FLRC workouts for the week of May 25th

Group Runs & Workouts
1

Hot days coming up—probably best if you can do your workouts in the morning or after the heat of the day has broken. If you knew you were going to be racing on a hot day, I’d encourage some heat acclimation training, since it takes about two weeks of exercising in heat to become accustomed to it. Two years ago, I had a National Masters 5K Championship race in Atlanta in mid-August, so I made sure to run at noon most days instead of avoiding the heat. Knowing that I was doing heat training (as opposed to just acting like mad dogs and Englishmen) made it a lot more bearable, and it helped a lot down in Atlanta come race day.

Middle Distance Workouts (5K to 15K)

We’ve had three hard weeks, so for this week, we’re going to pull back a bit. These workouts should feel easy or at least controlled (assuming you don’t do them at the hottest part of the day).

  • Workout 1: 4-6 reps of 4 minutes at I pace, with 3 minutes of jogging to recover between each one.

  • Workout 2: 2 miles, 1 mile, and 1/2 mile, all at T pace, with a 3-minute jogging rest after each repetition. When you’re done with the T-pace work and rested, do 6 by 30-second strides (30 seconds at R pace, followed by 30 seconds of jogging).

  • Long Run: 25-30% of your weekly mileage at E pace

Long Distance Workouts (Half Marathon to Marathon)

The overall length of this workout is long, but the speed portion is relatively short compared to what you have been doing, and there’s a rest in the middle.

  • Workout 1: 30 minutes at E pace, 2 by 15 minutes at T pace with a 5-minute rest between them, 30 minutes at E pace. No need to do the extra 10 minutes warmup/cooldown.

  • Long Run: 25-30% of your weekly mileage at E pace

Resources

2

These workouts were great, Adam. I did the 2 mi-1mi-1/2 mi on a warm morning. Felt the heat but stayed on pace. Then yesterday, I made that looong distance workout into my 13 mile long run. The speed in the middle actually helped me keep a quick pace through the whole run, even when I wasn’t trying.
Looking forward to this week’s workouts now . . .

3

Sounds like you’re crushing these workouts, Kate—keep it up! What’s your weekly mileage like? It’s important to make sure you’re getting plenty of easy running in too—those conversational pace miles play a key role in your overall aerobic fitness and in making sure your body continues to adapt to the stress with reduced risk of injury.

4

I’m doing about 40 miles a week. So far no injuries or even that much soreness. I take every Monday off and run easy 3-4 times a week. Thanks for the reminder about easy running. I’m starting to see how it fits in.

5

Excellent—at 40 miles per week, that’s a good mix of workouts.