Will running on a track help me for cross country?

Question

i havent really ran on grass and sidewalk and stuff for crosscountry, i have walked on it though, on trails and around the neighborhood. i am doing cross country and am nervous about my first practice in a week. will running on a track help increase my stamina??

Answer 1

Yes, it will help with endurance, but if you are doing x-country, i would recommend running through parks/forests so that you get used to the different footing. Don't run on really hard surfaces(roads, sidewalks etc) too much, you could wind up hurting your self(pavement is a very unrelenting surface with little shock absorbency)

Answer 2

You really want to run mainly on trails and on grass.  Sidewalks aren't too bad either though, but I STRONGLY suggest the former two.  Track will only help you with speed because it's flat.  No hills or anything, which is a key element in cross country.

Answer 3

No

Answer 4

no, it will actually set u in the wrong direction, u want to run on grass and on trails, and especcially on the road as much as possible, the track is softer then pavement, thats y.  Good luck!!

Answer 5

it will make XC seem boring, XC is all about adventure, go out and run around town or into the woods. be adventurous and dont mind getting a tad dirty, i had to run across creeks in one of my races (best race though) :D

Answer 6

Yes it will. Doing occasional speed work will make you do a much better pace. Even for 5Ks and 10Ks I do speed work on a track like once a week.

Answer 7

The only thing that will help you with your stamina is running... Running on a track may not be totally ideal, but it will help although you may have wanted to start running a few weeks ago.