Is cross country very different from track? Harder?

Question

I need to do a summer sport to train for track and my coaches said I should to cross country. Will it be extremely stressful and competative like track? Some of my friends say oh its way different, cross country is better. But they train so hard! What is cross country like?

Answer 1

I've done both, and cross country is way more fun. It is about 100 times harder though. We work until we are absolutely dead, and then some. In track you work hard too, but distance and sprinting are two way different ball games. I was a short distance runner, and did distance one summer, and i could never go back. You use different muscles and if you don't train for both at the same time, you'll lose your speed, trust me, I did. So basically, I don't think cross country would help you in track. Not that track's not fun, or that it's not hard work, but cross country's hard, but amazing.

good luck :]

Answer 2

cross country practice isn't much different from track practice for the most part, but the meets are very different.  in track you just run laps, which can get boring. but in cross country it's a different course every meet with scenery and a lot more people cheering you on.  cross country is also a team sport, so you have a better chance of making it to the next level.

the main difference in practice is that in cross country you do less on the track. both are a blast and keep you in shape for whaterver your doing.

Answer 3

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***Competitive events and running surfaces, track, vs. cross country***

In track you have your choice of field events, sprints, and middle distances.  In cross country, it's the whole team doing one distance, usually 2.5 to 3.1 miles.

With track, your competitive venue is limited to - a track!  In cross country, you can train and race on grass, trails, pavement, even sand.  You can run on hills . . . through woods . . .and even through mud.

***Track and cross country are like soup and sandwich!!**

Track and cross country really complement each other.  It's not to say that all who are successful in one will be successful in the other, that's not the case.  But for the serious runner, each sport can help development in the other.

Track, on the one hand, involves a fairly stable racing environment, the 400 meter track.  Consequently, you can use the track and the stable environment to develop speed.  You can be reasonably sure you are improving week to week, since the 'course' is for the most part the same, week to week.  Many runners use track to develop speed for cross country.

Cross country, on the other hand, as mentioned above, involves racing against the terrain.  It is of course a longer race than what you would encounter in track.  So consequently you usually end up training more miles per week, and longer distances per repetition while doing interval training.  If you like long distance training and racing, you'll enjoy this more than track.  If not, you'll find cross country harder than track.  And unlike track, it's every runner for the team - you really get more of a team feeling when you're on a cross country team.

Many runners use cross country to develop endurance for track.

**They're both great!***

All runners benefit from both cross country and track because they are different - and yet both sports keep you running and in shape year round.

Regards,

Running_Dad

**Personally, having run cross country and track in both high school and college, I liked cross country the best.  I ran track, developing speed.  But in cross country, I used my strength, which is strength, and that was always fun!!**

Answer 4

Cross country is all long distance running, no sprinting, and it's not on a track. If you like running on soil and long distance running, you should definitely check it out.

Answer 5

It depends on what you ran in track.

The average XC meet, they run about 3miles.

Answer 6

cross country is all about building base. its a lot of long distance runnign and mileage and building endurance. cross country is different than track because the races are different. there are way more people in a cross country race than in a track race.

Answer 7

well cross country will keep you in shape for track, and its way fun! i love it!

its a lot different from track, its harder because you run for really long distances. and track has a lot of sprinting.

in cross country everyone is like a big huge family, and in track your not really. so yeah x-country is more fun!

you should at least try it though!!

Answer 8

I've done both, track & CC. I was in the 1500m.

If you're more strict about running times, training plan regime, join track. If you're more into the lifestyle of running, outdoorsy nature stuff, join cc.

I''d prefer CC over track any day; track is more about explosive kinetics while cc is more about endurance.

Answer 9

Well I run track I as we practice i would notice the cross country people would run really far. maybe 2 to 3 miles daily after school. Wit corss country you run everywhere and as far a track you can run a short distanct. Me personally I would say to stick with track if you dn't like to run that much ( short distancts) but if you love to run then go ahead.

Answer 10

oh my gosh, it is so much better!!  ahhhh

on my team we all hated track but did it b/c our coach made us.  

its better because running on pretty trails beats running on a track, and the fall is better than the spring for that kind of running, and while it is VERY competitive, there is more camaraderie among different teams and especially on your team because you really have to work TOGETHER to win, more obviously than you do in track.  

:D