Introduction
Cross Country Running is a race dependent on human power, speed, and endurance. It is run in the open air and over natural and often uneven terrain, such as dirt or grass. Cross Country races can be as long as 4km to even 12km. Runners typically start the race on a horizontal line and end running single file.
Formal cross country running originates in England in the 19th century from games such as "Hare and Hounds" and " The Paper Chase." English Schools started running in official cross country races in 1837, and they eventually had their first cross country national championship in 1867. Cross country running was part of the Olympic Games of 1912, 1920 ,and 1924. In the 1924 Olympics, only 15 out of the 38 runners finished the race! Two athletes actually died in the attempt! Therefore, cross country running was ban from the Olympics.
In this WebQuest, I am going to focus on the task of building endurance, which I feel is the most important part of Cross Country Running.
Task
A very important task in cross country running is building endurance. Building endurance in cross country running can mean two different things. For the beginner runner, improving distance endurance is important, for the goal is to run longer distances. For experienced runners, improving speed endurance is key, for the goal is to run faster.
Process
There are many different ways to build endurance for running, but this WebQuest is going to focus on one technique, which is probably the best way to start: it is to build endurance slow and steady.
You can do this by running a little longer or a little farther each day or each week. Make sure you incorporate off days into your running schedule to cross train or recover before your next run. Your body will adjust to this slowly and build endurance for longer distances, but always remember: your brain will tell you to quit before your body is ready to.
Evaluation
When you are building running endurance at a slow and steady pace, the goal is not to be able to go really fast, but to be able to keep running for longer and longer distances.
If you are trying to go fast and you are really struggling, that's not the point, for the goal right now is just to run long distance and to slowly move forward. If you are really having a hard time running a longer distance, focus on running that distance for a while and then move on to the longer distances. Once the distance you are running starts to feel less tiresome, then you can start to push yourself to go faster. Always remember that your brain will tell you to quit before you body is ready to.
It is possible that while training to run cross country, you are actually overtraining! Early signs of overtraining can actually affect your mood more then your physical state. It can cause sleep disturbance, colds, headaches, and even depression. Eventually, overtraining leads to injury. If you feel like you are overtraining take time to recover! Get a good night sleep, eat good and healthy food, and just slow down for a bit and give your body time to recover.
Conclusion
Cross Country Running can easily be taken in Canada for middle school, high school, and university. In a university level, cross country running is administered by the Canadian Interuniversity Sport.
Remember that it is very important to build endurance in cross country running, and probably the best way is to slowly increase your distance at a steady pace.
Once you are less tired from running a certain distance you can push yourself to go farther or faster, but don't over train, take time for your body to recover for the next distance.
Cross Country running is an economic sport which will keep you fit and teach you endurance.