World is here! VB coming...

Hello again, UO Running Club!

Saturday, August 8, 2026

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One more day of the World U20 Championships here at Hayward Field! What a remarkable track and field meet … more than 140 countries, from Norway to Papua-New Guinea. It’ll be pretty quiet in Eugene for a few weeks after Sunday!

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The third week of suggestions for faster running is below. It’s getting more challenging.

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Our first volleyball “ball crew” commitment is at noon on Friday, August 21, in a home match with Utah. Are you in Eugene then? Can you help? I have one person so far… Contact me at <heino@uoregon.edu> or text me at <541-954-0263>.

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AUGUST: WEEK #3 OF HARDER RUNNING…..

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On Monday, August 10, there are seven weeks until school starts. Here is your week #3 with some faster running.

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One day, find some hills and do some reps. Every hill is different. Spend 15-20 minutes running up and jogging down. Just get to the top. The effort will take care of itself. No attacking! No race simulations! (If you have any inkling of achilles soreness going uphill or knee pain for more than a few steps on the way down, do NOT do this workout. Instead, do minute runs on a flat surface again, like last week. Running hills when you’re not ready can be risky. Be thoughtful!)

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On another day, do a set of “cruise intervals” which are run at lactate threshold, the same as tempo run pace. (See Week #1 below, third paragraph, for an explanation of lactate threshold and tempo runs.)

 

Cruise intervals are a tempo run broken up into repetitions with very short rest. In this workout, do three or four runs of 3:00 at lactate threshold, with just one minute of jogging between them. If you can’t jog the recovery, you’ve run too fast. This workout is written:

3-4 x 3:00 (lactate threshold) with 1:00 jog

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On your long run, do not increase your volume this week. And...if you’re feeling fried, maybe you should cut the run down by several miles or take a rest day. Be smart!

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- - - - - Week #2 is below - - - - -

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One day, in the middle of your relaxed run, do 8-10 easy strides. Look at Week #1 below for more details.

 

On another day, after you’ve warmed up with at least two miles easy, do 5-8 one-minute runs at what-feels-like your current cross country race pace. Do one minute of jogging between reps. If you are not able to jog the recovery, you’ve run too fast. This is how I write this workout:

     5-8 x 1:00 (XC race pace) with 1:00 jog

 

On another day, increase your long run by one mile if that seems reasonable. Last week you added 1-2 miles to one of your runs and created a “long run”. Now go a mile farther.

 

These workouts will get harder almost every week, but we are starting easy.

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- - - - - Week #1 is below - - - - -

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If you’ve been diligent about doing aerobic runs and you want to prepare to race, now is the time to add something faster.

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Let’s keep it simple for now.

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One day this week, do 6-8 relaxed strides on some soft, firm surface (grass, turf, dirt, track...not pavement). They can be about 100 meters or twenty seconds. Take as much rest as you want between. Run at a speed that’s brisker than your steady run. Look for a feeling of relaxed quickness...it might take several reps or even several sessions to feel good running faster. That’s fine...the ability to run fast and feel good doing it will come back!

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Barefoot strides are okay.

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On another day, do a short tempo run, just 6:00-8:00 total. Go out for your regular run...in the middle of it, speed up a little, to a faster pace which you can easily hold for six or eight minutes. This is somewhere near lactate threshold. It feels brisk, good, and easy to sustain for several minutes. It’s not even close to cross country race effort or 10km race effort. Someone who sees you running at lactate threshold will suspect that you are not just out for a run, but will not wonder if you are in a race.

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On another day, do a longer run that’s one or two miles farther than any of your others during the week. This is your first weekly long run. You can build it gradually to 11-15 miles during the fall.

Strides, short tempo, longer run…that’s where we’ll start. Now, the “ifs”:

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     1) If you have specific questions, email me at <heino@uoregon.edu>.

     2) If you are already doing more than this, be careful. Make steady progress, but be patient!

     3) If you haven’t even started a mileage buildup yet, read below! There is still time! Find out               how to start and select a method…

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FALL TERM DETAILS   

(info from last week for newcomers)

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Our fall term runs for distance and middle-distance runners will be weekdays at 3pm as usual, meeting on the intramural field next to the rec center.

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‘Want to run in races this fall? Everything we do is optional! ‘Race if you wish.

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This fall we have races available from 5km to the half-marathon, some cross country, some road. Some are super low-key, some have 200 collegiate runners. And you can also “Run with the Duck”.

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Evie West from the OSU Running Club asked me last week about the “Platypus” race which is a 5km run on Amazon Trail which we’ve hosted for several years. She suggested Saturday, October 10, and I agreed to that date. It’ll be in the morning, before the UCLA home football game.

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[There will be a required online sign-up for this year’s Club later this summer. I’ll email you the link.]

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NOW NINE NEWCOMERS

We have 9 newcomers for 2026-27:

 

Marcella Palmer, Sioux City North HS, Sioux City IA, <Cella.Josephine@outlook.com>

Amos Unger, International School Bangkok, Thailand, <ungeramos7@gmail.com>

Izaak Mardon, Franklin HS, Portland, <izaakm@uoregon.edu

 

Torsten Zornes, Oregon City HS, <tzornes@uoregon.edu>

Brendan Anstead, Yorba Linda HS CA, <banstead@uoregon.edu>

Jaelyn Wilkins, Heritage HS, Brentwood COLO, <jaelynw@uoregon.edu>

 

Yasmina Moore, Santa Fe Christian HS, Solana Beach CA, <yasmina@uoregon.edu>

Paxton Buelow, Lakewood HS, COLO, <wbuelow@uoregon.edu>

Charlotte Herman, St. Michaels HS, Santa Fe NM, <charh@uoregon.edu>

 

Welcome, all!

 

RANDOM RACES COMING

• Sat, Aug 15, Scandia Run, Junction City, 10km and 5km road race during Scandinavian Festival    https://scandiarun.com/

• August 28-29, Hood-to-Coast Relay

• Sat, Oct 3, Willamette Invitational cross country in Salem, women 5km, men 8km

• Sat, Oct 10, “Platypus” dual cross country with OSU Club, Eugene Amazon Trail, 5km

• Sat, Oct 17, George Oja Invitational cross country outside Salem, women 6km, men 8km

• Fri, Oct 30, Run with the Duck road race, FREE, “5km” usually short, 12 noon   https://getyourbib.com/e/16

• Sun, Nov 22, Run-to-Stay-Warm … read below!

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BIG FINISH FOR FALL TERM

‘Need a culminating event for your fall term running? How about the Run to Stay Warm on November 22? It’s in Eugene, just two miles from campus! There is half-marathon, also a 10K and a 5K. Details at: https://runtostaywarm.com/

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VOLUME BUILDUP…HOW? (Same as last week)

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Here’s what I wrote the first week of July. Start here if you haven’t yet started a volume buildup yet:

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‘Want to do some races in the fall? It’s time to prepare.

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Some of you count miles, some of you don’t. This is the time of year when cross country runners do mostly easy-paced, steady runs in gradually increasing amounts. (We’ll add some quality beginning in August.)

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These relaxed-paced runs establish an aerobic base, build muscular endurance, and toughen connective tissue (tendons, ligaments) and cartilage. The intensity stays low as the volume increases.

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There are [now as August starts, nine] weeks until fall term starts…probably plenty of time to accumulate a slightly greater volume of running this summer than you’ve done before. But where to start?

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You can build from whatever volume you are doing now to some amount that, for you, is a lot. Aim to hit your high mileage in early or mid-September. Get some work done, and arrive in the fall feeling that you’re well prepared...ready to do hard days once or twice a week in late September, and a long run on the weekend.

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But don’t be a slave to mileage! There is virtue in rest. And it’s better to not risk a blowup. If you get five or six days in a week exactly as you want them, that’s a pretty high success ratio. It’s better to get to Eugene in the fall healthy and ready, than to have gone over the edge by pushing too hard.

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Strive for excellence, not perfection!

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You can arrive here in the fall ready to start some racing. I’ll give you sample workouts of faster runs and reps in August so that you can be ready to do to full workouts by mid-September.

If you’re just now starting your buildup of volume, and you want to count weekly miles, here are three ways to progress:

 

Plateau method: example — 30-30-35-35-41-41-48-48-56-56

--a gradual increase, but with plateaus to “consolidate your gains” and be sure that you’re ready for the next step up.

 

Dropback method: example — 30-36-42-36-42-49-42-49-57-49

--you build up two weeks then drop back for one week. The progress seems slow but the chance of being hurt or worn out is small. You still get there!

 

Count-your-runs method:  Borrowing a page from Jack Daniels, if you did six runs last week, increase your week’s mileage by no more than six miles this week. And “plateau” or “drop back” when you feel the need.

 

If you have specific questions now, email me at <heino@uoregon.edu>.

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CAN’T COUNT? (same)

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Are you a non-counter? ‘Like to run, but don’t like to count miles? That works!

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If you want to run some cross country or road races in the fall, just try to get out the door most days for a run. Go whatever pace feels good. Keep the routes varied. Find someone to run with.

Running without counting and timing can be fun and rewarding. And you’ll end up running farther and faster over the summer, without trying to.

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Come back to Eugene in September, fresh and ready for an enjoyable fall!

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SPRINTERS! (same)

Have you found an activity or two that you really enjoy? A team?

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Be creative!

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We hope to have an active sprint training group this fall on the turf fields right next to Hayward Field or on the square track around the tennis courts.

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Michael Donawa wants to work with Club again. Yay!

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HOT WHERE YOU ARE? (same)

It’s going to be hot here again! Run in the morning if you can. Wear a white/light colored shirt. White cap? Drink water before and after. Run from shady spot to shady spot. Run with a friend so you can check on each other. Be smart!

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‘Summertime!

Tom Heinonen