High School Training Profile — Steve Magness
In 2003, John Nepolitan compiled a catalog of the training profiles of the best high school distance runners in North America at the time. He called it TRAINING PROFILES: HIGH SCHOOL BOYS DISTANCE.
It is impossible to find now. Thankfully, I managed to keep my copy. It is 15 years old and falling apart. The profiles include such high school aged boys as Galen Rupp, Dathan Ritzenhein, Chris Solinsky, and Matt Tegenkamp. These four high schoolers went on to set American records in the 2 Mile, 5,000m, and 10,000m among numerous accolades including Olympic medals or near World Championship medals. Also included is my friend, coach, author, and HPW Deputy Director, Steve Magness.
I've included pictures of his three page profile for you to pour over. I suggest you do. It is damn impressive.
You'll note Steve ran doubles Monday through Friday year round. Easy efforts in the mornings coupled with more difficult outings in the afternoon. And he was already distinguishing the difference between aerobic and anaerobic training sessions in high school. If you look closely, you can see the seeds of his coaching philosophy in his explanation of his summer training and thoughts about his high school coach.
Little did I know that years later our paths would intersect. I remember reading his profile in high school and thinking, "This kid is a crazy fast running nerd doing insane mileage. He is going to make waves in the distance running world one day." I thought it would be for his running. Little did I know it would be for his multidimensional contributions to better the sport.
Funny how life works out sometimes.
Thanks for reading. I'm glad you're here. // jm