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.

November-December Track Workouts

Friends -- 

We should have the track available to us through the end of February.  We will focus in the next two months on 10K - Tempo pace workouts, with short rest intervals. Watch your pace! 

November 7:  12 x 400M @ 10K pace.  100M jog rest. 

November 14:  6-8 x 800M @ Tempo Interval Pace.  200M jog rest.  (OK to split in two sets with longer break.) 

November 21:  NO WORKOUT

November 28:  3 - 4 x 1600M @ 10K - T/I Pace. 400M jog recovery. 

December 5:  2 x 12:00 Tempo Run.  2:00 recovery. 

December 12:  Hannukah Ladder Workout.  TBD. 

December 19:  Christmas Relays.  Two person teams.  

December 26: NO WORKOUT

January 2: 12 - 14 x 400M @ 10K pace.  100M jog recovery.  

See you at the track! 

 

Track Workouts October 2012

The track will be available to us on October 3, 10, and 31.  We will cancel the formal workout on October 24, and attempt a trail workout or hill repeats workout (depending on conditions) on October 17. 

 

October 3:  16-20 x 400M @ 10K pace.  100M jog recovery. 

October 10:  6 - 10 x 800M @ 5K pace.  400M recovery.  (10 repeats for experienced marathoners; 6-8 for others). 

October 31:  3 -4 x 1600M @ 10K pace. 400M recovery. 

 

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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 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.