What? Me on the track? That's a first.
This year I focused on racing. Race, recover, race, recover. For next year I'm thinking I'd like to focus on training. Train train train race, Train train train race. With some races mixed in of course. Which will mean a change in focus from filling my weeks with regular long runs to harder efforts on fresh legs. I have built a foundation of endurance and would benefit from working on strength and form at faster paces.
I came across this Youtube video yesterday.
Transcription: "You're gonna do 3x200@33 seconds with 200 meter recovery, then you're gonna do 5x1000@3:08 with 300 meter recovery, and then 3x200... 33, 32, 31 200 meter recovery, that's an old Oregon Team Workout if you can do that you've got sub 15."
Makes a "sub 15" 5k (4:50 pace) sound easy right? Just one long sentence is all it takes. Right now my PR is 17:30 so I've got a long way to go. Pace calculators tell me that if I ran a hard 5k on a good day I should be able to hit 16:41 (5:22 pace). But I am interested in how to push past the pace calculators.
In table form:
warmup
3x200@33s w/200 meter recovery (4:24 pace)
5x1000@3:08 w/300 meter recovery (5:00 pace)
3x200@33s, 32s, 31s, w/200 meter recovery (4:24, 4:16, 4:08 pace)
cooldown
Mine went more like:
2 mile warmup
3x200@34s w/200 meter recovery (Promising!)
1x1000@3:28 w/200 meter recovery (Ow my calf! Time to slow down)
4x1000@4:00 w/200 meter recovery
3x200@40s w/200 meter recovery
2 mile cooldown
So a conservative workout for me would be:
2 mile warmup
3x200@40s w/200 meter recovery (5:20 pace)
5x1000@4:00 w/200 meter recovery (6:25 pace)
3x200@40s w/200 meter recovery (5:20 pace)
2 mile cooldown
4/1/2016
4 mile warmup
3x200@38,38,40s w/200 meter recovery (5:00 pace)
5x1000@3:47,3:42,3:41,3:43,3:37 w/200 meter recovery (5:55 pace)
3x200@38,36,38s w/200 meter recovery (5:00 pace)
2 mile cooldown
4/19/2016 target for a 16:40 5k/5:22 pace
2 mile warmup
3x200@38s w/200m recovery (5:00 pace)
5x1000@3:30s w/200m recovery (5:35 pace)
3x200@38,37,36 w/200m recovery (5:00,4:52,4:44 pace)
2 mile cooldown
The above plan was cancelled because a lacrosse game was being played on the track, but I tried again on 5/24, and ended up running faster than targeted:
target for a maybe 16:26 5k/5:18 pace
2 mile warmup
3x200@36s w/200m recovery (4:50 pace)
5x1000@3:24s w/200m recovery (5:28 pace)
3x200@36,35,34 w/200m recovery (4:50, 4:42, 4:34) (last one was onofficial - watch died)
2 mile cooldown
The 300 meter recovery is really difficult to keep track of, because that breaks up where you start each set. So I did 200 meter recovery instead. Maybe runners do it that way because your starting point helps you keep track of which lap you are on.