Coaches walk fine line to keep runners healthy

A cross country coach must walk a fine line to help runners peak at the right time while not pushing too hard.

Injury in sports often is unavoidable and no sport is immune, even noncontact sports. Cross country running seems to have more than its fair share of injuries, and ultimately, keeping runners healthy is as vital as any duty for a coach.

"I think one of the most important jobs of a high school coach is knowing what is too much," Central coach Mark Hahn said. "That's where you get that fine line."

Managing runners is a fine science honed over years of coaching. Each coach may have his own way of trying to prevent injuries, but it is no coincidence successful coaches are the ones with healthy teams.

"The big thing I try to do is not over-train runners," said Larry Cleair, coach of 2004 and 2005 Class 1 state champion Saxony Lutheran. "I'd rather have someone have a lot of potential and be healthy then have someone that by mid-September they're running at their peak but by October be hurt and can't run anymore."

Summer running can play a big part in avoiding injuries. Runners who can build a foundation in the summer may not feel the need to play catch-up once the season starts. Building miles takes time, and each runner's body reacts differently to increases in workloads.

"In our sport, if you don't work in the summer, they and the coach feel you come in in August and have to get ready for the first meet and overdo it," Notre Dame coach Bill Davis said. "I very much stress the summer work, and that's pretty much kept us injury free."

At Central, that summer work goes a long way in determining the runner's training regimen.

"I kind of go by a rule of thumb we start off with each kid finding what is acceptable for them, what they can do," Hahn said. "Their training is not based on their ability. Their training is based on what their training has been."

In cross country, playing through pain can be a recipe for disaster. Communication is the key. Coaches encourage their runners to speak up about injuries.

"Making them more knowledgeable about themselves, and listening to their bodies is a big part of being successful," Davis said.

Of course, many of the area teams also have trainers to fall back on.

"I think having a good trainer's advice is very important," Davis said. "We [coaches] get caught up in the emotional aspect of the sport."

One injury no coach wants to hear about is the stress fracture, a season-killer for runners.

"The stress fracture is the nemesis in cross country," Hahn said. "It's a bad word. We feel it's an error on our part if that happens."

Most injuries in cross country are not as severe as a stress fracture, but any injury can potentially be serious. Taking time to properly heal is important.

Some coaches use rest days to help kids heal. And there are non-impact methods coaches use to help keep runners in shape but healthy. At Central, the team trains in the pool during the season.

"In this sport, we're all about conditioning, and there's other ways to condition besides impact," Hahn said.

Even with the line of communication open, coaches have to know when to control an elite athletes' work ethic.

"That's one of the biggest things as a high school coach, especially with your top echelon kids, is to keep them from hurting themselves," Cleair said. "A good runner might find themselves thinking if a little bit is good, a lot is great."

Added Davis: "You're kind of caught between a rock and a hard place. Kids get caught up in work ethic. They feel they can't back off. They have to work hard. Coaches can get caught up in that, too. If a runner is hurt, you have to be willing to back them off a little bit. There's a happy medium."