Essential for coaches and parents of teen runners involved in cross country, distance track events, and road racing, Training Young Distance Runners draws on the latest scientific research to present easily understood and applied training plans plus guidelines for designing customized programs.

As the best-selling guide in the sport, Training Young Distance Runners has helped countless runners achieve their best times, avoid injuries, and improve their performance progressively from season to season. Updated, expanded, and enhanced, this new edition further solidifies its standing as a must-have for athletes and coaches in cross country, track and field, and road racing. Running experts Larry Greene and Russ Pate combine the latest research with training, development, and conditioning plans from the most successful high school and college programs in the world. You’ll learn to optimize performance through tempo running, interval training, and technique work to improve form. You’ll gain a competitive advantage with expert advice and strategies for event-specific training, avoiding injuries, and overcoming setbacks. With guidelines for designing customized daily, weekly, and seasonal programs—as well as coverage of hot topics including nutritional supplements, barefoot running and minimalist shoes, and gearing training to the specific needs of girls and boys—Training Young Distance Runners is the most complete and current training guide for the sport. Essential reading for coaches, parents, and young runners, this book has everything you need to get and stay ahead of the pack.

Race your best this season with science-based training specifically geared for teenage runners. Your performance will soar when you follow the proven guidelines on designing customized daily, weekly, and seasonal programs. Running experts Larry Greene and Russ Pate combine the latest research with what works in the most successful high school and college programs throughout the country. You'll learn how to optimize performance through tempo running, interval training, technique drills, circuit and weight training, and flexibility exercises. And you'll gain a competitive advantage by applying guidelines for choosing the best foods and nutritional supplements, developing mental fitness, and preventing injuries. Training for Young Distance Runners has everything you need to build a winning training program for cross country, track and field, and road racing events. Get this book and get ahead of the pack!

Written by the American Sport Education Program in conjunction with Matt Lydum and other experts from Hersheys Track & Field Games and USA Track & Field, Coaching Youth Track & Field is the only resource available today aimed at coaches of athletes ages 14 and under. Coaching Youth Track & Field includes activities specifically designed for young track and field athletes and fundamentals of all of the events in track and field (USATF and Hersheys Track and Field Games). Coaching Youth Track & Fields 73 activities and 32 age-specific coaching tips are sure to jump-start your planning and practices and help you overcome any hurdle encountered during the season. Plus, sequenced and specific chapters help you learn, retain, and reference in a flash. Endorsed by USATF and named the official handbook of Hersheys Track & Field Games, this book a must-read as you prepare to meet the challenges and enjoy the rewards of coaching young athletes.

Explains the practical aspects of exercise physiology and modern coaching, including energy systems, the aerobic and anaerobic thresholds, VO2 max, running economy, muscle fibers, and more. In addition, it covers how these ideas should inform both your day-to-day workouts and the underlying philosophy that forms the foundation of your training program.

Physical educators play a critical role in shaping the health and fitness of America’s youth—and Physical Best, Fourth Edition, is the resource that will help them achieve success in that role. Physical Best, developed by experts identified by SHAPE America, has long been the standard in the field for health-related fitness education, and this latest rendition is the best and most complete package yet: A comprehensive, three-in-one resource. The entire Physical Best program was previously spread over three books (Physical Education for Lifelong Fitness, Physical Best Activity Guide—Elementary Level, and Physical Best Activity Guide—Middle and High School Levels). It now is offered in one all-inclusive resource to reinforce the scope and sequence of the program so teachers can see what comes before and after the grade levels they teach. Updated material to address standards. All chapters and activities are updated to address SHAPE America’s National Standards and Grade-Level Outcomes for K-12 Physical Education. Teachers can be confident they are measuring student progress effectively. New or revised chapters. Teachers will benefit from the new information on the latest research, technology, power training, professional development, best practices, and more. An attractive four-color layout. The text now features four-color illustrations. A web resource that includes K-12 activities. With previous editions, the activities were housed in two separate books, one for elementary teachers and one for middle and secondary teachers. Now, all activities are on the accompanying web resource, where teachers can sort the activities by standard, grade, outcome, and skill and then use them on a mobile device or download and print them. Most activities are supported by ready-to-use reproducible forms such as handouts, assessments, posters, and worksheets. Other useful web ancillaries include an instructor guide to help teachers deliver effective lessons, a test package that teachers can use to create various types of tests and quizzes, and a presentation package that offers slides with key points and graphics from the book. Physical Best meets needs on many levels. For veteran teachers, it outlines strategies for emphasizing health-related fitness in their existing programs. New teachers will benefit from the specific examples from master teachers and be able to use this guidance for creating an effective fitness education program. For teacher education programs, it provides an overview of current research, trends, and best practices in health-related fitness. And for district coordinators, it reinforces professional development training and continued education. This latest edition of the official SHAPE America resource is organized into four parts: Part I offers an in-depth look at physical activity behavior and motivation and explores basic training principles. An expanded chapter on nutrition covers the foundations of a healthy diet and reflects the most up-to-date USDA guidelines. Part II examines health-related fitness concepts: cardiorespiratory endurance, muscular strength, muscular endurance, power, flexibility, and body composition. The text supplies tips for addressing each fitness component within a program. Part III presents strategies for integrating health-related fitness education throughout the curriculum, employing best teaching practices, and being inclusive in the gym, on the field, and in the classroom. In part IV, readers study assessment and learn assessment strategies for effective teaching and health-related programming. They discover how to collect and use assessment results and how to assess fitness concept knowledge. Physical Best helps teachers impart the skills and knowledge that students need to become physically literate—the first step to leading healthier, less stressful, and more productive lives. It details best practices, provides current content, and shows how to integrate health-related fitness education into an existing curriculum. It helps students meet standards and grade-level outcomes. It can help spark student interest in lifelong physical activity. And it will help teachers be the best physical educators they can be as they shape the future health of the nation.

Finally, runners at all levels can improve their race times while training less, with the revolutionary Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST) program. Hailed by the Wall Street Journal and featured twice in six months in cover stories in Runner's World magazine, FIRST's unique training philosophy makes running easier and more accessible, limits overtraining and burnout, and substantially cuts the risk of injury, while producing faster race times. The key feature is the "3 plus 2" program, which each week consists of: -3 quality runs, including track repeats, the tempo run, and the long run, which are designed to work together to improve endurance, lactate-threshold running pace, and leg speed -2 aerobic cross-training workouts, such as swimming, rowing, or pedaling a stationary bike, which are designed to improve endurance while helping to avoid burnout With detailed training plans for 5K, 10K, half marathon, and marathon, plus tips for goal-setting, rest, recovery, injury rehab and prevention, strength training, and nutrition, this program will change the way runners think about and train for competitive races. Amby Burfoot, Runner's World executive editor and Boston Marathon winner, calls the FIRST training program "the most detailed, well-organized, and scientific training program for runners that I have ever seen."

The popularity of distance running as a sport, and a recreational activity, is at an all-time high. Motivated by the desire to achieve a personal best, remain healthy, or simply complete an event, distance runners of all ages and abilities actively seek out advice from experienced coaches and sport scientists. This is also reflected in the growth of programmes of education for young coaches and aspiring sport scientists in recent years. There are a multitude of different approaches to training distance runners; however, the basic principles and ingredients required for success are applicable to any distance runner. The science that underpins the training and physical preparation of distance runners has developed considerably in recent years. The most experienced and successful coaches in the distance running community rarely have the opportunity to share their tried and tested methods of training. Similarly, the novel work of sport scientists is often only accessible to elite runners, their support teams and academia. The Science and Practice of Middle and Long Distance Running links together the science and coaching artistry associated with preparing distance runners for events ranging from 800 m up to ultra-marathon distances. It combines the latest scientific evidence, published by world-leading sport scientists, with the sound training principles and strategies adopted by experienced coaches. The book translates cutting-edge scientific research from the fields of physiology, biomechanics, psychology and nutrition into practical suggestions for achieving success. Important topical issues and contemporary practices related to health and performance are also addressed. This book is an essential addition to the library of any distance runner, coach or sport scientist.