FEELING STRONG, FIT & CONFIDENT: MARCH 1-14

About Hometown Hopefuls Hometown Hopefuls follows Atlanta Track Club Elite Team members Abe Alvarado, Brandon Lasater, Keturah Orji, Yolanda Ngarambe, Jarryd Wallace and Allie Wilson as they continue their journey toward Olympic glory. Be there every step of the way from training camp to the Olympic Trials and to Tokyo with every workout, every split, athlete reflections and coaches' comments too. Six athletes. Six months. Six shots.

Alvarado reflects on his training period between March 1-14 in this post. To learn more about Alvaradoclick here.

Workouts for the Week: March 1-7

Monday: 12 miles @ 6:20/mile

Tuesday: 6 miles @ 6:59 /mile

Wednesday:

2 mile warmup
3 x (5 x 300m with 100m jog)
43-44 average
2 mile cooldown
Lift

P.M. 4 miles

Thursday:6 miles @ 7:05

Friday: 6 miles @ 6:57

Saturday:

2 mile warmup
Vigil workout, made it to 800m
4 min rest
200m: 26
1.5 mile cooldown
P.M. 4 miles

Sunday:Off

Commentary and Reflection on the Week: March 1-7

Now that I'm back in Atlanta I am finally able to get back on a more normal routine and really take care of my body. I saw both my massage therapist and physical therapist. Seeing both seemed to have fixed the issue I was having with my hamstring. On Wednesday, I was able to hit mile pace for all my reps (which was the goal) and left feeling like I still had more in the tank. I wasn’t super satisfied with the workout because I felt like I should have pushed myself more (the workout was supposed to take you to the well). However, after talking to the coaches we agreed that I could do that for Saturday's workout and that's what I did. On Saturday, we did a workout called the Vigil [named after the coach]. The goal of the workout is to hit mile pace until you can't any longer. You start with 100 meters, jog 100 meters, and keep increasing 100 meters until you can’t hold mile pace any longer. I made it to 800 meters and felt strong to have finally felt my body firing at 100 percent. I was happy to see that I am getting fit and the work I'm putting in is turning into fitness. Side note (five weeks ago we did this workout and I didn’t hit pace for 700 meters). So being able to crush the 700m mark five weeks later makes me feel confident in our training.

Commentary and Reflection From Coaches Amy and Andrew Begley on the Week: March 1-7

Abe had another great week! We have been focused on improving communication, and this week was outstanding. The relationship between coaches and athletes is a key part of success. Building trust between both sides is essential to success. Abe has to learn to trust that we will take him to the edge, without taking him over. We have made great progress this year.

He looked smooth on Wednesday! He hit his paces and was aggressive throughout the three sets of 300’s. Abe is a competitor. Abe is fast. Our goal for 2021 is to build the strength to repeat a fast 1500 three times. Wednesday was a big step forward.

Saturday was another great day! He made it to 700, and we gave him the choice between doing an 800, or doing 3x200. He had the confidence to do the 800 solo. He was able to run 1:59 by himself on tired legs. We added a fast 200 to finish, and he was able to solo an 800 paced 200. Sometimes, it can be tough to see progress as it is gradual. Right now, Abe (and our team) is improving by leaps and bounds!

The excitement builds week over week, and the athletes are feeding off of one another. Our marathon group has experienced synergy like this in the past, but this is the first time our MD crew has come together like this. It is exciting!

To learn more about the coaches click here.

Workouts for the Week: March 8-14

Monday:6 miles @ 7:19 average

Tuesday:

2 mile warmup
500m - 66
3 minutes rest
300m - 38
3 minutes rest
2 mile tempo - 10:17
4 minutes rest
400m - 51
3 minutes rest
200m - 25
2 mile cooldown
Lift
P.M. 4 mile double

Wednesday:6 miles @ 7:20 average

Thursday:

2 mile warmup
3 x Mile, 3 minute jog rest (averaged 4:45’s)
2 mile cooldown
P.M. 4 mile double

Friday:6 miles @ 7:13 average

Saturday:

2 mile warmup
3 x 600m (2.5 minute jog), 400m (2.5 minute jog), 300m (90 second jog), 200m (5 minute jog)
Splits:

1:29, 59, 43, 27
1:28, 58, 43, 26
- 1:25, 55, 41, 25
- 2 mile cooldown

Sunday: off

Commentary and Reflection on the Week: March 8-14

This week has been one of my favorites so far. I was able to run 800 meter pace for longer reps then we normally do and also hammer mile specific work at the end of a three workout week. My body is starting to feel the fitness continue to improve and is ready to start racing. I feel strong, fit, and confident. It has been six months since I last raced and I'm anxious to compete again. I'm ready to get the ball rolling. Season opener in two weeks!

Commentary and Reflection From Coaches Amy and Andrew Begley on the Week: March 8-14

The last time we had a three workout week the team struggled, but this week they nailed it. We had a hard session on Tuesday, a secondary (aerobic session) on Thursday, and another hard speed session on Saturday.

We did a mile of speed at 800 meter pace on Tuesday with a little aerobic work in the middle. This can be challenging for middle distance athletes as it takes a lot of strength and mental toughness to switch between systems. Abe’s speed, strength and confidence are improving each week, and you could see that on Tuesday. He still wanted more on the aerobic part, but he nailed his 800m paced work. Each week gets better.

Thursday, the MD (middle distance) crew looked easy. This was not the case in 2019 or 2020, so the work we have done has paid off. They look like distance runners, which will be a huge advantage over three rounds. A lot of people can run one fast race, but not that many can run three fast races over a few days.

We start racing in two weeks and he is excited to get back to racing. Our goal is to hit the OT qualifiers in April, and the Olympic standards in May.

Abe’s confidence was evident on Saturday. Not only did he hit his splits, but he started to pull away on the last set. He is starting to test his limits on the big workouts, and is learning to stick to the plan on the staple workouts. Things are starting to click!

To learn more about the coaches click here.