25, Walter B, who finished a great race in 3:31, Anne Marie Carson crushed it in 3:33, and finally Sarah N ran a nice 3:44. Huge Congrats to the entire awesome Boston TMBC Krewe!

If 20 DCRRC runners sign up for Saturday's "BunnyHop 5k," we will get a team table to sign up people for the Club and Traing Programs - details on the Club Website.

Happy running!

Coach Big Guy will be in ATX so Coach Andrew Golden will be at the workout at Yorktown tomorrow!

6 to 8x 800m in 5k, slow 400m jogs

Fellow Endorphin Junkies -

The weather Thursday will be pretty terrific, cool with Temps in the low 40s and with much lower humidity at 52%, with wind at 8 MPH but gusting higher, and no chance of rain. We will remember this run fondly when it gets hotter! Plus – the Coach ran the 800 Meters in college, and he loves this workout – so please join him!

In spite of the great weather, you should still remember to bring fluids because you need them whenever you run – tomorrow after every other interval! Accordingly, the Thursday Morning DCRRC Track Practice in Arlington hopefully will begin at the Greenbriar Park around the corner from Yorktown High School at 6:00 AM sharp, with announcements before 6 - so please get there early to warm up – say by 5:40 AM. Workout as follows:

April 17th, 2025 - 6 to 8 x 800m in 5k with 400m jog recovery in between

· Stallions: 5:30 to 6:30 Pace, 7 - 8 Intervals

· Wolf Pack: 6:15 to 7:00 Pace, 6 – 7 Intervals

· Gazelles: 6:45 to 7:45 Pace, 6 – 7 Intervals

· Coyotes/MTP Trainees: 7:30 to 10:00 Pace, 6 Intervals

This is another speed workout guaranteed to build both strength and stamina for your late Spring & Summer races! These are tougher than they look, so try to finish strong - push that last 100 as you come around the turn, and make sure you focus on your running form, so you run efficiently, effectively, and injury-free. Up on your toes, knees lifting higher, Arms at your sides, not crossing over. Even though I am calling for 5k pace, we expect this series to be a progression – starting closer to 8k pace, so take the first two easier, then kick it up a notch by moving to 5k Pace – say 3 to 6 seconds faster per interval than the first two.

... and the Coach Big Guy Club Report –

To those of you running Boston next week – and that is a LOT of you I thankfully can say – take it easy tomorrow – maybe 4 x 800s in 10k pace, and marvel at how ready you are for the race! PLEASE let me know your race numbers and results so that I can follow you or at least praise you!

Some of the TMBC Krewe were Globe-Trotting this past weekend, running the Rotterdam Marathon, with Chris Walsh smoking it in 3:16. TMBC alums – still coming back sometimes and always welcome – Rodrigo ran 2:37 – Wow! - and Christie in 2:57 – Pow! – and Arielle in 3:07 – Excellent! Kudos to the travelling and running fools! As to other races this past week, I did not receive any results, but I probably missed a few, so PLEAE let me know by email (bigguy at dcroadrunners dot org) for next week's email!

The Bunion Derby races for this summer have been posted on the Club website, including the Women's Distance Festival – always a favorite – followed by the Run after the Women – details on the Club Website:  www.dcroadrunners.org.

Happy running!

Coach Big Guy will see you tomorrow morning at Yorktown Track!