Determine The Best Fit For You
During your freshmen and sophomore years create an expansive list of schools/programs that meet your specific needs and desires. Among factors to consider are affiliation level (NCAA I, II, III, NAIA and JUCO), competitiveness of the program, cost of attendance, quality of education, geographical location, intended academic major, enrollment size, public vs private, and other factors that matter to YOU.
Do not be mesmerized by the name of a school. See beyond the prowess of their football and basketball programs or their academic reputation. Make sure the school you choose meets your needs for reasons beyond it simply being cool to tell the world you will be running or studying at a particular school. Remember, you have to live, study, train and compete there every day for four years.
Many brilliant scholars and successful professionals have attended state schools with less than brilliant academic reputations. Additionally, many NCAA mid-major athletes have claimed national championships on the team and individual level.
In fact, at this year's NCAA National Outdoor Track & Field Championships nearly 33% of the participants represented non-Power 5 schools - three were crowned NCAA National Champion and an additional 14 scored for their teams by placing in the top eight. Furthermore, two-time US Olympian and World Championships silver medalist, Nick Symmonds competed at the NCAA Division 3 level while in college.
Plain and simple, choose a school that you would be happy at without track and field - just in case your athletic career does not go as planned.
Pre-Season Pole Vault Training - COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING -
BY BRANKO MIRIC APEX VAULTING
Pre Season Training for Pole Vault.
Despite popular belief, pole vaulters cannot train like sprinters. There have been many pole vaulters from my club who have gone on to colleges where they would do sprint workouts and lifting sessions on Mondays Wednesdays and Fridays, and the pole vault sessions were relegated to Tuesdays and Thursdays which essentially should be recovery days. In the long run, this will cause little improvement in the vaulter’s technique, max efforts in grip, push, and pole stiffness, and most importantly lead to run-throughs. Below I have outlined a typical Pre or early season workout schedule that focuses on volume. But ultimately as the season goes on any jumping, sprinting, and lifting should be lower volume and higher intensity.
A word on intensity level in the pole vault. The way a coach can manage intensity and volume is by the approaches you have athletes take in practice. When in early season make sure to keep the intensity low with 1,2,3,4, and for the advanced 5 left approaches. At these length approaches athletes will not be hitting top end speed and you can prevent central nervous system fatigue while being able to do a higher volume of jumps 20-30 jumps in a session working out technical issues. I have even seen very fit athletic athletes take over 40 jumps in a session.
Once you are peaking later in the season you can use 6,7,8,9 or 10 lefts approaches and most athletes will take 7-20 jumps at most. These jumps would have a higher demand on the central nervous system, but certainly, the volume must be taken down. These jump sessions must be followed with at least three days of active rest before attempting to vault again from a full approach in order to allow the central nervous system time for a full recovery.
Early season phase.
Monday and Friday
Warm-up
Warm up jug focused on open strides
Running drills
B skip
Straight leg
Bounding
High knee but kicks
Baby hurdles
2’ apart walks
4’, 5’, 6’ apart runs
I sometimes throw in a 4 step jumping drill without a pole to teach the athlete how to jump up properly with a penultimate step.
Planting drills and Pole Runs
Jumping
Athletes will perform 20-30 jumps from a 1left, 2 left and 3 left approach doing various drills: take off only focused on pole speed and jumping up, swing to a sit focusing on keeping the pole speed up and getting the hips past the bottom arm through pulling and landing deep into the pit, and finally swing to the belly where the athlete continues pulling their hips past their bottom arm and then turning and pushing off the top.
After jumping is completed athletes can do a short spring workout
Sprints
3-5 sets of 3-5 40-60 meter sprints
Lifting
Deadlift
Box Squat
Bench
Pull-ups
We follow a linear periodization
3-5 sets of 8-12 reps for all lifts at 60-70% of the 1 rep max
Auxiliary lifts that can aid in the progression of the main lifts can and should be added for 3-5 sets of 6-8 reps
Wednesday
Wednesdays are run like Mondays and Fridays except the jumping should not be taken past a 1 left approach in order to save the CNS. Also, no sprinting and lifts should be done for 3 sets and be at least 5-10% easier than Monday’s lift.
Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday
Active recovery
Athletes should bike or jog for 15-20 min, and perform an abs circuit as well. Other restorative exercises like hypers and reverse hypers can also be done.
Sunday
Complete Rest
This, of course, is a quick overview of the system we utilize at Apex Vaulting. People can and should make adjustments to this system to fit their program, access to facilities, and specific situations.
Be Sure That You Are Eligible To Run, Jump, Vault or Throw in College – COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING
By Willy Wood
If you want to compete in NCAA sports at a Division I school, you need to register with the NCAA Eligibility Center.
See the time chart below provided by the NCAA to ensure that you are on track!
Grade 9
· Ask your counselor for a list of your high school’s NCAA core courses to make sure you take the right classes.
Grade 10
· Register with the NCAA Eligibility Center at eligibilitycenter.org.
Grade 11
· Check with your counselor to make sure you will graduate on time with the required number of NCAA core courses.
· Take the ACT or SAT and submit your scores to the NCAA using code 9999.
· At the end of the year, ask your counselor to upload your official transcript to the NCAA Eligibility Center.
Grade 12
· Finish your last NCAA core courses.
SAMPLE NCAA I TRAINING SCHEDULE - COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING
WILLY WOOD
Below is a sample week of training during the first week of Holiday Vacation. This was done on their own at home. Keep in mind, the distance runners were still ascending to higher volume after a couple of down weeks after cross country,
Sample NCAA I Training Schedule – Holiday Break
3000m – 5000m, MEN
Monday - 60 minutes easy . Tuesday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Wednesday - 65 minutes easy Thursday - 40 minutes easy Friday - 20 minutes easy + 2 x 2 miles @ 5:15 pace w/ 5’ easy + 20 minutes easy Saturday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Sunday - 85 minutes easy
1500m – 5000m, MEN
Monday- 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Tuesday - 12 x 400m in 70 w/ 200m recovery jog Wednesday - 50 minutes easy Thursday - 35 minutes easy . Friday - 2 miles easy + 6 miles @ 5:30 - 5:40 pace + 2 miles easy . Saturday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Sunday - 85 minutes easy
15000m-5000m, WOMEN
Monday - 50 minutes easy Tuesday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Wednesday - 60 minutes easy Thursday - 30 minutes easy . Friday - 5 x 800m in 2:40 + 4 x 200m in 34 all w/ 2’ recovery . Saturday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Sunday - 85 minutes easy
800m, MEN
Monday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Tuesday - 4 x Mile in 5:15 with 2.5 min rest Wednesday - 50 minutes easy Thursday - off Friday - 50 minutes easy Saturday - 3 mile AT run @ 5:40, 5:30, 5:20 pace + 10 x 200m in 32 w/ 30” rest . Sunday - 65 - 75 minutes easy
800m, WOMEN
Monday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides Tuesday - 10 x 400m in 80-82 w/ 200m recovery jog Wednesday - 50 minutes easy Thursday - off Friday - 3 mile AT run @ 6:30, 6:20, 6:10pace + 6 x 200m in 35 w/ 200m recovery jog . Saturday - off Sunday - 60 minutes easy
Sprints, M&W
Monday - 2 x 10 min Hard on stationary bike w/ full recovery Tuesday - weight training only . Wednesday - 3 x ( 300m – rest 1’ – 300m) Men 45, Women 54 - 6 minutes between sets . Thursday - off . Friday - weights Saturday - 10 x 100m in 15m / 17w starting one on the minute (43-45” rest) . Sunday - off
WANT TO COMPETE IN COLLEGE TRACK & FIELD / CROSS COUNTRY? – COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING by Willy Wood
Participating in College Track and Field is no easy task. As mentioned in an earlier article only about 5% of high school participants will go on to compete at the next level. If you want to compete here are a few things you should know.
Although competing at the NCAA I level can be very appealing, you must realize that over 70% of colleges that sponsor track and field programs are non-Division I institutions, so cast your net wide when creating your list of possible options.
If you are looking for scholarship money, you must realize that this can be very difficult to come by in the sport of track and field. If fully funded, NCAA I men’s programs have 12.6 scholarships total to be spread out over all of the events. However, it is important to note, most programs are not fully funded. Also, this figure represents the total allotment of scholarship money, not a newly allocated annual amount. NCAA I women’s programs are allowed 18 scholarships, NCAA II men’s and women’s programs are allowed 12 and NCAA III schools do not offer athletic scholarships. Most track and field scholarships are divided up among many individuals to ensure total event coverage.
If you are a senior, the Early Signing Period passed last month. The next signing date on the Calendar is April 11, 2018. You still have time to raise your test scores before that date and enhancing your recruitment chances. The next available SAT date is on March 10, 2018, while the next scheduled ACT test date is February 10, 2018.
How Difficult Is It To Run Track in College – College Track and Field Recruiting
College track and field recruiting
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING by Willy Wood
According to NCAA research, very few high school student-athletes have the opportunity to participate in college athletics, regardless of which division. A recent look at the data suggests that only 5% of high school track and field athletes will participate in college. Obviously, there is a certain percentage of high school participants who voluntarily choose not to participate in college for a various reason, but still running at the next level demands hard work, sacrifice and a commitment to the process, both athletically and academically.
· For more information on how to get recruited to run in college, click here – www.fasttrackrecruiting.com
· For more information how to improve your current marks through personal coaching, click here – www.fasttrackrecruiting.com/ft-training
When Should I Start Receiving Verbal Athletic Scholarship Offers - College Track and Field Recruiting
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING by Willy Wood
I have been asked by numerous parents when they should expect to starts receiving verbal scholarship offers from college track & field and cross country coaches. Usually, their concern arises from the fact the majority of sports start this process far earlier. According to NCAA Research sports such as Basketball and Lacrosse start making offers to prospects during their freshman year of high school. This is simply not that case with track and field and cross country. Only approximately 10% of track and field/cross country athletes received verbal scholarship offers before the start of their senior year. So, if your son or daughter has not yet started their senior year it is not alarming they have not received offers.
When Should I Start Receiving Verbal Athletic Scholarship Offers - College Track and Field Recruiting
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD RECRUITING by Willy Wood
I have been asked by numerous parents when they should expect to starts receiving verbal scholarship offers from college track & field and cross country coaches. Usually, their concern arises from the fact the majority of sports start this process far earlier. According to NCAA Research sports such as Basketball and Lacrosse start making offers to prospects during their freshman year of high school. This is simply not that case with track and field and cross country. Only approximately 10% of track and field/cross country athletes received verbal scholarship offers before the start of their senior year. So, if your son or daughter has not yet started their senior year it is not alarming they have not received offers.
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING - December, 800m Training
Below is an actual week of training for our 800m men from a couple of years ago. We had five guys run sub 1:50 that season. These guys had good natural speed - all could split 47-48 in the 4 x 400m and each was able to run a competitive 1500m - 3:47-3:50 range. Almost all of our 800m training revolved around the training concepts of "Gags", combining strength work and speed development always close.
Monday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides
Tuesday - 4 x Mile in 5:15, 5:10, 5:05, 5:00 with 2 min rest + 6 x 200m in 28 w/ 2’ rest
Wednesday - 50 minutes easy
Thursday - 50 minutes easy + 6 x 100m strides
Friday - 3 mile AT run on the track 5:30, 5:20, 5:10 + 10 x 200m in 30 w/ 30” rec
Saturday - 85 minutes easy
Sunday - off
COLLEGE TRACK AND FIELD TRAINING – TRAIN LIKE A TOP LEVEL NCAA 200m-400m RUNNER
Below you will find the actual training schedule from mid-December of a 200m - 400m college male who ended up running 20.96 and 45.67 in the Spring.
Monday
AM – Weights PM – 2 sets of 200-400-200-200 with 90 seconds. rest / 8 minutes between sets
Set 1: 30.7-63.7-31.3-30.8 / Set 2: 30.3-61-31.4-29.3
Tuesday
10 x Stadiums . 4 DBL Leg Hops . 5 Ramps 4 Skips
Wednesday
Hurdle Walkovers
Thursday
AM – Weights . PM - Bounding
Friday
Speed Improvement – Hurdles, Sleds, High Knees
6 x 200 with 90 seconds rest
32.1-30.6-30.9-29.6-28.0-27.1
Saturday
AM – 8 x 250m Hills
Sunday
off