Adapted from a recent post by Renato Canova on the letsrun message board.

The question: Here's my problem: I'd love to make improvement in every area of training. When I try to do that, I get tired, then I supercompensate and run well, and then I get injured. Sometimes I get injured first and the good performances never come. Many people here say that we should run our easy days very easy as a way of avoiding injury. Never have I had two good seasons in a row, building one floor of improvement on top of another.

My question is this: what, in your opinion, is the way for the runner to avoid injury--while trying to improve in every facet of training? What signs should we look for?

The response: Take winter months, January, February, and March. For 8 weeks you do three types of runs. Long easy runs, long steady runs, long medium runs. I make this very simple. You know what these paces are. It is time to be simple. Build your miles each week. Start with many long easy runs, then progress to some long steady and long medium runs. In February add 8x100 meters two times per week. In March you add tempo runs one time per week, maybe 8k - 10k runs, also it is important that you add hill fartlek workouts in March one time per week. Everything else is long easy, long steady, and long medium runs. This three month cycle is very simple and easy.

Why does Renato write workout plan for me that is not extreme, and complicated, and the same as he writes for his world class athletes? My friend, the reason is that the answer to your problem is to get simple, not complicated. Too many young athletes try to copy Shaheen or Kwalia workout plan. This my friend is very stupid. You need simple plan. You have simple plan. Now do it and stay healthy. This is not science that is molecular, it is common sense training. Gimpy my friend, when you get to 13:00 for 5k then we talk about rocket science training. But for now my friend, this will help you stay healthy.

What the heck does 'steady' mean to you? All my easy runs are steady, in that there is little difference in pace.

My tempos or medium paced runs are steady as well, so where does defining a run as steady come from?

The response: Take winter months, January, February, and March. For 8 weeks you do three types of runs. Long easy runs, long steady runs, long medium runs. I make this very simple. You know what these paces are. It is time to be simple. Build your miles each week. Start with many long easy runs, then progress to some long steady and long medium runs.

 I could use some help fleshing out this part of the advice. 

 I could use some help fleshing out this part of the advice. 

Well of course since a run is not long until you hit 20 miles - You all have to start running a minimum of 140 miles per week.  Some LSD (Easy), Some medium effort and some steady state (I am assuming between LSD and Medium)

What the heck does 'steady' mean to you?

I like the color green so I lump all my recovery, easy, and steady runs together.

but this is the order i use:  recovery-easy-steady-tempo-hard

not always depending on pace, I use effort, on a good day steady may in fact be faster than a recent tempo effort.

I did a lot of "steady" on the way to the Monkey, and i think it paid off.

Help?

 

Heh.

I see what you did there, asshole.