by Larry Eder
Hello, high school distance runners and Happy New Year from RunBlogRun!
This is the fourth day in week 4 of our ten week Winter Training program, which goes up until the NIKE Indoor Championships (March 12-15, 2026, more info at https://nikeindoornationals.runnerspace.com/).
The goal is to have you in track shape at the start of Outdoor season (March in most of the country).
The NIKE Indoor Nationals will be held on March 12-15, 2025 at the NIKE Track & Field Armory. We encourage high schoolers to race indoors but always note that the Big Season is Outdoors!
Workout for Thursday, January 29, 2026
Warm-up, stretch well, 6 x 150 meter stride outs, 16 x 200 meters, good effort, 200 meters jogging, moving, finish with 15-20 minutes of very easy running, cooldown well.
Hydrate well, spend time stretching, keep running at conversational pace and also, vary your surfaces, perhaps some park trails, and sidewalks.
USATF Outdoor Track and Field Championships held at Hayward Field, University of Oregon, June 23-26, 2022, photo by Kevin Morris
The NIKE Pegasus PLUS may be the perfect NIKErunning shoe for training for the winter as a middle distance runner (800m-5000m). It is light, sturdy and built for miles! I would recommend it for speed days, fartlek days, hill days and if you have just one shoe, a good trainer/racer. Nike is back on track with this shoe, part of the NIKE Pegasus 41 evolution.
I recommend two pairs of training shoes for this winter, such as a NIKE Pegasus PLUS and a NIKE Vomero 18 or Vomero PLUS (shown below) for easy days and long days. The Pegasus PLUS is well constructed, can handle dirt and mud and gives you a stable, comfortable ride without overdoing the cushioning. As always, we do not recommend that you buy your running performance shoes remotely, but go into a real live running store.
If you need a little more cushioning, try the Vomero 18. The Vomero 18 has more cushioning that the Pegasus PLUS. If you like NIKE, I would suggest high schoolers use the NIKE Pegasus PLUS for Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. I would suggest the Vomero 18 for Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I always suggest two pairs of training shoes. Learn more on www.nikerunning.com.
Do you want to be a better cross country runner than you were in the past? Focus and follow our training. It is all about the consistency.
For Winter reading! Self Made Olympian by Ron Daws, A Clean Pair of Heels by Murray Halberg, Pre! by Tom Jordan, Quicksilver, The Mercurial Emil Zatopek, by Pat Butcher, The Destiny of Alain Mimoun, by Pat Butcher (a monograph)
Remember, one day at a time!!!! #crosscountryrunning, #trackandfieldtraining, #winterrunning, #wintertraining,
