The Wrinkled Runner
The Wrinkled Runner
Stay in Your Lane: Using a Track for Beginner's
Have you ever found yourself frustrated by walkers in the fast lanes or unsure which lane to use on a running track? This episode will arm you with essential track etiquette tips to enhance your running experience. We'll discuss the importance of following the rules (whether posted or not) to keep everyone safe and courteous.
Track workouts might seem intimidating, but they don't have to be. Whether you're a beginner or a seasoned road runner looking for variety, this episode will encourage you how to incorporate track workouts into your routine, complete with additional resources for further exploration.
Resources:
Intro to Track- from Sifuentes Coaching
Know Your Oval- from The Runner Eclectic - scroll down if you are interested in the exact measurements of each lane all the way around
Track Workouts to Improve Your Speed- Very Well Fit
If you are looking for a coach to help you reach your running goals, even if it's just to start to run, take a look at my Coaching Services page on the website. I do virtual, in-person (Buffalo, NY area) and also offer single zoom sessions for those would just like to chat with a coach one time.
Find my additional outlets over at the YouTube channel and at wrinkledrunner.com. Sign up over on the blog for the once-a-month newsletter! If you would like information on utilizing a running coach, check out what I can do for you here.
If you have any running-related questions, please send an email to sherry@wrinkledrunner.com…I answer every one.
Today I'm going to go over the track and how you can use it for your own running, even if you're a beginner or haven't done workouts before. If you know the basics, you can utilize the track as a controlled environment, which is beneficial for various runs that have some purpose to them. For those of us that are recreational runners, it can be intimidating to even think about heading to the high school or you know wherever there's a track for you to get onto. Until I was a coach, the thought of track workouts actually never even entered my mind. I figured the stops and starts of traffic road running were just the norm, and I don't even think I knew anyone was allowed to use a track, actually unless they were, you know, a high school student or college student, or you know part of a running group that was able to use the track because they had permission to, of course, that would actually be. The first order of business is to see what tracks are available to the public in your area and also if there are periods of time when you can't use it. So in my area in Buffalo, there is one about four miles from me that doesn't get much use early in the morning, so that's where I meet my clients anywhere from 6 to 8 am, because I know that there's not going to be a lot of people there, a lot of people trying to get workouts. As far as I know, no schools's not going to be a lot of people there a lot of people trying to get workouts. As far as I know, no schools use it that early, even during the school year. So that's where I meet clients who are going to be doing track workouts there and I had to do some research for that, to find out what tracks allow the public to use. And there are some tracks ever since COVID that actually pre-COVID they allowed the public to use and since then they haven't. So that's just something you're going to have to Google in your area and try and figure out what can and can't be used.
Speaker 1:If you've been on a track or if you've ever seen one, even just on TV, you know that there are numbers and lanes all around. So we just finished the paris olympics, so if you watched any of the track games, it's probably pretty fresh in your mind that picture in your head of what a track actually looks like. So the biggest thing to know is that lane one is exactly 400 meters. The other lanes get longer and longer. If you were to start right where the lane one start point is and I'll link you in the show notes to a resource that gives you all the numbers. But for this discussion we are going to talk about some of the etiquette surrounding using the track, some of the ways you can build a track workout for yourself and a few other things. So the actual lanes and how much each one goes around might not be important to you for this discussion, but, like I said, I'll link you to the show notes so that you can actually see what the precise measurements are for the track for each of the different lanes. So when you first go to the track, if there are others there, you're going to need to know a few niceties.
Speaker 1:So a big thing is that lane one is for fast runners. One of my pet peeves when I'm at the track with an athlete is that there are some people who come who are walkers, who they just start walking in lane one, and I have actually had my fastest runner already running in lane one and in comes a walker that will start right up in lane one and even when my runner comes up behind them and whooshes past them. My runner is the one who will have to go into lane two to avoid a collision, and they're going to stubbornly stay in lane one, even though it's apparent that we are already utilizing it. And the track that I use has eight lanes, and so it's kind of a peeve of mine that the people who own the track don't post rules that you know if, if you're walking, don't pick lane one, that's not to diss walkers. I think it's important, and I think people who come and walk early in the morning, I think that's awesome, but I also think you should know the rules of the road.
Speaker 1:When it comes to that, it's like, as a runner, I can't tell you the number of bikers who have come at me when there's a clearly marked bike lane and then there's a pedestrian lane and there are these bikers who will come right at me. Had actually some bikers yell at me that I shouldn't be where I am, even though I'm in the pedestrian section, but they don't understand how, you know, bike lanes work, or like bike lanes in conjunction with a pedestrian lane, but they're also dressed in full kit as if they're, you know, running the tour, as if they're biking the Tour de France. So I that is. Kind of. A pet peeve of mine is when people are acting like they know what's what when they don't, and I'm getting yelled at for doing the right thing when they're the ones who are in the wrong. So, anyway, that rant's over.
Speaker 1:But if, if you ride a bike and you're wearing full kit, please learn the rules of the road and what you're actually supposed to be doing. So if that happens to you when somebody is slower and using lane one, just move over to lane two to avoid a collision, because that will actually then give you a smoother run so that you're not having to jump into a different lane. I tell my clients just to move over when that happens. So if you've never used a track before, just know that lots of walkers actually use the track. So as a runner, even if you aren't super fast, you should feel very comfortable there. If you are fast, use lane one. If no other faster runners are there, if there are, settle onto a lane and use that one.
Speaker 1:If you happen to be using lane one or any lane, if the track is busy and someone yells lane or track at you, they're just letting you know that they're going to pass you. They're really not trying to be rude. But if you don't know that and someone's like screaming, track at you or lane at you, you might think that they're just trying to get you to get out of their way and like being rude. But they're really not. They're just trying to be, uh, trying to let you be aware that they are there and if they are running faster than you, you know, maybe move over to another lane so they can have that track for their workout.
Speaker 1:When you run on a track, the direction is actually pretty set, so it's counterclockwise. There are some instances so say a runner who uses the track a lot and needs to balance out the body, so to speak, where you might see someone actually running clockwise. But in reality I actually haven't ever seen that, but it might happen. So if that does happen and somebody is running clockwise when it's supposed to be counterclockwise, just give them the benefit of the doubt that they're trying to kind of balance out their body a little bit and run in the opposite direction, just so that their bodies aren't constantly doing the same thing over and over. Because we do get kind of set in our ways and if you don't introduce the opposite to your bodies. You know, say we run a race that all of a sudden we're not making right or left turns all the time. That can be detrimental.
Speaker 1:So if others are running at the track, don't stop abruptly and also look both ways before walking or exiting or crossing over lanes. So this is track etiquette and race etiquette also, by the way, because you don't want to be cause of collision. So if you are in a race, protocol says to raise your hand and kind of move off to the side if you're going to stop, instead of just stopping abruptly. A lot of people don't actually know that and so if somebody stops abruptly in front of you, it can cause a pretty good collision and also mess somebody up if they're actually going for time for things, aware of how many people are on the track and that if you need to get off of the track or you know stop running or whatever that you kind of make yourself either go over towards the middle of the track, which is usually a grassy area, or off the track completely or into another lane. It just depends on where you are oriented and you know, of course, as always, just be aware of your surroundings Every once in a while you might see a cone in lane one especially, and this is because that lane might need some love, because a lot of people use that lane and with the running shoes pounding on it and you know, just going around and around.
Speaker 1:Sometimes that lane will need to have some work done on it. So if there's a cone in lane one, don't move it and don't run on it, just pick a different lane. That lane is going to be getting some maintenance and it'll be ready to go, probably in the next week, two weeks, whatever. So those are some basic rules and after learning that, maybe you do want to try a track workout. So what would that look like?
Speaker 1:If you want an easy intro to track, you could run a mile easy, which would roughly be four times around the track, and then run hard for one lap, which is 400 meters, which is a bit less than a quarter mile if you're American and then run another lap easy and then run another lap hard and do that four times. So that's going to give you another two miles. So you're going to finish up with a mile cool down or four laps easy. Now, if you're not in lane one, that distance isn't going to be exact, but like if you don't understand the stagger system and the lines associated with that, it's kind of hard to explain that over a podcast. So check the link to understand.
Speaker 1:You know all the different measurements for around the track, but unless you're super type A OCD, the beauty of that type of workout is you only need to remember the specifics of how many times around the track and what your pace range is, and then you can duplicate that workout, whatever track that you may be on, to see how you progress. So the only lane you'd have to remember is what number you're in. So say you ran that workout where you're running four laps in lane three and then you're running one lap hard, one lap easy four times and then running another four times easy at the end for a cool down. You can always go to any track available and use lane three, do that workout and then look back at how you completed it the last time you did it to be able to see your progress. You can duplicate that track workout. So in the show notes I will also give you links for other track workouts that you might want to try.
Speaker 1:The main thing with this episode is just to get you to understand how to utilize the track and the different rules associated with it and to maybe give you some confidence to go and try it out. I mean, you can always go to a track, run your run your workout and try it out. No matter what you do on the track, if you do it confidently, no one is going to question what you're doing. So get some confidence in utilizing that. It's a different way to run and it doesn't have to be intimidating and can be a fun way to introduce speed training. Variety is great for keeping you interested and running on a track is a new thing to explore. So try that out and see if incorporating track workouts is something that can motivate you.