Forums >General Running>How long do you warm up / cool down for a Tempo run?
Doc, my tooth hurts
It also mentions in the book that a good way to get extra mileage out of the training plan is to add to the w/u and c/d by running the 3 miles instead of the 1. Looking at your log though, I don't think you really should do that since it might increase injury risk.
I will do about 20 minutes up and up to 30 minutes down. In the summer when it's warm and I can warm up easier I might only do 10 minute warmup and a 40 minute cooldown.
I don't think you really should do that since it might increase injury risk.
Of course it will increase injury risk--that's how this whole thing works. If you go out and train you risk injury. If you stay as sedentary as possible you minimize the risk of injury.
(Sorry, pet peeve of mine.)
Runners run
I'm doing Hansons too and using 3 mile wu/3 mile cd because I like having a medium long run mid-week.
Going back to your original question, no, there is no reason other than to increase your total miles why you should lengthen either your warmup or cooldown. Currently you're running a 1 mile warmup (you mentioned 10 minutes per mile), which is sufficient to prepare your body for a moderately hard effort like a tempo run. The tempo portion of your run will probably not be very long, which is why many experienced runners will add 2-3 miles on either side of the tempo to pad their total mileage for the day, and for the psychological reason that most runners like to ease into their workouts. But if we're talking about what is truly necessary, anything beyond, say, 12 minutes of easy running is not really warmup anymore. You don't need to do any more than that for a cooldown either.
Labrat
I normally do about 2 miles warm-up and cool down.
If pressed for time I'll tweak that shorter, and have on occasion stretched it out longer. (upto about 4 miles cool down), but the majority its the basic 2 miles.
5K 20:23 (Vdot 48.7) 9/9/17
10K 44:06 (Vdot 46.3) 3/11/17
HM 1:33:48 (Vdot 48.6) 11/11/17
FM 4:13:43 (Vdot 35.4) 3/4/18
It depends on how long the tempo run is ... I like to run between 2-3 hours total.
Currently I am keeping tempos closer to 2 hours, so ...
120 minutes
(4-8 minute cool down)
(Total Tempo time)
= warmup
Long dead ... But my stench lingers !
Sincere question for those of you doing cool downs longer than, say, 15 minutes... why? (literal question asking for info, not code for "that's dumb")
Edit: well, I already do understand the case where your workout just kind of ended more than 15 minutes away from where you need to be. But I'm seeing people doing 2-4 miles (hiya catman) of cooldown purposefully.
So when I used to run 20-22 mile total run for a tempo
I might run a 10 mile warmup
4x2 miles @ T with 1/2 mile between
1/2 - 1.5 mile cool down
= 20-21 miles.
Where as if I was doing a simple 4 miles @ T
15 mile warmup
4 @ T
1 mile cool down.
= 20 miles.
I have the same question - I usually shoot for @ 1 mile ... sometimes 1.5 because I usually run by time in Tempo and speed is slower or faster ~ might be 1/2 mile left. Heck there are times I tempo all the way home and just walk a couple of blocks after I am done.
If I am going to be a mileage pig, it would be in warmup
Sincere question for those of you doing cool downs longer than, say, 15 minutes... why? (literal question asking for info, not code for "that's dumb") Edit: well, I already do understand the case where your workout just kind of ended more than 15 minutes away from where you need to be. But I'm seeing people doing 2-4 miles (hiya catman) of cooldown purposefully.
Joggaholic
I was about to start a thread with that same question, what exactly does a cool down do (physiologically)? I am not saying one should stop on a dime, but my cool down is typically just another minute or two of walking after a run, no where near the amount of time others responding to this thread do. What is the benefit of a 5-15 minutes cool down?
MTA: Excluding reasons such as getting extra mileage and such. ie. Warmup gets your blood flowing and prevents injury from a "cold-start", a cool down does xxxxx?
When I stretch it out its usually for extra mileage, however I much prefer doing a slightly different workout
Using Daniels terminology
Rather than a 20E20T60E, I'd much rather run 20E20T20E20T20E, which is of course more training stress, and could increase the risk of injury.
Its a tougher workout, but I feel that it really helped me keep my paces high later in races last year.
Same as SRL - I am not saying longer cool downs are wrong - I am just wondering why they are right?
A cool down in principle.
Removes waste/lactic acid
Supposedly reduces the onset of DOMS (not that I could confirm this either way)
Brings HR closer to normal, and reduces venous pooling
Not so much after tempos, but after harder workouts, will reduce the risk of fainting/dizziness from a sudden stop.
Thats basically achieved in 5-10 mins.
Going longer than that is more personal preference.
Hmmm... in cases where I'm going for mileage and sandwich some T running in the middle, I think my brain has just been categorizing the stuff after as "more easy running" and not specifically a "cool down".
I need coolin'.
It's mostly about mileage padding, but another possibility is that the nearest good place to start a tempo run is 2-3 miles from their house. I have to run about 2.5 miles to get to a good place to start a tempo. There the extra miles are more about transportation than warming up or cooling down.