Winter training is rarely ideal, but for Alex Fisher, it was all about adaptation. With relentless snow and wind, he had to get creative. Instead of crisp track sessions, he logged workouts on the roads, relying on GPS-marked distances and sheer determination. Through it all, he put in the work, set a personal best, and gained valuable experience—lessons he hopes will pay off as the season shifts to the track.

Watch: PACE 3

Accessory: COROS Heart Rate Monitor

Analysis: Training Hub

Winter Training Challenges

With his school’s track covered in snow for much of the indoor season, Alex Fisher and his team had to get creative. Road workouts replaced track sessions, with his coach marking distances using cones.

“Those workouts are actually all on a road where my coach had to measure it out with a cone. From the COROS GPS, we were able to move the cones a little bit to make it more accurate.”

When the track is iced over, Alex completes his interval workouts on a nearby road

The wind only made things tougher. Some workouts resulted in drastically different splits depending on the direction he was running.

"Some of those workouts were just completely messed up from the wind because in Connecticut (or at least where my school is) it is pretty windy a lot of the time."

Staying warm was another battle. Fisher layered up—even if it meant sacrificing some mobility.

“For most of my easy runs for a long stretch, I basically had a winter coat on and full tights with sweatpants on top. So, the heart rate arm strap made it easy to accommodate for the increased effort. If my heart rate's too high, I should slow down a little bit, but I do acknowledge that it's a little bit harder with all the clothes on."

Breaking Barriers in NYC

One of Fisher’s biggest sessions of the season combined both tempo and race-pace work. Normally, he would separate these into different workouts, but with a race approaching, he combined them into one. He started with a 2-mile tempo, followed by 5x400m in 60 seconds, and closed with a 1-mile tempo. The session also included plenty of jogging for recovery, making it a high-volume day.

Despite the winter setbacks, Fisher still saw progress. At the Armory in New York City, he set a new personal best of 8:58 in the 2-mile.

“We came around in 04:31, and from there, it's just me against the clock. I started increasing the tempo and came away with PR. But at the same time, I wasn’t really going into it fresh.”

Instead of prioritizing race-day freshness, he focused on long-term development, knowing that his true goal was outdoor track.

Learning from Experience

Every season brings new lessons, and this winter was no different. Even after early success as an underclassman, Fisher continues to refine his approach through trial and error.

"Through a lot of my experience I've been able to figure out what works for me. That goes for a lot of things, like meal prep, nutrition, foam rolling and recovery. Also what shoes work for me, what racing shoes work for me... all that. A lot of trial and error, experimenting and stuff. As much as you wanna research these things online, everyone's body is different. A lot of it depends on the experience of how your body reacts to things."

As a junior, he has placed a greater emphasis on strength training and fine-tuned his pre-race warm-ups.

"This winter, I really realized the difference that it makes to make sure your legs are really, really warm before actually getting into a race."

Fisher isn’t one to get caught up in specific time goals. Instead, he focuses on effort and training, a mindset that has helped him handle the growing expectations of becoming an upperclassman.

“Before, it was always, ‘Oh, he’s only a freshman, he’s only a sophomore.’ But now I’m a junior, and I'd say this is the first year where I’m really expected to compete and compete well.”

Still, he embraces racing against more experienced competitors.

“Competing against older guys is always fun because it’s really low stakes for me. What do I have to lose?”

Looking Ahead to Outdoor Track

With a strong aerobic base built over the winter, Fisher is eager for better conditions and faster times.

“I think I'm at the best base fitness I’ve had in a while. That’s especially good when I transition to outdoor track, where we can really get those good speed sessions with the higher temperature and not worry about the increased risk of injury in the cold.”

He has his eyes set on a few key meets, including the Boston Elite Scholastic Mile.

“I heard a couple of guys want to go sub-four there, so I think that’d be a good race to try and drag me through a good time in."

As for a specific time goal? Fisher prefers not to stress about numbers.

“When I just enjoy racing and have fun is usually when I exceed my expectations the most and have the best races”

With winter training behind him and the outdoor season ahead, Alex is ready to see just how far his fitness can take him.

Alex is a member of COROS NextGen, a program which aims to work with elite high school athletes as they push their boundaries to become the next generation of elite distance runners in the U.S. For any high school athlete chasing their best, head to www.coros.com to learn more on products, training tips, and insights from athletes of all levels.