Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Workout of the Week

Hello everyone...

Here is this week's workout; it focuses primarily on inclines/hills, which will help build overall leg strength.

Warm-up:  Five-minute brisk walk

Main Set:

  • 1/2 mile at intensity 6/10
  • 1/4 mile incline at intensity 8/10
  • 1/4 mile recovery at intensity 4/10
  • 1/4 mile incline at intensity 8/10
  • 1/4 mile recovery at intensity 4/10
  • 1/4 mile incline at intensity 8/10
  • 1/4 mile recovery at intensity 4/10
  • 1/4 mile incline at intensity 8/10
  • 1/4 mile recovery at intensity 4/10
  • 1/2 mile at intensity 6/10

Cool-down:  Five- to ten-minute walk or easy jog

Regarding the incline, set it anywhere from 2% to 5% if you are on a treadmill.  On the other hand, use a fairly steep hill that requires 30 seconds to complete if you are running outside and run the same four repetitions as outlined above.

This can be a challenging workout if you push yourself so use common sense and run within your ability.  Running hill repeats outdoors is tough but the 1/4 mile inclines on a treadmill can sneak up on you given the duration.  Scale things down if you need to do so, even if you're in the middle of an interval.  Smart running pays dividends in the end!

Monday, October 13, 2014

Workout of the Week

Hello everyone...

This week's workout is a classic pyramid workout.  It can be done easily outdoors if you have a GPS watch or a standard running track.  It is also easy on a treadmill.

Warm-up:  5 minutes of brisk walking or easy jogging

Main Set:

  • 400m / 1/4 mile at intensity 8/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 800m / 1/2 mile at intensity 7/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 1200m / 3/4 mile at intensity 7/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 1600m / 1 mile at intensity 6/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 1200m / 3/4 mile at intensity 7/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 800m / 1/2 mile at intensity 8/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile easy recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10
  • 400m / 1/4 mile at intensity 9/10

Cool-down:  5 minutes of easy jogging or walking

As always, make any changes to the workout to suit your ability or skill level.  You can shorten the length or intensity of the main intervals or omit some steps entirely.  Remember to run with your head as much as your legs...intelligent, consistent running is better than forcing a workout beyond your current ability.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

I'm Back (Sort Of)

Well, I'm finally back to running after a five-month layoff.  Long story short, I noticed some discomfort in one of my feet just a couple weeks prior to my race in May.  It turns out I developed metatarsalgia, which is basically inflammation at or around the ball of the foot.  It was never debilitating, thankfully, but it was noticeable and affecting my ability to train properly.

I have ran a few days this week and I can tell I have lost a lot of race fitness, but that is expected.  I may not my usual self at the moment but I'm just glad to be running again!

Now that I'm returning to running I am taking a back-to-basics approach.  In fact, I am using Hadd's Approach to Distance Training, a philosophy I have used in the past with success.

Unfortunately, the plan calls for the first several weeks to be run at a very low heart rate.  Given the heart rate restrictions are so precise running the first several weeks is quite slow regardless of overall ability.  There is no speed work or other aggressive workouts.  Although there are valid reasons for this it admittedly makes training a bit challenging, primarily from a psychological perspective.  Suffice it to say it's tough to run at such a slow pace, particularly when you know you can easily run faster!

I plan on sticking to this approach throughout the winter, likely until the end of February.  After that I will find a target race and resume more traditional training.  The Hadd plan may be a mentally grueling process but it worked for me before so I hope it will do so again!

Running Form Clinics / Apparel Discount

Hello everyone...

Just a quick heads up Garry Gribble's Running Sports has a couple good deals going on right now.

First up is a series of free running clinics.  Designed to help improve running form and technique, these clinics could be a great way to cap the season.  Click here for more information about the clinics.  Take note there is room for only ten participants in each clinic so be sure to sign up right away if you are interested.

Second, all regularly priced long-sleeve tops and jackets are 20% off from October 11 through October 25.  It's a good time to get some deals on apparel for the cool weather headed our way in coming days and weeks.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Workout of the Week

Hello everyone...

Here is this week's Workout of the Week:

Tempo Bursts

Warm-up:  Five-minute brisk walk or jog at intensity 5/10

Main Set:

Three rounds of 12 minutes:

  • Eight minutes at intensity 8 - 9/10 with a 10-second burst at the end of each two-minutes:
    • Run 1:50, then burst for the final :10
    • Run 1:50, then burst for the final :10
    • Run 1:50, then burst for the final :10
    • Run 1:50, then burst for the final :10
  • Four-minute recovery at intensity 2 - 3/10

Cool-down:
  Five-minute easy walk or jog at intensity 1 - 2/10

This is a good workout to teach consistent pacing despite multiple bursts of high speed.  It also helps prepare for races when you may need to surge through a pack of runners, for example.

As a final note, this workout may be done easiest outdoors; a standard 400m track may be ideal but it could easily be performed on any route.  It is possible to perform it on a treadmill but the lag of the treadmill speeding up and slowing down for each burst may be cumbersome.