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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 - 3 x 1600m in 10k Pace, 400m jogs
Wednesday Night Hawks
Happy Inaugural day! Tonight, will be chilly, with temps in the upper 30s to 40s, and very wind with gusts to 25 MPH and much lower wind chills, so plan accordingly. We picked a longer interval workout so that we don't have anyone straining muscles because they tried to sprint in this wind chill freezing weather. Tracks are open, but it still seems that no "organized" activities may take place in Arlington, but W&L is open and clear for track work.
January 20, 2021 ON THE TRACK ON YOUR OWN: 3 x 1600m in 10k Pace, with 400m jogs between
Stallions: 5:45 to 6:30 Pace
Wolf Pack: 6:30 to 7:15 Pace
Gazelles: 7:15 to 8:00 Pace
Coyotes/MTP Trainees: 8:00 to 10:00 Pace
When your track intervals lengthen to a mile, it is sometimes difficult to remember that you really want to change your form, style, cadence, etc. from your standard runs, but you really should. It makes a big difference if you switch your form to speed work – focus on lifting your knees, getting up on your toes, and using your arms in sync to lift the opposite leg. Don't fall into the trap of lengthening your stride – cadence should increase measurably on the track as opposed to the road and trail. Keep your core still and relaxed, and do not cross your arms over your body mid-point – this will swing your core (thus not still) and throw your stride off. On these longer intervals, break them down – for example, on Lap 1 focus on form – am I up on my toes and lifting knees? Lap 2 – am I relaxed – am I pushing while not getting to tense? Lap 3 – how is my breathing – through my nose and mouth - deeply? Lap 4 – since we aren't doing the traditional 2 x 400m to finish, let's try to run these last 400s in a faster pace, pushing to 5k pace to finish strong.
Club News:
You can submit questions in advanceÂÂ here.
Wednesday Track - 6 to 10 x 500m in 5k Pace
Wednesday Night Hawks
Tonight will one of those winter evenings we really enjoy –ÂÂ with temps in the upper 40s, with little wind and some humidity. Enjoy this while we can!
January 13, 2021 - 6 to 10 x 500m in 5k pace - with 300m jog recovery in between
• Stallions: 5:45 to 6:15 Pace, 10 Intervals
• Wolf Pack: 6:15 to 6:45 Pace, 9 – 10 Intervals
• Gazelles: 6:45 to 7:30 Pace, 7 – 9 Intervals
• Coyotes/MTP Trainees: 7:30 to 10:00 Pace, 6 to 8 Intervals
This is another speed workout guaranteed to build both strength and stamina for your winter (Virtual or hopefully sometime In-Person) races – and let's hope we get some! These are tougher than they look, so try to finish strong - push that last 100, and make sure you focus on form so you run efficiently, effectively, and injury-free. I would ease into these by running the first couple in 8k or 10k pace, but also feel free to crush the last couple in 3k pace if you are still feeling frisky.
Happy running!
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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).
Track Resources
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 |
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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. |