If any junior high athletes wish to compete in X/Country in the fall you will need to call Kate Polumbo at 298-5062. You will need to pick up a form and register to take the  fitness test that is required for Junior High athletes . The form is located at the nurses office at Van Wyck. The scheduled date  is Aug 18th(rain date Aug 19th)@ Ketcham..

Why does hill running hurt so much? In part, because it takes more work. “You have to recruit more muscle fibers to get yourself up the hill, which causes those muscles to fatigue faster,” says Carwyn Sharp, Ph.D., assistant professor of exercise science at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Plus, when you’re running on an incline, there’s a shorter distance for your foot to fall before it hits the ground. That translates into less of an energy boost from the tendons, which you normally get when running on a flat surface, says Paul DeVita, Ph.D., a biomechanist at East Carolina University.

On the up side, hitting hills is hugely beneficial to runners. “Do it week after week, and your body begins to adapt to the stresses,” says Sharp. “In other words, it gets stronger.” Still, doing hill work is like eating Brussels sprouts. We know we should, but we don’t really want to—is there anything worse than a set of Everest-like repeats on a sticky summer afternoon? While there’s no way around the effort involved, a few adjustments to your workouts and your mental game can make hill running more tolerable—and maybe even more fun.

ROUTINE FIXES

GROUP HILLS
Do this workout with a bunch of runners of mixed ability, says Larry Indiviglia, a San Diego-based coach. Warm up, then assemble at the base of a hill. The slowest runner(s) start first. After 30 seconds, the second group charges up. Thirty seconds later, the third and fastest group takes off. The result? Everyone pushes it and works harder. “The slower people don’t want to be passed,” says Indiviglia. “The middle group feels the fast guys nipping at their heels. And the fast group doesn’t want to be put in the unusual position of finishing last.” Jog back down. Repeat four times.

INSIDE INCLINE
Warm up on the treadmill at a zero incline. Then increase the incline by two levels every two minutes until you hit level 12. Run one to two minutes slower than your normal training pace. Descend in the same manner. “You learn how to handle the intensity of hills in a way that simulates the nature of terrain outdoors,” says Liz Neporent, co-author of Fitness for Dummies.
UP AND DOWN
Use this workout as an efficient strength-builder, says Sharp. Start at the base of a hill about 200 to 400 yards long, depending on your fitness. Run up it for 45 seconds (your intensity should be about a 7 on a 1-to-10 scale). Jog back down for 30 seconds. Repeat three times. As you get stronger, increase the number of intervals up to eight and the length of intervals up to 75 seconds (maintain recovery time).

ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENTS

STOP REPEATING YOURSELF!
“Running hills doesn’t have to mean repeats,” says Lt. Colonel Liam Collins, assistant track and cross-country coach at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. “The trick is to make it enjoyable.” Plot out a new route that has a couple of hills (if you live in terrain untouched by the Thunderbirds, incorporate artificial hills, such as overpasses or even parking garage ramps). You’ll reap the same benefits, says Collins, plus, “It’s closer to what you’ll find in a race.”

SUFFER WITH FRIENDS
As a graduate student, Collins was part of a group that did a weekly workout on a route called “Over the Top” that included one monstrous hill. They attacked it together and turned it into a race-within-a-run, thus making the effort a shared experience. They kept track of who made it to the top first, and at the end of the season (taking a page from cycling’s Tour de France), everyone chipped in to buy the winner a polka dot jersey, signifying “the King of the Mountain.”

Remember Girls:“The will to win means nothing if you haven’t the will to prepare”. Juma Ikangaa

Keep up with your training. Put in the hard work now over the summer, and you will see the positive results during the season. Keep track of your running, and follow the plans. Strive to be apart of the the girls 300+ miles club.

XC- Group 1 – Sum Training (This is an advanced plan is for Gabi, Dani, Robert.)

XC- Group 2 – Sum Training (This plan is for anyone that has run a varsity sport or is already able to run for 40-50 minutes)

XC Group 3 Summer Training (This plan is for anyone that is new to running a varsity sport.)

The quote below will be our signature statement through out this season..

“The will to win means nothing if you haven’t the will to prepare”. Juma Ikangaa

The girls cross country team has planned a carwash at the Stewarts by Van Wyck on July 17th from 10-4. We would like to encourage all parents ,athletes and friends to come out and get their vehicle of choice washed by some of the best car washers in th earea. Please come out and support our team.
Thank You
John Jay X/C
Todays Quote

“The will to win means nothing if you haven’t the will to prepare”. Juma Ikangaa

Congratulations to Allie Bernasconi (400meters) and Daniella Bernasconi(400meter hurdles). They had a outstanding season. Both of them made the New York State meet. Where they both finished 9th. Allie ran fully automatic time of 57.2 which is a new school record. Daniella, broke the school and county record with a time of 62.38 which eclipsed the previous record by 1.8 secs.
The 1600m relay team of Allie Bernasconi, Daniella Bernasconi, Lauren Crawford and Michelle Granuzzo also received All Star Status. They ran to a season best of 3:58.87.

We will meet every Mon and Wed @6pm..I will follow up with directions for each work out site.. If you are away on Vac or can not make it let us know. If you know of any one who is thinking about running bring them to a scheduled w/out.

wk 1 – 7/12 (John Jay Track) and 7/14 (Bowdoin Park)

wk 2 – 7/19 (Pawling) and 7/21 (Baird Park)

wk 3 – 7/26 (Coach Lee’s House) and 7/28 (Pawling)

Girls, Please hand in your uniforms!…even if you plan to run next year. Also, if you relied on a friend to hand it in for you, you should check in with them to see if they actually did return it. With the amount of uniforms still missing, I can almost guarantee that they did not hand it in. Please return the uniforms!

Get out and run a Road Race this summer

MENTAL PREPARATION = RUNNING SUCCESS

Jitters come with any race, whether you’re going shorter, longer, faster, or just heading to the starting line for the first time. But they shouldn’t stop you from running your best. This expert advice will help you manage your anxieties for any new endeavor. Who knows, you may even enjoy yourself.

YOUR FIRST RACE

GEAR UP Go ahead and splurge on a technical top or pair of sleek sunglasses. Looking the part can make you feel like less of an outsider. Just get in a few test runs in new gear (especially shoes).
ARRIVE EARLY Give yourself at least an hour so you can find parking and make a trip to the porta-potty. Showing up late increases anxiety, says Lucinda Seares-Monica, Psy.D., a clinical psychologist.
ELICIT SUPPORT Tell someone—a volunteer, the person next to you at the start—that this is your first race. “The running community is encouraging,” says Frank Webbe, Ph.D., a sports psychologist. “Opening up can also be cathartic.”
FORGET SPEED Don’t have a time goal, says Bill Cole of the International Mental Game Coaching Association. You’re already guaranteed a personal record.

DROPPING TO A 5-K

The gun goes off and the race is on, which can be daunting to those used to finding a rhythm and settling into a pace.
REHEARSE IT For a local 5-K, do a trial run. Being familiar with the course will give you confidence—you’ll know where the hills are and when to fire your finishing kick.
PICK A PACER Ideally an experienced 5-K’er who’s a bit faster. Following someone means you don’t have to stress over pacing yourself, Webbe says.
EMBRACE ANXIETY “Jitters are actually good for a short race,” Seares-Monica says. “Adrenaline will rev up your engine. Think of it as fuel.”

ADDING SOME DISTANCE

Stepping up to a longer race—be it a 10-K or an ultra—can be overwhelming.
THINK SMALL Divide the race into manageable sections and focus on them one at a time, rather than thinking about the finish line, which seems far, far away.
PROMOTE YOURSELF Put your name on your shirt and soak up the fanfare. “It’s amazing to have people call you out and cheer you on,” Seares-Monica says.
POSITION FANS Plant friends and relatives strategically along the course—at the top of a tough hill, at mile 20, or where support is light on the course.
REWARD YOURSELF “Carry small items of food you can digest easily and have one at each mile marker,” says Seares-Monica, who suggests pretzels or peanut M&M’s. You’ll stay nourished as you track your progress—watch the snacks disappear as you knock off the miles.

RACING FOR A PR

It’s time to cash in on all that hard training. But doubts set in.
IGNORE NEGATIVITY If you hear someone groaning about how hard the course is, tune it out. That person probably didn’t train as much as you did.
EXPECT SOME PAIN Your legs and lungs will burn. Have a “bring it on” attitude, says Cole. Remind yourself that you wanted this: The challenge of pushing yourself to achieve something new.
HAVE A BACK-UP You wake up with a migraine or to a heat wave. Move on to Plan B—another goal that’s more realistic, but something you’ll be proud of.

ARE WE HAVING FUN YET?
It’s common to have butterflies at the start. Once you get moving, your anxieties will fade.

GOOD LUCK!!!

Check out the camp below for all Distance Runners..

http://www.therunningschool.com/