What's your favorite interval workout?
- Thread starter Abide
- Start date
NickW
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I used to do a lot of interval training back when I cycled a lot, but now the only type of interval training I do is hill repeats while pushing a stroller. Half mile up, half mile down. I usually try to push myself to hold a decent pace while going up and then use the downhill to calm back down and get my hr back under control. I like it and I wish I had some longer hills closer to me that were more consistent like this half mile one is.
An hour of running, 23 hours of not running, repeat with varying proportions.
I think I'm on the verge of maybe cosidering adding something like Intervals into my workout schedule. I think mine will probably look mor like Nick's sans stroller. I have a hill that's been giving me the eye lately.
Mostly I've been working on my low hr long milage sort of stuff for the last couplemonths years. As my race schedule approaches critical points in the near future I figure a bit of higher hr stuff would fit with my goal of running faster than last year.
Should I stay within my 180 - 55 hr envelope, do you think?
Races are: 10 mile 3/31, 13.1 mile 4/29, 26.2 mile 5/20.
Mostly I've been working on my low hr long milage sort of stuff for the last couple
Should I stay within my 180 - 55 hr envelope, do you think?
Races are: 10 mile 3/31, 13.1 mile 4/29, 26.2 mile 5/20.
I've always been fond of 800m repeats for speed work. Killer for building leg strength, power, and endurance. Play your cards right in it and you'll build your slow twitch fibers along with the fast twitch. I prefer to take my one mile all out time and add 30 seconds then split that for my interval goals. It's not easy and you should build to that but once you have your time set you run 800 trying to be right at goal and then slow jog a la. repeat the process for whatever your mileage needs are for the day. If you feel too tiredin between you can rest after the jogged lap but jogging that lap and not stopping is very important to the muscle fatigue factors of the workout.
I haven't run a fast, timed mile since High School. Might be fun. More likely sort of humiliating...
Whatever distance/interval, I would tend these days to do progressions meaning, starting out a little slow and building up speed over the interval, finishing each interval faster than I started it. I don't know if this is better in the physiological sense, but it's a good habit to get into mentally. I mean, if you're interested in strong finishes in races.
I've used and enjoyed a "gear shift" method: start in first gear (not much more than a slow trot), then second, third and fourth or up to fifth gear, which should be close to full-on sprint. 10 or 20 and up to 50 strides per gear. I would actually count outloud while running.
For more basic intervals, my favorite distance was always 6x600m with a good but not complete cooldown between intervals. 800 is just a tick too far and 400 too short (for me).
Hill repeats are of course awesome. Run up, trot down, turn around and do it again ... rinse, repeat. (And do a couple of them backwards! Double the awesomeness, really!)
I've used and enjoyed a "gear shift" method: start in first gear (not much more than a slow trot), then second, third and fourth or up to fifth gear, which should be close to full-on sprint. 10 or 20 and up to 50 strides per gear. I would actually count outloud while running.
For more basic intervals, my favorite distance was always 6x600m with a good but not complete cooldown between intervals. 800 is just a tick too far and 400 too short (for me).
Hill repeats are of course awesome. Run up, trot down, turn around and do it again ... rinse, repeat. (And do a couple of them backwards! Double the awesomeness, really!)
That's interesting, I've always heard to keep your speed very close to each other.
I've always tried to negative split intervals, or at least keep them flat splits, with the last interval being pretty much all out. It's easy to go out hell for leather in the first one and then crash and burn, but to me part of the discipline of training for a race (rather than to just cover the distance) is also about setting and delivering against realistic expectations.
If you set a pace target that's too easy or too hard, then take the average of what you did as the target for next time, with a faster last interval. Gets you psychologically as well as physically prepared for the pain at the end of a race.
And when I say negative split, I don't mean start at 7min/mile pace and finish at 6 min / mile. If your target is 6:30, and you're doing 6 reps, maybe have targets of 6:35, 6:33, 6:31, 6:29, 6:27, all out. With slight negative split within each rep as well.
If you set a pace target that's too easy or too hard, then take the average of what you did as the target for next time, with a faster last interval. Gets you psychologically as well as physically prepared for the pain at the end of a race.
And when I say negative split, I don't mean start at 7min/mile pace and finish at 6 min / mile. If your target is 6:30, and you're doing 6 reps, maybe have targets of 6:35, 6:33, 6:31, 6:29, 6:27, all out. With slight negative split within each rep as well.
I don't like speed intervals(200, 400, 800 m)on flat surfaces but I really, really enjoy doing hill and stairs climbing repeats. AWESOME!!!
Abide it depends on the shape I'm in and the timing of the workout in my progression but usually anywhere from 4 to 6 800s but I've gone crazy before and done 10. It's not easy but man it works.
To answer your question yes I love 800s. I competed in a lot of distances but I landed on the 800 and that wound up being my best distance in high school and college.
There are different ways to approach the muscle taxing interval training and both of you guys are using well known and respected approaches. Abide's method of busting it as hard as you can each time and just trying to hang on is one I've used a lot. You empty all your reserves early and force the body to find a way to keep going which in turn builds multiple secondary energy systems in the body. This is helpful for those times in a race when it goes faster than you expected or there are bursts from competitors that you have to match to stay in contention.
The negative split is also one I've enjoyed over the years and it's a great way to train as well. In cross country races I found a love for starting in the mid pack and working my way up to the front. It really demoralizes people who are working hard to just get passed up by someone. If you really want to make it fun in a race try and psych your competitors out by talking them down when you catch them. My favorites were to talk about how tough the course was, how tired I was from not sleeping the night before, or how hot, muddy, etc the course was and how it was wearing me out. It puts those things in their heads and once that happens they slow down and you can move on to the next person you're trying to catch without having to worry about that person kicking on you
From a training perspective the negative split teaches you how to speed up in a race without tiring out. It's also a great way to develop your end of the race kick.
This is a great thread, some really good discussions.
Mile splits and HR for my last 10km race, local to me. Plan was hard first mile, steady the ship, kick from about 8km gone. At this point we hit a "hill" of about 20m. I always kick at the base of this, pass a load of people up the hill and then keep gping hard to the finish. I see everyone go past me as they set off too fast from the start and then I start picking them off one by one from about 4-5km gone.
1) 6:49 / 157 / 166
2) 7:19 / 165 / 169
3) 7:22 / 165 / 169
4) 7:16 / 165 / 168
5) 7:16 / 165 / 169
6) 6:50 / 170 / 174
7) 1:22.4/ 0.24mi / 5:45 pace / 172 / 177
Total - 44:13.8/ 6.24mi / 7:05 / AHR 165 / MHR 177
Last HM profile, 2 mile splits and paces. Plan was 8min/mile for the first 4, 7:50 for the next 4, 7:40 for the next 2, 7:30 for the next 2 and then whatever's left target 7:20 or better. As you can see it didn't quite work out like that, partly because of water stops, partly it was a very hot day, partly lack of experience racing that distance - it was my first HM.
1) 15:59 / 7:59 / AHR 151
2) 15:55 / 7:57 / AHR 159
3) 15:56 / 7:57 / AHR 164 - undulating section with a water stop.
4) 15:33 / 7:47 / 7:46 / AHR 162
5) 15:07 / 7:33 / AHR 161
6) 15:43 / 7:51 / AHR 163 - legs decided to rebel at this point
7) 1.11mi / 8:11 / 7:23 / AHR 169
Total 1:42:24 / 7:48 - target from a pace predictor site was 7:40 pace.
Negative split works, if executed properly.
Mile splits and HR for my last 10km race, local to me. Plan was hard first mile, steady the ship, kick from about 8km gone. At this point we hit a "hill" of about 20m. I always kick at the base of this, pass a load of people up the hill and then keep gping hard to the finish. I see everyone go past me as they set off too fast from the start and then I start picking them off one by one from about 4-5km gone.
1) 6:49 / 157 / 166
2) 7:19 / 165 / 169
3) 7:22 / 165 / 169
4) 7:16 / 165 / 168
5) 7:16 / 165 / 169
6) 6:50 / 170 / 174
7) 1:22.4/ 0.24mi / 5:45 pace / 172 / 177
Total - 44:13.8/ 6.24mi / 7:05 / AHR 165 / MHR 177
Last HM profile, 2 mile splits and paces. Plan was 8min/mile for the first 4, 7:50 for the next 4, 7:40 for the next 2, 7:30 for the next 2 and then whatever's left target 7:20 or better. As you can see it didn't quite work out like that, partly because of water stops, partly it was a very hot day, partly lack of experience racing that distance - it was my first HM.
1) 15:59 / 7:59 / AHR 151
2) 15:55 / 7:57 / AHR 159
3) 15:56 / 7:57 / AHR 164 - undulating section with a water stop.
4) 15:33 / 7:47 / 7:46 / AHR 162
5) 15:07 / 7:33 / AHR 161
6) 15:43 / 7:51 / AHR 163 - legs decided to rebel at this point
7) 1.11mi / 8:11 / 7:23 / AHR 169
Total 1:42:24 / 7:48 - target from a pace predictor site was 7:40 pace.
Negative split works, if executed properly.
just to clarify: when I said finish stronger than starting, I meant within a single fast run.
I think it's probably a good idea to mix up the overall approach (the macro cycle?). Sometimes you go all out right from the first interval and end up considerably slower by the time the last one comes up. Other times you start out more conservatively and run the fastest times at the end of the session. And then other times you shoot for a consistency, a flat curve. But within all of those approaches, I would always try to finish each individual fast run faster than I started it.
I think it's probably a good idea to mix up the overall approach (the macro cycle?). Sometimes you go all out right from the first interval and end up considerably slower by the time the last one comes up. Other times you start out more conservatively and run the fastest times at the end of the session. And then other times you shoot for a consistency, a flat curve. But within all of those approaches, I would always try to finish each individual fast run faster than I started it.
ElyDave I like the kick on the hill approach. Back when I was fast enough to compete I loved punching it up a hill and not slowing when I got to the top of it. I saw a lot of people powering the hill only to be tanked at the top and lose the ground they gained on people so I trained to be able to keep going and really put some distance between me and others. Great strategy
