Spring is in the Air!

This is my favorite time of year. Both the weather and the racing are starting to heat up! There are more and more races on the docket and results are starting to pour in. We can legitimately wear shorts and tees without looking like crazy people.

Beyond the temperatures, this is the time of year when we can get down to business, training-wise. This winter, clearly, was particularly brutal for the DC area. Many runners were forced inside or to slide around on slick roads. This limits our abilities to stretch our legs out and pick up the pace. Now that we have some sunshine and clear paths, let’s get the speedwork going! It is time to finish your run with some accelerations and start to feel the strength you’ve developed from long, slower base miles. Strides are a great way to get back into speedwork. Find a flat to slightly downhill 150m path. Slowly accelerate for the first 50m, hold for 50m, then, take your foot off the gas and coast for the last 50m. The idea is to get out of the rhythm of your distance run, to break from that slower pace work and get back to some free flowing speed. It is also a great opportunity to focus on proper mechanics. Fine tune your arm movements and the full body tilt. Most athletes become a bit more efficient at speed (unless you are Oakton and W&M alum Jacob Frey, who’s shift into “Frey Speed” has been deemed by several coaches to be a “biomechanical disaster”). Take advantage of this! Start with 4-6x 150m, then move to 6-8x150m.

This is also a good time to remind you that the shoes you wore for the Army 10miler or the MCM are ready to be replaced. Even if you put them in the closet after the race and didn’t use them again. You may want to consider a new outfit as motivation for a new season. Perhaps a water bottle belt for those of you entering into new, longer distance races. Sunglasses are a must at this point...As I said, we are starting to get out in shorts and tees. Lots of bright paleness going on out there. For you pale folks, get some good sunscreen.

It was fun to see folks out at the races this weekend. The first event of the Loudoun Race Series kicked off, and there was a lot of support for PRR employee Moise Joseph and the PRR Run for Haiti. Thank you to all that came out for one or both events, and for those that donated to the cause. Moise is off to Doha to run the 800m at the World Indoor T&F Championships this week. Be sure to check for his results soon!

Good luck with your spring racing season!