How Do You Train an Elite High School Runner?

What changes when you have a superstar high school runner on your cross country or track & field team?

According to coaches Jesse Coy and Eric Dettman, the answer may be much simpler than you think.

In this episode of Coaching Distance, Jesse Coy discusses his experience coaching Simeon Birnbaum in high school and shares insights from Eric Dettman’s coaching of elite runner Ellery Lincoln. The central message is simple: elite high school runners don't necessarily need completely different training- they simply do the same things, but at a higher level.

This episode explores how coaches can train elite athletes within the same team training system while still making appropriate individual adjustments for pace, volume, recovery, racing, and training precision.

The episode covers:

• Why superstar athletes don't necessarily need completely different workouts

• How to train elite runners within a team-based system

• The importance of consistency over "secret" workouts

• Why elite athletes may need more precise training paces to avoid overtraining

• Managing race schedules for high-level high school runners

• Why recovery, sleep, hydration, nutrition, and consistency matter

• Why elite runners should remain part of the team

• How to avoid changing your training philosophy because of what you see on Strava, Instagram, TikTok, or YouTube

• Developing athletes for long-term success beyond high school

Eric Dettman shares how Ellery Lincoln trains within the Lincoln High School program, including threshold training, speed development, moderate mileage, team training, and the importance of consistency and execution.

One of the biggest takeaways is that the goal isn't to make training look impressive, the goal is to make athletes better.

If you coach high school cross country, high school track & field, middle-distance runners, or distance runners from the 800m through 5K, this conversation provides practical ideas for developing elite athletes without abandoning the training system that helped them become successful in the first place.

Topics: High School Cross Country Training • High School Track Training • Elite Distance Runners • Distance Running Training • Threshold Training • Speed Development • 800m Training • 1500m/1600m Training • 3200m Training • 5K Training • Training Philosophy • Team Culture • Athlete Development • Long-Term Athlete Development • Coaching Elite Runners

Learn more about Coaching Distance and access the full webinar library, training plans, coaching resources, and training tools at CoachingDistance.com.