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Types of Workouts |  |
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See the Index for more topics, information, hints and tips.
Every workout should have a purpose. Some purposes are: to build your base, recover from a hard workout, build speed, build strength, and build endurance. Along with a purpose it should have a specified pace.
Training is not just going out and running. Training is paying attention to what you do and when you do it; it’s doing it for a reason, with an understanding of the intended benefit.
It's a good idea before every workout to remind yourself of the goal and pace. If it is an easy/recovery run, then don't cheat; stick to that. Avoid putting out a medium effort because they don't do you much good and even prevent you from making progress. It takes discipline and self-control to stick to a training plan.
But if today is a hard workout, then give it your all. But listen to your body. If it is telling you that it can't do a hard workout, then make it an easy day, walk or take it off completely and rest, but don't do something in between easy and hard.
If you know you are going to do a hard workout one day, then commit to doing an easy workout the day before and the day after. No cheating allowed! Your body needs the easy days to recover and grow stronger.
80% of your running should be at a slow/easy pace where you can hold a conversation comfortably. Only 20% of your time should be spent running hard like interval training. So if you are running 20 miles a week, 16 of those miles would be at a slow, easy pace and 4 of those miles would be hard.
The 80/20 rule is THE most important thing to follow with your training. It is also the most abused rule and is the most detrimental to your results. Not following this rule puts you at a higher risk for injury, burnout, and over-training.
As Arthur Lydiard put it, "Train don't strain".
You may also be interested in reading about Heart Rate Training.
Slow/Easy = 80%If you are running 20 miles per week these workouts should make up 16 miles, the vast majority of your running. Your heart rate should be less than 75% of your maximum. These are the most important runs of your training. They teach your body and mind endurance and to solve problems.
You should also do slow and easy runs the day before and the day after a long or hard workout to give your body time to recover and build itself stronger. Don't cheat!
If you are running less than 25 miles per week, the best way to increase your speed is not by doing speed work but by increasing your mileage.
It doesn't sound right, but in order to get faster, you have to run slower on your easy days to give your body a chance to recover. The harder we work the better the result does NOT hold for running. The hardest part of training is actually holding back and doing the base, long, and recovery runs really slow and easy! It's not who works harder, it's who works smarter.
On all of your easy and recovery runs it is very important not to cheat. Don’t be tempted to do heavy weight lifting or do any speed work. Your body needs a chance to recover and grow stronger. If you throw another hard workout at it, it won’t like it.
Fast/Hard = 20%If you are running 20 miles per week these workouts should only be done for 4 miles, that is, one workout.
These workouts are meant to increase your strength and speed. Don't just do one type even week, mix them up. This will keep your body from getting used to the same workout.
The speed and strength workouts below are a good way to break up the monotony and add a little spice to your running. Consider running with a different group on your easy and hard days to break it up even more. Only do these workouts once or at most twice a week. If you do speed work three times per week, you will likely become slower.
Every hard/long workout does some damage to or stresses your body. Your body responds to this challenge by growing stronger. But always remember that your body does not get stronger during hard workouts. It gets stronger on the day(s) afterwards while you recover. That is why it is SO important to do easy days before and after every hard workout. Your body needs this time to build stronger muscles, bones, ...
Don't get too greedy. Take it easy and make slow progress. Give your body time to learn and grow. By this I mean don't go from doing your first set of 4 intervals to 10 intervals the next week. Give your body several weeks to adapt and grow stronger.
The purpose of hard workouts is to get your body used to running at a faster speed. It needs to learn how to move efficiently at these faster paces. These also help you through those tough parts in a race – running into the wind or up steep or long hills. They also teach your body to recover while still running. You have to run harder to run better.
These workouts are supposed to be hard. They will get your heart rate up towards 90-95% of maximum.
Listen to your body. If you are scheduled to do a hard workout, but just can’t, don't try to ignore your body, but do another easy workout or take the day off completely. This may be an indication that your easy or recovery days are too hard.
Always start speed and strength work with a good warm up and finish with a cool down.
I love to do speed work. It feels so good to have the wind blowing in my face and hearing it rushing past my ears. I imagine myself starting a race with the elites and running fast through a whole race. Sure speed work is difficult, but afterwards my legs feel so strong.
Another benefit of speed training is that it improves your form. As you run faster, you naturally adapt better form … because your body has to. See Running Form for more information and remember to Breathe from your abdomen. But as you get tired, your form may start to deteriorate. You may find yourself bending over more and looking down towards your feet. Try to keep your head up looking in the distance, with your chin out. After an interval or hill climb, reaching your hands and arms above your head helps get you back into better form.
Strides are probably the best exercise for practicing and improving your form. They are not as intense or long as intervals and as you slow down you can focus on maintaining the proper cadence and form you used going fast.
During your training you are likely to get into a comfort zone where your distances and routes are familiar and you are comfortable with them. Maybe you have a special route that you enjoy and run frequently as a time trial to see how you are doing. When you get to this point, do something different, mix it up, get out of your rut. Maybe you can plan something adventurous – a different more challenging route, maybe something other than running, like biking or canoeing, invite someone different to run with you or ask to run with a new group. Challenge yourself!
You get a different workout on different surfaces.
I’ve run half marathon distances on both indoor tracks and treadmills. It’s not great, but you do what you have to do. Running on flat tracks or treadmills does NOT prepare you for even the smallest hill or uneven surface or environmental factors like heat, cold, rain, and wind. Try to get outdoors as often as you can.
Coaches and trainers, you don’t want to work someone really hard and then let them go. They’ll remember how bad they felt. Instead spend some time cooling down and recovering, talk about how good the workout was, maybe compare it to how they did in previous similar workouts. They will have a more positive memory of the workout and be more willing to work just as hard or maybe harder the next time.
