Middle Distance Events Coaching and Training the High School Middle Distance Athlete By: Nick Stenuf Assistant Coach at Ottawa University

Experience 3 x US Nationals Qualifier (800i/1600i/1500o) Florida State University Graduate Assistant University of Connecticut Assistant Coach Women’s Program Duke University Volunteer Assistant Men’s Program Ottawa University Assistant Coach NIKE Stotan Racing Athlete-Coach

Content How to figure out which type of runner you have Training Rule of Thumb Anaerobic vs. Aerobic distribution in the 800/1600 Coaching Men vs. Women in the middle distance events Preparation for College/Personal Preference (if we have time)

Types of Middle Distance Runners 200/400 moving up 800/1500(1600) coming down 400/800 moving up 1500(1600)/3k-5k moving down

Men’s 800 and 1600 800 1600 Bigger emphasis on speed end and development if they are 200/400 moving up (sub 50-51) *high school runners only Main focus is anaerobic threshold with strong aerobic development

Women’s 800 and 1600 800 1600 Bigger emphasis on the aerobic development while capitalizing on their ability to run a fast 200/400 (unless they are sub 57-58) *if sub 57-58 same focus as men’s 800 Main focus is anaerobic threshold with strong aerobic development

My Training Terms Anaerobic Development Anaerobic Threshold Fast reps with long recovery (ex 40s to 400s) Anaerobic Threshold Fast reps with short recovery (ex 100s to 400s) Aerobic Development Longer intervals with at least 1:1 recovery (ex 800s-2ks) Aerobic Threshold Longer intervals with shorter recovery (ex 600s – 1ks)

Rule of Thumb 800m Training Men Women It is more important to train 2 events lower and 1 event higher (sub 50-51) *high school Otherwise even split 1 above and 1 below for event training It is more important to train 1 event lower and 2 events higher (unless sub 57-58) then use the same focus as the Men

Rule of Thumb 1600m Training Men Women It is more important to train 1 event lower and 1 event higher (unless sub 16:00) Then train 2 events higher and 1 event lower It is more important to train 2 events higher and 1 event lower

Training Zones (Quality > Quantity) 1:45-2:15 over their mile PR – Steady State (Daniel’s Marathon) 2:15-2:45 over their mile PR – Easy Run (Daniel’s Easy) 2:45-3:15 over their mile PR – Recovery Run (Daniel’s Recovery) *can be slower given the condition of the recovery purpose

Why Quality > Quantity Not a lot of room for growth at the collegiate level Muscle development is still crucial in the earlier years of development Maximize on their potential at the high school level and they are more versatile for multiple events *while this method is better to maximize their best potential over multiple events, it will hamper slightly their ability to compete in multiple events in the dual meet setting

Anaerobic vs. Aerobic Distribution Department of Human Movement and Sport Sciences in Victoria, Australia “The crossover for predominantly aerobic energy system supply occurred between 15 and 30 seconds for the 400-, 800-, and 1500-m events.” What the study proposes is that accumulated oxygen deficit (AOD) happens far earlier into the events than previously thought. (40-45 seconds) *study was made up of twenty highly trained athletes with an average VO2 of 65

VO2 Max VO2 max is the maximal oxygen consumption measured during incremental exercise (exercise of increasing intensity) VO2 Max for top males is typically >60 and for females typically >56 for ages 18-25

Anaerobic vs. Aerobic Distribution School of Human Movement and Exercise Science in Crawley, Australia 800m Males are 60/40% for aerobic to anaerobic involvement Females are 70/30% for aerobic to anaerobic involvement

Anaerobic vs. Aerobic Distribution Department of Kinesiology in Denton, Texas “For the women, the anaerobic energy contributions for the 400m, 800m, and 1500m averaged 62%, 33% and 17%, respectively. For the men, the anaerobic contributions averaged 63%, 39% and 20%, respectively.”

Anaerobic vs. Aerobic Distribution The Long Sprint – Reclassifying the 800m by Mike Cox

Anaerobic vs. Aerobic Distribution The Long Sprint – Reclassifying the 800m by Mike Cox What he found was the average crossover point occurred between 40-55 seconds depending on the velocity for events 800m- 5k. In the 400 it was seen between 15-30 seconds.

The Long Sprint – Reclassifying the 800m by Mike Cox “The fastest runners in the event have demonstrated this trend. Wilson Kipketer's fastest 800m was run with a 5% positive differential (1:41.11-49.3/51.8), Joaquim Cruz a 4% differential (1:41.77-49.7 & 52.0), and Seb Coe also ran a 4% differential (1:41.73- 49.7/52) (11). David Rudisha's sub 1:41 WR 200m splits in 2012 exhibited a 10% velocity decrement”

Books The Science of Running by Steve Magness Daniels’ Running Formula by Jack Daniels Better Training for Distance Runners by David Martin and Peter Coe

Preparation for College 0 men from the top 40 NCAA list in the 800 last year were All-Americans in Cross Country 7 men from the top 40 in the 1500 NCAA list were All-Americans in Cross Country (5 chose the 5k at NCAAs) 7/37 – 18.9% ran fast enough 2/37 – 5.4% ran the 1500 13 did not compete in Outdoor Track

Preparation for College 4 women from the top 40 NCAA list in the 800 last year were All-Americans in Cross Country (2 picked the 1500 at NCAAs) 4/30 – 13.3% 11 women from the top 40 in the 1500 NCAA list were All-Americans in Cross Country (4 were same as 800 and 3 picked the 5k at NCAAs) 11/30 – 36.6% 4/30 – 13.3% ran the 1500 10 did not compete in Outdoor Track

Questions? Nick Stenuf Ottawa University nick.stenuf@ottawa.edu 909-809-6686 Questions?