Hey team, I may be too busy to post tomorrow, so a little early (it’s a nice evening, go run!) here’s your coach session for this week.
One I’m calling ‘Fantastic 4s’
Spend your 1-2 mile EASY warm up thinking ‘what kind of runner am I right now?’ whilst chucking in the usual buttkicks (cycling action), high knees and light fast forefoot drills.
The options are all blocks of 4 minutes / 1 minute and you’ll run 5 in all.
If you’re the optimistic distance runner you’re hoping marathons will return, so this format is ideal for ‘classic’ YASSO. In this version you run an 800metre (1/2 mile) loop or long straight in the same min / sec time as your hour / min road marathon goal. I know this being 4 minute blocks works for a lot of people, there are lots of you with goals hovering around 4hours. For these folk, top marks for running very strictly 8 min mile pace on the dot for all 5 reps. If you’re faster or slower pace, no big deal – just give a solid tempo effort about 1 min / mile faster than your marathon pace.
STATIC recovery for a full minute.
5 x 4 min reps. More reps if you have time and you’re suffering lockdown maranoia.
Please choose your time and place right for this session. There are some obvious loops, paths or tracks club runners use. Don’t all turn up at once! Or be willing to keep a distance and wait your turn if you do.
Option 2 (this is me right now to be honest)
I’m unsure when ‘competitive’ running will return but hope there’ll be plenty notice. I could be out every day, often more than once but have been turning in little but mid-long steady mileage. Starting to feel less ‘base phase sorted’ and more stale in the legs. Need to spice things up.
So here’s the session I’ll be running.
5 x 4 min steady, faster than usual long run speed but not quite marathon pace.
Between those 4 min blocks it’s ‘Flame On!’
Absolutely hammer it, as fast and as far as 1 minute allows. 1 minute’s worth of finish line glory. Back to steady rhythm for 4 mins. Go again.
So really it’s 5 x 1 min all out, with 4 min steady recovery between.
Please choose your location wisely for this. Somewhere with an unbroken straight for your 1 minute all out, with good line of view and wide enough to avoid any cyclists or pedestrians.
Hope one of those 2 sessions works for you, if you space them out a few days you could even run both.
Remember a 1-2 mile easy cooldown too.