Skip The Jog

When it comes to your summer conditioning, everything is relative 

Behind the Clipboard by Clay Kallam

I’m going to play football in the fall, and my mom says I should get up early every morning — or at least four days a week — and go run five miles to get in shape. I don’t think running five miles has anything to do with football, but I think what’s really going on is she hates it when I sleep in too late.

– A.R., Rocklin

   First, show your mom last issue’s Behind the Clipboard about sleep. There’s no need to wake up early just to run — and in fact, though I’d like to say mother knows best, I think she’s off base on both sides of this issue.

   So let’s think about a five-mile run. Yes, it will definitely supply some base conditioning and help with your cardio. There are benefits, no question.

   But is it actually a “run”? Is there any “running” involved? No, a five-mile jaunt is a jog, plain and simple. (And if you can come close to running for five miles, you should be seriously considering a post-high school career in track, because you’ve got some very good genes working for you.)

   To be precise, then, your mom wants you to get up earlier than your body should, and then go out on a long jog.

   OK, here’s a question for your mom: How often do you jog on the football field? How often do your coaches want you to jog on the football field? What will happen if they see you jogging during a game?

   The answers are pretty obvious. When you’re playing football, for those brief intervals between long huddles, you should be sprinting. Well, sprinting when you’re not blocking, or fighting off blocks or other maximum-effort exercises — and the key phrase here is “maximum-effort.”

   If you want to get ready for football, then you should get ready by working at the rate you’ll work during football — which is all-out. If you want to build cardio, sprint. If you want to build strength, be explosive. Don’t jog. Don’t be slow and sure. Sprint. Explode. Be powerful, because that’s what leads to success in football.

   Now if you’re going out for cross country, those long jogs make a lot of sense, because that’s what cross country is about. (Except five miles probably isn’t enough …) But even if you’re going to play volleyball, that’s an explosion sport (jumping and hitting), and a five-mile jog doesn’t help you get ready to be explosive on the court any more than sleeping in until noon. (And in fact, it probably does less, given the importance of sleep to adolescents.)

   You can do workouts that will help your cardio, and get you ready for football. Go down to the field and sprint. Sprint 20 yards, and then walk 20. Sprint 20 and then walk 20. Or get on the track and sprint the curves and walk the straights. Or run pass patterns (even if you’re a lineman) to get used to exploding out of cuts.

   But a five-mile run? Sorry, mom. Jogging early in the morning is a waste of time, and a waste of sleep besides.

Clay Kallam is an assistant athletic director and girls varsity basketball coach at Bentley High in Lafayette. To submit a question for Behind the Clipboard, email him at  HYPERLINK “mailto:[email protected]” [email protected]