Consistency Is Key

It’s often said that cross country champions are made in the Summer, not the Fall. The coming months are for logging miles, building aerobic fitness, and generally building yourself up without burning yourself out. The more you deposit now, the more you can cash out in November. But don’t take it from me — I’ve only actually raced a handful of cross country races, none of which went particularly well. So I asked the experts: you.

One thing I have noticed over the past few years is that all the clubs with the most competitive success in XC have some kind of summer plan for their athletes to follow. Though they vary from highly detailed to what I would call “vibe-based,” they keep the runners on the straight-and-narrow and make sure everyone’s in comparable shape when they come back in the Fall. So, I asked the captains/coaches/training chairs of NIRCA — what are your training philosophies for the summer? What’s the goal? How do you set your team up for success?

Here’s what they told me: