The Men’s 1500m Final Was Insane
I rewatched the Olympic men’s 1500m final. If you have not seen it, watch it. If you have seen it, rewatch it! There were so many times that Cole or Yared could have given up. The pace was brutal the…
Coach Flatow
MVXC 2024 Basics
Here are a few key points for the 2024 cross country season! Practice! The first practice will be on Saturday, August 10, at 7:00 a.m. at the Monta Vista track! We will have practice at 7 a.m., to beat the…
It’s Time For MVXC24! And Week 9 Plans
It’s almost time for MVXC24! To get you in the mood, please watch this video about the Dark Peak Fell Runners and the Edale Skyline Fell Race. Fell running is an extreme version of cross-country racing, and you will also…
We All Need Comrades!
A new post in the coach’s content section.
Advice, or Science? And Week 8 Summer Running Suggestions
I was cleaning out a drawer and found this hilarious old book, “How They Train.” What the author did was talk to hundreds of runners, ask them what workouts they ran, and write up the results. This was what coaches…
Little Things can make a Big Difference
A year ago, at one of the farmers’ markets I regularly use in Oregon, one of the farmers had a weird, cone-shaped cabbage. DJ, the farmer, told me that it was an old Italian variety he was trying. Although few…
Happiness is a Group Phenomenon
One of the papers we read last year in my University of Pennsylvania program studied how being part of a strong friend group makes people happier. This psychological study, originally a cardiac health project, followed a social network of 12,067…
Athletic Clearance Status (August 9 Update)
Don’t miss the Watermelon Run! Everyone needs to be cleared before our first practice on August 10 in order to participate! All the information on how to get your athletic clearance is posted on the Matador Athletics site, linked…
I Want You To Fail
Wait, what? Yes, I want you to fail. Or more accurately, I want you to try something where you will probably fail. In Angela Duckworth’s GritLab class at the University of Pennsylvania, students are assigned to try something that they…
Jollyman Park Run Options
Check out the map/diagram we created today, which shows different Jollyman Park run options! We took the Stelling Loop with a stop for drills (boring!) and created mix-and-match routes for a maintenance day from 3 miles to 5.7 miles…and of…
Countdown to LA: Mt. SAC Race + Disneyland for MVXC
Olympics Highlight: Before you read any further, please take a look at this video of the 2024 USA Olympic Trials 1500m women’s final. Nikki Hiltz won the CCS 1600 a decade ago, and now they are heading to the Olympics!…
Hey Buddy! Let’s keep each other happy. And…Week 4 Runs!
As most of you know, I recently completed a master’s degree in applied positive psychology at the University of Pennsylvania. Many people ask, what exactly is positive psychology? Chris Peterson, one of the foundational researchers in positive psychology, said the…