Spotlight Athlete: Joey Zielinski

St. Joseph's senior Joey Zielinski is one of the top distance runners in Indiana. Zielinski finished fourth at the Indiana State Cross Country Meet and recently won his first state championship at the Hoosier State Relays winning the open 3200 in the Small School division. See how Zielinski got his start in the sport, his training routine, his plans for the rest of 2012, and much more.

How did you get started in track and cross country?

I remember finding out about a summer track program that the local high schools ran when I was 11 years old. I actually did that for two years, I just sort of did it for fun. Then I took a break from running because at my grade school I played football, basketball, and baseball because those were the only "serious" sports that anyone played. Once I was a frosh at St. Joe, though, I decided I was going to run cross country and track.

Do you remember your first race?

I remember running the 1600m in 5:20 or somewhere around there my first race. I remember just sticking to a pace that my coaches thought I could hit considering I was running against guys going well under 5 minutes. Back in those days I was usually just going for PR's because I was never close to getting first place.

When did the tides turn and you start taking it seriously?

I remember my first win was at a dual meet my sophomore year in track where I went 4:33 in the 1600 and out kicked a pretty solid miler. That race actually raised my confidence a lot because I started to think about strategies to win races rather than just hitting good times.

What is a typical training week like for you and do you have any favorite workouts?

As far as a typical training week it really depends on what point of the season I'm at. Basically my summer consisted of putting in 50ish mile weeks with some tempo runs and hill workouts thrown in there. During cross country we would normally go hard three days in the week, with the rest easier runs and a one hour Sunday run. My favorite types of workouts were repeat 1000s at 5k pace or fartleks that we would do on a hilly course. In general my favorite workouts are threshold runs or longer intervals on the track.

How do you transition between cross country, then the indoor season?

Once cross country was over I got back into a base phase and put in about 50 miles a week like a did during the summer, with two threshold workouts a week and a one hour run on Sundays. I actually didn't run a single track workout before I PR'd in the 3200 with a 9:21at the Trine University Invitational. Before that my PR was 9:48.Between that and my 1600 PR, I only did one track workout which was 10x400s the 4:17 for the full mile. That was about a 5 second PR if you convert it to 1600 meters.

This indoor season you only ran in three meets before running at Hoosier State Relays. Did you view indoor as more of a tune up for the rest of the year?

The Trine Meet was just to test my leg, but it turned out to be a great day. I was really excited to run the IR mile and when I exceeded my expectations there I decided I was content with my indoor season and that I would just qualify for indoor state then run at finals. Our coach takes indoor state really seriously so my top priority going in was to score as many points as possible for the team which meant going for the win in the open 3200, 4x8, and DMR. We ended up getting 3rd and 2nd in our relays respectively which was a great day for us.

The team placed second overall and you won the open 3200.  What was your strategy going into that race?

My strategy for the 3200 was actually to try and maybe get the 1A to 3A record of 9:12. I ended up leading the whole way, but went through the mile in around 4:39 and wasn't feeling good enough to go for the record by then. I still kept pressing and finished strong to make sure I got first place. Afterwards I was really excited because it was my first state title and I was happy with where I’m at fitness wise at this point of the season.

Now that indoors is over how do you prepare for outdoor and what is your mindset going in fresh off a state title?

After indoors, we take about 2 weeks of just mileage and relaxed workouts. Basically we're keeping the legs moving without working very hard. The state title was great, but since I wasn't running against the 4A-5A competition, I know there is a ton of work still to be done.

What meets are you looking forward to and what are your goals?

My biggest meets are going to be the Flashes Showcase where I’m running the Miracle Mile, and after that, probably the state series. I hope to try and break our school record of 4:14 for 1600m at the Miracle Mile and also to go for the win. My goals for state are just to place as high as possible in whatever events I choose to do.

You go to a small catholic school in St. Joes. What will you remember the most from your time there?

I'll remember most all of my friends on the team and all of the friends that I have made from other schools. Outside of running, I'll remember all of the fun I've had with my friends and all of the teachers who have influenced my life.

Next year you will be a part of a great incoming freshman class for IUPUI. Why did you select IUPUI and what are you looking forward to most about being a Jag?

A big factor in my decision was that I wanted to study engineering in college, so it made sense that I go to IUPUI where I could receive a Purdue engineering degree. Another thing I really liked about IUPUI was the great chemistry between the coaching staff and the runners there. A bunch of us guys got each other to go which made for the nice incoming class. I'm really looking forward to trying to make the program get up to the national level, as well as growing as a Division 1 athlete.


More Coverage