Middle School Training for the 800

by Chris N. Johnson

My daughter has just started track and is in the 7th grade. She ran the 800 and 1600 in her 1st meet last week.

We were surprised that she won the 800 and finished 3rd in the 1600. There was 20 girls in the 1600 and 17 in the 800. She ran the 800 in 2:53. Is this a good time for 7th girls?

Not sure what she ran the 1600 in. What is your advice on how to train for the 800. She has practice at school 2 times per week and she misses one practice because of prior commitment.

What can we do on our own to help her continue to get better?

Thanks, Chris N. Johnson

First of all, don't get too serious because your daughter is only in 7th grade (12-13 years old I'm assuming). That is pretty young. One thing you want to do for sure is to make running fun, and to make sure to avoid creating too much pressure for her.

That being said, there are some tips I can help you with. First of all, 2:53 is very good for her age. That is under six minute mile pace, which is very fast for middle school.

If you are missing one practice a week, I suggest making up that practice by doing a distance run on that day. If she is only going to be in practice once a week, I actually suggest that she does two distance runs per week on her own. That would make for three days where she runs.

When she goes on the distance run, just set a time for her to run. I suggest doing an out and back run. Have her run out for five minutes, and then turn around and come back home. You can always run/bike with her to keep her motivated. Just plan on these runs that the goal is to go out for the first five minutes and run nice and easy. When you turn around, just try to get back home in faster than five minutes (for a total time of running probably between nine to ten minutes).

This is a very basic idea for a workout, but the most important thing at this age is getting into a healthy routine that is still fun to do.

As for the race, you can check out these 800 meter run tips to help your daughter run a smart race as well.

Happy Trails - Coach Tief