Getting Started
Peak Performance Running is a year-round running program based in the foothills of Golden, Colorado serving athletes of all abilities levels from ages 8-18. Peak provides a full-service program for performance athletes and beginners with a focus on fundamentals and basics. Our summer sessions are focused on the racing track and preparing for the Middle School & High School XC seasons. Our winter programs are geared towards speed and power development for winter indoor track and spring outdoor track. Since 2017 we’ve graduated 20+ athletes into collegiate running programs, produced 4 athletes on Team USA world & national teams, and 20+ Cross Country All-Americans.
Development Team (8-11yrs)
This is a home for the youngest athletes starting at age 8. This team is all about creating a joy for running and built under the idea that deliberate play is the basis of every sport. This team is about making running fun and developing basic skills
Juniors Team (12-14)
This is the team athletes move to after Development. There is no minimum age for this team. Athletes entering the Juniors team often have a drive to compete and are encouraged to race in local 5K’s and Junior Olympic cross country and track races. Most athletes enter this team as Middle Schoolers
How our teams are structured
Our teams are based on an athlete’s abilities and maturity. We list a rough age range for each group but believe that our teams are best viewed as fluid. This allows the athlete to work on a team that fits their fitness level. For example, a talented 11-year-old may find themselves on our junior team where other 11-year-olds may be happily challenged on our development team.
High School DistanceTeam (13-18 yrs)
The High School Distance program is the home for athletes between seasons. Providing prep programs for Spring Track and Summer prep for Cross Country Season. High School runners have the option to attend 1 day in-season strength , and 2 days a week in the pre-season. Athletes in this program range from new first-time runners to experienced athletes looking to improve and become a front runner on their team.
PEAK SPEED (60m-400m Athletes)
The PEAK SPEED program is for focused athletes 7th-12th graders who have a desire to grow and hone their skills as sprinters. This is a year round program provides a home for sprinters in the front range who are looking to take a true focus on being a sprinter. This program offers 2 days of coached on track practices and 2 days of lifting/ strength/ mechanics in the weight room. Indoor training exists during the winter season.
Peak Elite (HS Only)
Peak Elite is a team focused on performance at the highest level. Peak Elite is Peak Performance Running’s highest performance program designed specifically for athletes who have a desire to compete at the state, national, and world level. Athletes on Peak Elite are current freshman through senior year high school athletes who have the right mix of character and capability. This team requires athletes hit the time standards for PEAK ELITE
Athletes interested in the Peak Elite team should e-mail their current PR’s to Coach Andrew to apply. Please e-mail: andrew@lifelongendurance.com
WHAT OUR PRACTICES LOOK LIKE
A Quick Note
Our practices are always optional. We understand that many of our athletes are dual-sport athletes. If you are a prospective athlete – we offer our first 2 practices for free so athletes can determine if our team is a fit before they commit.
Strength Training
We believe that there are 2 components to building confident, strong runners – running regular mileage and strength training. We start strength training with our Junior athletes with 1 day per week and 1 focused speed workout per week. As the athletes advance teams they will strength train 2x/ week and have 2 structured speed workouts/ week. We start Juniors with bodyweight exercises to teach body awareness, mobility, and confidence. Athletes in High School will be introduced to Olympic lifting movements as they progress.
Trail Days
All teams meet at the same location and break into their respective groups; this allows for siblings of different ages to participate at the same time. Practices average 60 minutes with High School team occasionally extending to 75 minutes. We believe that trail running allows our athletes the best of both worlds with soft surfaces, challenging hills and descents, and an opportunity to truly experience our great front range trails in their full beauty. As a team that practices year-round we practice in all weather conditions – we will cancel in the event of lightning and extreme cold/ heat. We get wet in summer showers, snowed on in the winter, and sweat it out in the summer – we believe that there is no such thing as “bad weather” just bad clothing. We ask that athletes have a handheld water bottle in the summer as the temperature can still climb into the mid-80’s in the morning.
Workouts
At the earliest level, these practices are centered around increasing their ability to run faster for longer while mixing in games and relays. As athletes advance to more specific goals in our Junior & High School teams we integrate a progressive structure around hill work, tempo runs, and track intervals. Our workouts are designed to allow athletes to personalize their training to their specific racing goals. Coaches will break athletes into groups based on their goals to race middle distance and long-distance during track season as well as grouping athletes by ability during the cross country season.
How to Sign up
To register for our team please refer to the individual team pages. There you will find full program options by season. If your athlete can’t attend for the full season we also offer the following options:
Monthly Unlimited
Development Team- $100 for a month of unlimited training
Juniors Team- $160 for a month of unlimited training
Punch Card- 10 practices for $175
Our punch card option allows athletes to attend practice when they can. This payment option is great if a busy schedule doesn’t make sense for a full membership. Please note that punch cards expire after 6 months of purchase.
Program Purchase Options
Monthly Development Program - Purchase Here
Monthly Juniors Program- Purchase Here
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How do I determine which group my athlete should train with?
We highly recommend athletes take advantage of the 2 free trial practices we offer. Your athlete will be able to get a sense of the other athletes, coaches, and overall team culture. At those practices, our coaching team helps determine which group an athlete should train with. If you don’t want to take advantage of the trial practices but prefer to sign up now please just reach out to us and we will help determine which group would be the best fit.
*Please note that athletes participating in our strength training programs will get one free trial practice.
My athlete is a beginner but I am worried they will be too old for the development group.
Our development group has a variety of abilities and ages. We have had several instances where an 8th grader has been in that group due to the fact that they are a newer runner. Therefore, your athlete might start with the development group and then move up to Juniors. We prefer to be conservative initially so they don’t have a poor first experience where they can’t keep up. No matter what your athlete’s ability we promise there will be another athlete of the same speed and coach to help them out, especially on that first day.
Depending on the athlete’s goals, abilities, and maturity they can move up groups but we always have the long-term in mind and don’t want to push athletes too early in their development.
Are there attendance requirements?
We offer the punch card option because we have several athletes who focus on soccer, volleyball, basketball, etc. Their schedules don’t allow them to come every day and we don’t have any attendance requirements. We just welcome athletes whenever they are able to join us and have the punch card option in place for just those instances.
Does my athlete have to have experience?
No, we welcome athletes of any ability to our team. We love showing new athletes this great sport and fostering their love of it.
How many miles does the development team run?
The development team typically runs 2-4 miles at each practice. Don’t be intimidated. This is over an hour time period so includes a lot of breaks.