OT - Any Experience with H/S Track Distance Runners

[bigbill]

My kid ran both, he had some shin splint and IB band issues but I don't think it was related to the distances. He was slow to tell the trainer about his pain when it could have been addressed but I never felt like he overtrained, just under stretched. These days he's finishing up his freshman year at Annapolis and runs 3-4 miles each morning. He knows how to stretch properly and has a foam roller to take care of his IB.

[verticaldoug]

Take yourself out of the equation.
Assume the coach is competent.

Tell your son to listen to the coach who is investing time in him this year. (and for upcoming cross country season)

It's April, be excited to see how far he progresses by the end of season.
Hopefully, your son runs his PR when it counts at conference championships or sectionals, regionals ....

High Schools tend to have too many track meets in a short period and a coach needs to use meets as training. Coach may have him double up all season only to focus on his best distance at the end of season.

Even though your son is a freshmen, encourage him to speak to the coach not you. It's a good skill to have.

[Climb01742]

My two cents, FWIW, goes the other way from most here.

I would not assume a HS coach is putting an athlete’s health and best interest first. They may be, but equally may not. The team winning and their job might be first.

At 15, the issue isn’t specialization. It’s health of a growing, changing body. I’d err on the side of caution and slower progression and let his body adapt more gradually.

My feelings are based on my HS career and my daughter’s HS and D1 career. Just two data points, yes, but from here, slower is better for a long, healthy and enjoyable life and athletic experience.

[classtimesailer]

I’d be more concerned about excessive weekly mileage. Coaches around here have the fast young runners do the same workouts as the older kids. Too many are plagued by preventable injuries. One of my kids wouldn’t do the mileage and he was healthy for 4 years. My other kid wanted only to please the coach and seasons ended early.

[dirtdigger88]

Thanks to everyone who took the time to reply - some updates and added information

The concern about the two races was (is) coming from my son to me - that's why I asked the question here and no I have not addressed it with the coach - I was waiting to get more information before I went than direction

My son did talk to his couch about his concerns yesterday (did so on his own) - he and the coach agreed to let him approach the 1600 and his competition run and the 3200 as training - though I will say that the coach would rather see him approach it the other way. I think this is due to the coach looking at it more from a cross county side rather than track

He loves the 1600 but hates the 3200 - its not the distance but the repetition of 8 laps - even in CC he prefers courses that are one big loop over the ones that cover the same area more than once. He also set a goal for himself to break the school 1600 and 5k record before he graduates - he did this when is was an 8th grader at freshman orientation - We were in the gym and he was studying the records on the wall of the gym

I guess I will know more after Saturday's race - he has set a goal for himself to run the 1600 under 4:50