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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!

5x 1000m in 10k to 5k pace, 400m slow jogs

Fellow Endorphin Junkies -

The weather tomorrow will be cool, with Temps in the mid-40s and some humidity at 72%, with some wind at 8 MPH, and a slight chance of a little rain, but 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 at Yorktown track in Greenbriar stadium 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 10, 2025 – 5 x 1000m beginning at 10k ("Cruise Interval") pace dropping to 5K ("Interval") Pace on the last couple, w/400m SLOW easy jogs in between out in Lane 6 to allow recovery.

NOTE: I expect to see your heart rates in the high 80% of Maximum range, but if your rates are higher, you need to slow down!

Stallions: 5:15 to 6:30 Pace, 5 intervals

Wolf Pack: 6:30 to 7:30 Pace, 5 intervals

Gazelles: 7:15 to 8:15 Pace, 4 to 5 intervals

Coyotes/MTP Trainees: 8:15 to 10:30 Pace, 4 intervals

This week's main workout is a good speed workout, but given the distance, also an endurance workout. You want to run the first in 10k pace, then maybe speed up to 8k pace for a couple, then finish with two at 5k pace. For most of this is almost a 5k race, so take advantage of the rest intervals in the outside lanes. As with some of our previous workouts, the trick tomorrow is to start at 10k pace on the first interval and to get faster each lap or interval until you are running 5k pace. Focus on form, eyes front, knees higher, arms at side lifting the knees, hands relaxed, on toes. Again - this is a 5k distance race or more for us (albeit with approximately 3 to 4 x 400m jogs added!), so take it easy on the recovery jog/walk/water legs of 400m.

In Coach Big Guy Club News –

We had a large number of TMBC runners race at the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile and had some terrific times. Leading the pack was Marty M at 58:31, followed closely by Jonathan P at 64 minutes and Adam C at 65. Chris W ran a sterling 71 minutes, although he was only "warming up" for this weekend's race, and Kate Scott was close behind at 73 minutes. Mark B not only returned to fine racing form at 80 minutes, he saw a Corgi! Coach Eunja returned to racing and ran almost the entire way with Anne S, with Coach E running a 1:42 and Anne right behind at 1:43. Finally, Miguel C rounded out our runners at 1:51. Great work everyone! If I missed you, let me know and we will note it next week.

The Bunion Derby dates and details have dropped, so for more details on the summer races check the Club Website at: dcroadrunners.org.

Happy running!

Coach Big Guy will be at Yorktown Thursday morning!