Luke Vander Leest

Husband. Father. Teacher. Coach. Runner. Saved by grace.

[Cyclone Dave @CycloneDave69]

I’m so glad they taught me how to use these circles in grade school because now I’m able to understand that Iowa State is the only school in the country in the top 10 in MBB, WBB, and football. Thanks grade school.

[Digital Z South Dakota @DigitalZSD]

𝐆𝐢𝐫𝐥𝐬 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥
𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝟑𝐀

#1 SFC- 88
#8 Baltic- 30

The Chargers cruise to victory as Katie Vander Leest goes for 15 points in the win!

SFC will now face West Central in the SoDak 16 Qualifier.

#SDPreps | @sfchoops

[Jason Andera @605Jandy]

SF Christian was down 12 with 2:28 left Maya Nelson hit a 3 to force OT, then Katie Vander Leest hit a shot to force 2OT. @SFHoops beat @TeaGbb 82-73 Here are those big shots @MidcoSports

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

💔🙏Obituary for Isaiah Young: https://t.co/MmKKU2P8PC

Along with family visitation Sunday from 3-5pm @ Heritage Funeral Home, all classmates, teammates and friends are invited to meet up at SFC’s chapel from 7-8pm on Sunday night.

Funeral will be Monday at 10am @SFC

[Iowa State Men’s Basketball @CycloneMBB]

BEWARE OF DAWGS!

#Cyclones | #C5C

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

Today’s performance by the SFC boys 4x100 earns a spot on the SD all-time top 10💪

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

🚨RECORD ALERT 🚨
4x100 relay team sets a new SFC school record with a blazing fast 4️⃣2️⃣.5️⃣9️⃣
Congrats to J.Adams, N.Schroder, C.VanDonge, J.Reuer

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

@CoachDistance If a standard track was 402.3 meters around, then the mile / 2 mile would make sense. But it seems to me that 1600 / 3200 isost reasonable considering...
And I never have understood the theory behind 1500/3k on a 400m track🤷🏻‍♂️

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

🔥🔥SFC boys just ran the FASTEST 4X2 in South Dakota HISTORY~ 1️⃣:2️⃣7️⃣.4️⃣2️⃣ ~ placing 3rd in the nation at Nike Nationals💪🏼
Congrats to J.Adams, N.Schroder, C.VanDonge, J.Reuer

[Jay Johnson @coachjayjohnson]

Almost every serious distance runner will end the track season saying, “I know I could have run faster.”

Even if the season ended with multiple PRs and great races in the final two weeks, serious runners always want to make the next jump in performance, which is why summer training has always been so important for distance runners.

But before athletes start training for cross country, they need to fully recover from the track season.

Obviously, they need time off if they had a minor injury or a “niggle.” More often, athletes simply need to give their bodies time to recover and regenerate.

Coaches have always (rightly) insisted on some amount of time off after the season for the simple reason that it sets up athletes for higher levels of subsequent training – you’re not going to have a great summer of training if you’re fatigued when you start.

What's often less appreciated by athletes, coaches, and parents is the need for a mental break from running. Track was a stressor, but so were the end of the year exams and all the social activities.

Simply put, athletes shouldn’t start summer training until they’re a bit bored.

Said another way, they need to be “chomping at the bit” to train before they begin again.

Here are my suggestions for how much time off athletes should take after cross country before they resume training.

To be clear- if a high school runner has an excellent coach, they simply need to follow their plan.

But so many athletes have coaches who are just as fatigued as their runners at the end of the season and can’t provide a convincing rationale for time off. In that case, or in the case of a runner with no instruction, the following will be helpful.

“How much time should runners take off after track?”
Great question.

First, let’s agree that if a high school athlete trains with intent and is consistent 48 weeks a year, they’ll race fast and run PRs. This means that following the track season and again this fall, following cross country, they can take two weeks where they are not training seriously.

Second, I’ve seen two schools of thought work well in national-caliber programs.

One school of thought is to take just 2-3 days off after the final meet since the chance for injury goes up (slightly) the longer you take off.

Another view holds that athletes need two full weeks off. Typically, this is a week of no running and then a week of active rest where they play ball sports, ride bikes, hike, etc. But no running.

My recommendation lies in the middle of these two views.

I fully understand, and have carefully considered, the argument that complete days of rest slightly increase the chance of injury when athletes resume training. This minor risk is outweighed by the benefit of a mental and physical break.

Two-week Training Plan Between Track and Cross Country

Assuming the last track meet was on a Saturday.

Saturday – Race.

Sunday – Easy 20-minute run then 10-15 minutes of mobility work and soft tissue work (self-massage). Athletes should identify any “niggles” and make a note of what those are. If there is pain and not soreness, this is the time to see a physical therapist, chiropractor, or, if possible, a massage therapist that works with runners.

Monday – No running but 10-15 minutes of mobility and soft tissue work. Again, they should report back to you if they have any niggles.

Tuesday through Friday – Four days of nothing. No running and no other activity.

Saturday – Bike ride, brisk walk, or hike. They should get outside. These can be longer than a normal easy run – a 90- to 120-minute hike is fine, as is a 60-minute bike ride.

Sunday – Off is best, but athletes can do the same thing they did Saturday, too.

If the athlete is not bored and not excited to resume training at this point, repeat the previous week.

But they will likely be chomping at the bit to train, so now they get to run...

For this second week, consider assigning three runs where they do the following:

An adjusted version of Jeff Boelé’s warm-up (they’ll do the full version when their first full week back).

Just 20-30 minutes of easy running with 3-5 x 15-second strides at 5k pace as part of the run.

They’ll finish with 10-15 minutes of the level of the Strength and Mobility (SAM) they started with prior to the start of the official outdoor track season (or their strength and mobility work their coach assigned in the last winter).

All told this is under an hour of work.

They could do this Monday/Wednesday/Friday or Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday. Sunday is completely off in both scenarios.

On the other days, they can swim for 20-30 minutes, play some ball sports, or take the day completely off.

Then they’ll resume full training on Monday.

https://t.co/VfG2lIhAmG

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

@CoachDistance Sticky notes!
Lots and lots of sticky notes 🤣

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

Thanks @GoJacksSDSU for putting on a great meet!
@ArgusSports @sfc_activities @DigitalZSD

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

@CoachDistance Can’t even see our track yet…

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

I’ve been so blessed to have this kind, gentle and wise man as a mentor and friend! Congrats Coach!

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

Here’s the reason we “excused” Coach Garry from Friday’s track practice… he was getting inducted into another Hall of Fame (USF, SDHSCA, SDFBCA)
We’re so blessed to have @bsgarry69 investing in our kids! 💙

[Travis Miller @travismillerx13]

"I'm so terrified to ever try and do that again. It was the most pain I've ever felt in my life"

- Sydney McLaughlin on her 50.68 400mH 🌎world record

[SFC XC / T&F @sfc_xc]

In case you wanted a glimpse of what it looks like to have 205 kids out for HS/MS track & field 🙃

[Luke Vander Leest @LukeDukeVL]

@CoachDistance So much wisdom packed into these replies.
I would simply add this: surround yourself with assistant coaches who share your values and can help you spread the love, the joy, the knowledge, the passion and most importantly the connections with the kids entrusted to your care.

[SFC HOOPS @sfchoops]

🏀🏆March Madness🏆🏀
SFC wins the consolation championship in a thrilling overtime win vs the feisty and talented Fliers of Flandreau.
SFC -46
Flandreau-43

@KELOSports @SDScoreFeed @DigitalZSD @sfc_activities @ArgusSports

[Digital Z South Dakota @DigitalZSD]

Chargers get the win over RC Christian!

Ellie Lems scores 12 for SFC, while Alexa Ham finishes with 14 and 11 in the loss.
#SDHoops23

[SFC HOOPS @sfchoops]

🔥🏀SD State A Cons ‘Ship🏀🔥
🆚 Flandreau
🗓️ today!
⌚️1:45pm
📍@ Watertown

@KELOSports @SDScoreFeed @dakotasportsnow @MidcoSports

[SFC HOOPS @sfchoops]

https://t.co/FNsxqDQoPc

State T-shirt orders are due 10am Friday