RunningAHEAD - Topic: Intervals or Fartleks??

Slow Runner

posted: 4/20/2009 at 3:08 PM

My last marathon preparation involved absolutely no speedwork of anykind. I focused solely on enduarance and peaked about 52 mpw. For the next one, I want to incorporate some kind of speedwork but don't know exactly what kind. So, which will help me overall and most beneficial: Intervals (.5 - 2mile) or fartleks (incorporated into runs of 5 miles and up)?

Slow Runner

posted: 4/21/2009 at 10:16 AM

bump

xenoplastic

posted: 4/21/2009 at 10:28 AM

You should incorporate all the different types of workouts into your training program. Each one helps with a specific type of thing. Intervals, fartleks, hills, tempos, long run, normal running, strides, and so on. If you're running 52+ mpw, then you should find plenty of time to include all of those in any given two week period or so. Tempos are a great way to go a little faster while still doing a very long distance workout. I would recommend it as being pretty key to improving marathon speed. Doing some faster intervals of repeat 3200s would also go a long way as you suggest and throwing short burst fartleks into a longer run is a good way to get more out of your mileage, but using those workouts to then try a few solid tempo runs is a good way of finding out whether you could potentially hold that speed for a steady duration.

Buckeye

posted: 4/21/2009 at 10:30 AM

Would say 1/2 dozenof one / 6 of the other. Intervals are more structured/measured and if that fits your philosophy/personality go with it, Fartlek is a little more free style...its supposed to be fun right (means spead play??). I have been more for intervals in the past but have been mixing in some speed variations into running, not sure if i would call Fartlek, but run part of run at Tempo and part Easy.

"It's supposed to be hard. If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it Great!

Roth Runner

posted: 4/21/2009 at 11:48 AM

As xenoplastic said. I'd also make the point that short intervals quicker than 10k pace are pretty low priority for the marathon. Fartlek runs are good for getting you used to speed again if you haven't pushed it for a while, after that I'd switch to more structured stuff. So if you were to add one session a week I'd rotate or chose any of the following (remember to warm-up and down before the first three): A Tempo run (a sensible pace would be between 1/2 & full marathon pace) for 20 minutes up to 45-50 minutes once you feel you can handle it. 1 mile intervals @ 1/2 marathon pace, I'd try 4 and then you can build up to 5 or 6 if you feel comfortable, jog 2-3 minutes (you can reduce the jogs if you feel they're too long). 1 km intervals @ 10k pace, again I'd start at about 4 then up to 5 or 6 again if you feel capable, jog 2 minutes. Adding marathon paced sections to your long run e.g. 14 miles with the last 4 at MP. 2 structured sessions a week would be even better (say the long run with MP & one of the others) but it'd be best to start with one.

Mr R

posted: 4/21/2009 at 11:27 PM

It's VERY difficult to recommend speedwork for marathoners without knowing more about the runner. If you run marathons at close to your average running pace, then you'll probably get the most improvement over continued mileage increases, though 20 minute tempos and fast-finish long runs can be useful. After aerobic development tapers off (often this takes 3-5 years of 5000+miles/year), then long hard runs seems to be the most useful form of speedwork. I'm sort of in between. My marathon pace is over a minute/mile faster than my average running pace, but can't really do a 20-mile long run at MP without a significant taper, so I cap my marathon pace workouts at 10 miles, with a long warmup and cooldown to get the total miles up. People at my stage seem to do well by stretching out the length of their HM paced tempos, starting at 20 minutes and pushing towards 50. Classic 5k/10k track intervals used to be popular with marathoners, but they are falling out of favor. It's common to see marathoners doing mile repeats at 40 seconds faster than race pace, but these workouts are now done earlier in the buildup, and they are dropped later on. Their purpose is to support the fitness needed for the all-important, long, hard run, rather than to improve the marathon performance directly. The "other kind of speedwork" is alactic running, and it should be done year-round, no matter what you're training for. Basically, this is seriously fast running, with lots of rest. It's neuromuscular training, and it should place almost ZERO stress on your cardiovascular fitness. I like to do 200s at 800 meter race pace, and then jog 600 at 1 minute+ slower than MP. Short hill runs can be good. You can also sprint the first 10 seconds of every minute for 10 minutes. This is easy enough to work into another run.

What was the secret, they wanted to know; in a thousand different ways they wanted to know The Secret. And not one of them was prepared, truly prepared to believe that it had not so much to do with chemicals and zippy mental tricks as with that most unprofound and sometimes heart-rending process of removing, molecule by molecule, the very tough rubber that comprised the bottoms of his training shoes. The Trial of Miles, Miles of Trials. How could they be expected to understand that? -John Parker

Intervals or Fartleks?? (Read 561 times)