Running Science

by Owen Anderson

  This session enhances mental tolerance of the physical duress associated with sustained, intense running, and it elevates confidence and stamina at a quality velocity. It is great from a purely physiological standpoint, too, as the challenging 20-minute effort should have a positive impact on lactate-threshold speed and running economy. Note that it is not necessary to determine the distance run during the 20 minutes; all that is required is to move along at what feels like 10K tempo. This gives runners some freedom; since they are not chained to the watch, for once, the workout becomes much more enjoyable, especially if it is carried out in a very pleasant setting such as on a forest path or at the beach.

  The 20-minute extended run is not a traditional tempo run, which by definition would be carried out at lactate-threshold speed, or around 15K (9.32 mi) race pace. The extended run should be completed at a pace that is faster than lactate-threshold speed, which is why the goal is to sustain the perceived effort of a 10K race; 10K running is usually 2 to 3 percent above lactate-threshold velocity. Running at a pace above lactate-threshold speed produces a greater improvement in lactate threshold compared with traditional tempo running, and it is also better for promoting neuromuscular efficiency at race-type speeds.

  The 20-minute duration also helps ensure that the runner is not actually putting forth the same effort as for a whole 10K race—it’s best to save true competitive fire for real race situations—and most runners recover well and quickly from this overall effort. Another strong feature of the extended run is that it is time efficient. The entire session, including warm-up and cool-down, can usually be completed in about 45 minutes. The quality of a 20-minute extended run can usually be improved when training with an individual who is slightly fitter. This peer will tend to push to a higher intensity during the effort than would be possible if the run were completed solo.

  Explosive Drills

  As Heikki Rusko and his Finnish colleagues have shown, explosive training is very good for 5K runners,2 and for that reason it would be wise to include hopping drills such as hurdle hops and sprint hopping in a 5K training program. These two drills can be included in a quality workout after the warm-up and just before the quality running portion. Two-leg hurdle hops can be performed just as described in chapter 23. Be sure to avoid taking a little hop between hurdles. The idea is to land and then explode over the next hurdle, spending as little time as possible on the ground. Sprint hops are described later in this section.

  Once the two-leg hurdles hops are mastered, progress to one-leg hurdle hops, performing the hurdle run-throughs on one leg and then the other. Bar height may need to be lowered initially to establish proficiency with one-leg hurdle hopping. Ground-contact time between hurdles should be as minimal as possible, and only a single contact is permitted between hurdles (i.e., no double-clutching). Keep hip and knee flexion moderate on each ground contact, with the most propulsive force coming from ankle action. A runner can progress from four to eight run-throughs on each leg over time.

  This series of drills improves coordination as well as the rate and quantity of force production (i.e., power) in each leg. Ultimately, as power improves, it will be possible to run 5K races much more explosively.

  Sprint Hop

  Hop as quickly as possible for 20 meters (66 ft) on one foot, emphasizing extremely quick contacts with the ground and forceful forward explosions each time the foot hits the ground (figure 34.4). Without stopping or resting, hop 20 more meters on the other foot. Without interruption, repeat the exercise on the first foot and then the other foot. Recover by doing 1 minute of light jogging. Repeat this hopping and recovery sequence five more times. A key progression with sprint hopping is to begin performing some of the reps on a hill. Start with a gently sloping incline of about 3 percent and gradually work up to a 10 percent incline if possible and hop both uphill and downhill. Maintain good form and balance at all times and avoid the temptation to look down at the hopping foot.

  Figure 34.4 Sprint hopping.

  Additional Training Strategies

  Naturally, the basic workouts already recommended for 800-meter and 1,500-meter training—the vO2max session, greyhound runs, 400s at mile pace, hill training, and lactate stackers—are also superb for preparing for a best possible 5K. Running a couple of 3K (1.86 mi) or 1,500-meter races during the buildup to the most important 5K would also be a great idea; both events will improve speed, spike lactate threshold, and make 5K pace feel easier to handle. A 3K pace is roughly 2.5 to 3 seconds per 400 meters faster than 5K speed, and 1,500-meter race tempo is approximately 6.5 to 7 seconds per 400 quicker than 5K pace.

  If runners feel that they have run these races well, the results can serve as predictors of what can be accomplished in an upcoming 5K. For example, if the 3K race was completed at 85 seconds per 400 meters, the 5K race pace will probably be very close to 88 seconds per 400 meters, or about 3 seconds per 400 slower. If the runner participated in a 1,500-meter or mile race in the best possible way, the 5K race speed should be about 7 seconds per 400 slower.

  In addition to running a few races at shorter distances, another great workout for the 5K is Bruce Tulloh’s gambler session. Tulloh was a sub-4-minute miler who was Richard Nerurkar’s coach (13:23 for 5K, 28:05 in the 10K, and UK cross country champion). The gambler is at first glance nothing more than 3 × 1,200 meters (.75 mi) at planned 5K pace with 3- to 4-minute jog recoveries. However, each 1,200 meters is constructed in a unique way: The first 400 of the 1,200 is completed at planned 5K speed, the second 400 is run at significantly faster than 5K pace, and the third 400 settles back to goal 5K velocity; there is no break between these 400s, of course.

  Why the speed upswing on the second lap? “The increased intensity of the middle lap will help you learn to gamble during your 5K competitions,” notes Tulloh.3 “You will learn that you can handle the increases in intensity which occur when you rush past another runner or blast up a hill during a 5K. Once you learn that you can make such surges and still recover pretty nicely, your confidence in yourself as a competitive 5K runner will improve tremendously.” It is also possible to perform a standard 5K workout of 3 × 1,600 meters (.99 mi) with the second 400 of each 1,600 at significantly faster than current or planned 5K pace; this session is appreciably more challenging than the 4 × 1,200.

  It is important to take it easy with overall training and taper during the week leading up to an important 5K with mileage set at about 15 to 30 percent of usual levels. However, a few days before the 5K, science suggests that it makes sense to complete four or five 200s or else two to three 400s at planned 5K pace to lock the appropriate speed into the neuromuscular system and to stimulate the body to make the last little physiological adjustments that will help with the attainment of a personal record.4

  Training for 3Ks

  The workouts and drills prescribed for 5K training will also work well for individuals preparing for 3K (1.86 mi) competitions. In most cases, a runner can simply substitute 3K pace for the recommended 5K tempo within the training sessions; however, work-interval lengths may need to be adjusted downward in certain situations. For example, a 3K runner might use 400-meter and 800-meter super sets, with the first 400 at close to maximal speed and the follow-up 800 at 3K pace, instead of the combination of 600 meters (.37 mi) and 1,000 meters (.62 mi) recommended for 5K runners. Also, a 3K competitor might employ 3 × 1,200 at 3K pace for the interval workout at race pace rather than the 3 × 1,600 at 5K tempo used by 5K athletes.

  Conclusion

  As is the case with training for all distances from 800 meters to 100K, optimal 5K training programs have four phases (general strength, running-specific strength, hill work, and explosive training) and seven variables to optimize (maximal running velocity, vO2max, tlimvO2max, lactate-threshold velocity, running economy, resistance to fatigue, and running-specific strength). Proper periodization of the phases, use of strengthening workouts appropriate to each phase (see chapters 13-16), and inclusion of the high-quality running workouts
described in this chapter along with vO2max training from chapter 26 will provide runners with the greatest opportunities to reach their 5K potentials.

  Chapter 35

  Training for 10Ks

  Optimal 10K training features an array of challenging workouts and competitions that range in intensity from maximal speed to current 10K velocity. The best 10K preparations always emphasize significant amounts of running time at current 10K speed to improve running economy as well as regular workouts at goal 10K speed to heighten lactate-threshold velocity and resistance to fatigue at personal record speed.

  Evaluating the Effectiveness of Tempo Training

  Traditionally, the staple of 10K training has been the tempo run, defined as a continuous effort with a duration of about 20 to 25 minutes at a pace around 8 to 15 seconds slower per mile (1.6 km) than 10K speed. One supposed advantage of this session is that it teaches runners to sustain and tolerate a quality pace for an extended period of time as is required during racing. In this regard, tempo runs are designed to provide a nice balance to interval training, which often features no more than 5 minutes of continuous hard running. Another presumed advantage is that tempo training significantly boosts lactate threshold.1

  Science suggests that there are problems with this thinking. It is true that tempo running enhances a runner’s ability to sustain a quality running pace, but one difficulty is that the pace that is sustained is more like a 15K (9.32 mi) or half-marathon pace rather than a 10K tempo.2 Thus, the effort is not really specific to the 10K, nor should it have a major positive impact on running economy at 10K speed. Tempo training is a better workout for 15K and half-marathon runners.

  The other problem with tempo training is that a workout conducted at a pace 10 to 15 seconds per mile (1.6 km) slower than 10K pace is usually carried out at very close to a typical runner’s lactate-threshold speed. This might seem like a good thing, and historically such an intensity level has been viewed as optimal for lactate-threshold improvement, but the truth is that running at lactate-threshold velocity is actually a comparatively moderate stimulus for lactate-threshold improvement.

  Boosting Lactate-Threshold Speed

  To increase lactate-threshold speed the most, it is important to expose the leg muscles to large amounts of lactate so they can become good at picking up lactate from the blood and tissue spaces and using it for energy. By definition, working at lactate-threshold intensity produces little lactate. Remember that lactate-threshold velocity is the speed above which lactate begins to pile up in the blood. To boost lactate threshold to the greatest possible extent, it is important to work above threshold, exposing the muscles to relatively high lactate concentrations so that they get better at the clearing process (see chapter 27).

  Training at above lactate threshold also does the best job of stimulating muscles to produce the structures (mitochondria) that prevent lactate from spewing out into the blood in the first place. When the muscles don’t release excessive amounts of energy-rich lactate to the blood, and when the muscles are able to effectively clear the lactate that does show up in the blood, a greater lactate-threshold speed is possible. Running at current 10K pace is a good way to achieve this objective and is a beneficial workout for 10K runners. Moving along at 5K, vO2max, mile, 1,500-meter, 800-meter, lactate-stacker, and even maximal pace are also good for lactate-threshold advancement. Hill running will boost lactate threshold because of the high lactate concentrations and elevated overall exercise intensities that usually prevail. Even circuit training is probably better than tempo running for boosting lactate-threshold because of the high exertion rates and blood lactate levels associated with such routines.

  Undertaking Intense Workouts

  Strong scientific support for the idea of carrying out intense workouts to boost 10K ability—rather than tempo runs or long, moderately paced efforts—comes from research carried out by Peter Snell (gold medalist at 800 meters in the 1960 Olympics in Rome, double gold medalist at 800 and 1,500 meters in the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo). Snell and his colleagues at the University of Texas Southwestern Human Performance Center asked 10 well-trained runners to participate in a scientific study investigating the merits of two differing 10K training plans.3 The 10 runners, whose O2max averaged a fairly impressive 61.7 milliliters of oxygen per kilogram (2.2 lb) of body weight per minute, began the 16-week study by running 50 miles (81 km) per week at moderate tempos for 6 weeks. All participants were fit at the beginning of the study and had no trouble maintaining this amount of running.

  For the subsequent 10 weeks of the research, the runners, whose 10K performance times ranged from 34 to about 42 minutes, were divided into two groups of equal ability. Twice a week, members of one group substituted tempo workouts for their regular daily runs. The tempo sessions involved continuously running for about 29 minutes at a running speed slightly below the pace required to make blood lactate levels begin to skyrocket (i.e., they were exercising at close to lactate-threshold speed and thus conducting traditional tempo workouts). Average intensity during these lactate-threshold sessions was close to 80 percent of O2max.

  The runners in the second group carried out no tempo training at all but instead conducted interval workouts twice a week. During the interval sessions, the athletes ran 200-meter intervals in 33 to 38 seconds each and ran their 400-meter intervals in 75 to 85 seconds, carrying out a total of around 4,600 meters (2.86 mi) of interval training per workout. Exercise intensity during the interval running averaged 90 to 100 percent of O2max. Aside from the key difference between interval training in one group and tempo training in the other group, the groups’ training schedules were identical and consisted of medium to long, moderately paced runs.

  At the end of the 16-week investigation, the runners participated in simulated 800-meter and 10K races. In these appropriate tests, the interval-trained runners fared better than the tempo-trained subjects. For example, the interval-worked athletes decreased 800-meter time by 11.2 seconds and improved 10K performance by a full 2.1 minutes. The tempo-trained runners lowered 800-meter time by 6.6 seconds and bettered previous 10K clockings by an average of just 1.1 minute, about 10 seconds per mile (1.6 km) slower than the interval-trained runners. O2max soared by 12 percent in the interval-trained group compared with the data at the beginning of the 16-week study, but it inched up by only 4 percent among the tempo-trained group.

  It’s reasonable to think that interval training worked better than tempo training in this study because its intensity better matched the level of work required to run a 10K or 800-meter race. For example, 10K racing is usually carried out at about 90 to 92 percent of O2max, and Snell’s intervals were set at 90 to 100 percent of O2max. The faster-paced intervals probably also did a better job of spiking lactate-threshold speed and 10K economy compared with the more slowly paced tempo intervals. In an interview with the author of this book, Snell concluded that “perhaps the best way to train is to spend the maximum-possible amount of training time running at a pace which is closely related to the demands (or actual pace) of the race you are shooting for, without getting overtrained.”4

  Note also the incredible time economy of interval training compared with tempo work. The runners studied by Snell and his colleagues spent about 31 minutes per week doing fast interval running or 58 minutes performing tempo runs, and yet the improvements in running performance were larger in the interval group. Each minute of interval running was clearly worth more than 2 minutes of tempo exertion in terms of associated fitness gain.

  10K Workouts

  In addition to Snell’s highly productive interval sessions, a number of other workouts provide great benefit for 10K runners. Training at current and goal 10K pace, conducting superset and Kenyan-interval sessions, carrying out intervals at 5K-race speed, competing in 5K races, and using hill workouts—including a treadmill-hill session—are all great 10K preparations.

  Training at 10K Pace

  As Snell and colleagues learned in their research, carrying out
running training at current 10K pace is good for 10K potential; it probably pushes up lactate threshold and makes economy at current 10K velocity better so that it is easier to step up to higher speeds in the race. One great 10K pace workout is to simply warm up and then hit 3 × 8 minutes at current 10K speed with 4-minute recoveries. As the ability to handle this workout improves, it is possible to add another work interval and then begin paring down the recovery intervals, first to 3 minutes, then 2:30, then 2:00, and so on.

  Some athletes have successfully used workouts in which the entire 10K distance was broken down into work intervals and then covered in a single session. The great Kenyan runner Yobes Ondieki used such a workout as a staple of training during his preparations to establish a new world record in the event; he succeeded, although his 27:08 mark has since been eclipsed. Ondieki divided his 10K training distance into discrete segments, chose world-record pace as his work-interval speed, and started with approximately 2- to 3-minute recoveries, paring these rest periods down over time as his fitness improved. Eventually, he found himself able to trim his recoveries to as little as 10 seconds, making the establishment of the new world record inevitable.5

  English coach Bruce Tulloh, a former European 5K champion, formalized this kind of workout with the establishment of five work intervals to be completed in the following order:

  1,000 meters (.62 mi) at goal 10K pace followed by 2 minutes of rest