Run Long, Race Short
Take advantage of the change of seasons this summer to adjust your training pattern, especially if we get clobbered by El Nino. Run long, race short, but don't do both.
Here's what I mean by running long--lots and lots of miles with no speed work. And I mean no speed work. Don't even think about going onto the track or racing. Coaches refer to this kind of training as the aerobic base period or volume training. My runners know it as Phase I.
Running Long
Aerobic base work can actually make you faster even without the speed work. I found that out with my own running this year. In mid-February, at age 50, I ran the third fastest 10K of my life. Occasionally in the past, during heavy marathon training, I would run a 55-mile week and average 45 miles a week. But this season, from August to January, I increased my mileage to the point where I had many 60-mile plus weeks, a couple of weeks at 70, and probably averaged more than 55 per week. All were run with a heart monitor with which I kept my heart rate between 60 and 70 percent of maximum heart rate (MHR). I stayed off the track completely, did no anaerobic threshold (80-85% MHR) running, and did not race. When I ran my first few races in February, all of a sudden I found myself beating or challenging runners at 8K, 10K, and 10 miles who had previously been way ahead of me.
The reason this aerobic base training works is that it forces our bodies to rest--even though we are doing many miles, they are all easy miles. If you want to train this way in the upcoming summer, try to follow these principles: Make sure that you increase your mileage by no more than 10 percent a week. Second, try not to get all of your mileage increase in one long run. Third, every fourth or fifth week reduce your mileage to give yourself a recovery week. Finally, make sure you still take a day off every week or so, which means no cross-training. And remember to resist the temptation of racing, interval work, or running above 70% of MHR. If you try this approach for the summer, I think you may be surprised at how well you do in the fall whether you plan to race 10Ks or run a marathon.
Racing Short
A completely different approach this summer would be to take the benefits of the spring 10K racing season and use them to develop your leg speed. This is far more important for those not planning to run a marathon. In the summer there will be many short races under the distance of 5K, from a couple of MCRRC track meets to bi-weekly track meets in Alexandria. The idea here is to reduce your weekly mileage and race a lot of miles by running 1500s or 3000s. To race these events well, you need very fresh legs, which means lots of rest. Cut your weekly mileage in half, and run no more than four or five days a week with no runs longer than miles and one intense track workout a week (400s or shorter). You can race every week for six to eight weeks with this kind of training. After a series of shorter races, you will find that your speed has increased and should translate to faster road races in the fall. This kind of training also gives your legs a rest.
Each of these alternative--aerobic training and short-distance training--has an additional benefit in giving you a mental break from the same old routine training that you normally do. The combination of a rested body and a rested brain can help renew your running enthusiasm.
Coach West is a licensed coach, affiliated with MCRRC, and available to coach motivated adult runners. A portion of his coaching fees for MCRRC members is returned to MCRRC. For further information about personal coaching opportunities, contact Coach West at kirtwest@comcast.net.
