Cooking
up some track workout recipes
By Amanda McCracken
May 31, 2007 -- Many people don’t
take advantage of the benefits offered from workouts on the track
– a set, measured, flat course that speaks the honest truth about
your pace. What better way to measure improvement than a series
of track workouts that change slightly as your fitness improves?
Track workouts are like recipes, a little addition or subtraction
of one ingredient can change the whole result.
The two ingredients I’m speaking
of specifically are recovery time and volume. There are variations
upon variations of the same basic recipes. You have to play with
them until you find one that works for you. The following are three
of my favorite track workout recipes for Olympic distance athletes.
A basic set of 4 X 800 can be adjusted as you progress through the
build phase in your training. The 800’s should be run at or just
below your lactate threshold heart rate or a perceived exertion
of 7/8 on a scale of 10. Remember that running a little above your
LT for an extended period of time, even by only a few beats, can
do a lot more muscular damage and require more time to recover.
Get more bang for your buck with a little control in order to allow
room for subsequent quality workouts. The rest interval should be
half the distance of the work interval (400 meters) and jogged.
The 400 meters can be shortened to 200-300 meters rest as you progress
through your build phase. The number of 800’s can also increase
in proportion to your fitness. Being able to maintain your heart
rate at LT through a higher volume indicates an increased level
of fitness.
As triathletes, we must not forget
to simulate running on tired legs. Instead of calling it a double
brick workout (which sounds terribly daunting), I prefer to call
this workout the quadruple chocolate fudge layer cake. You can decide
which is the fudge and which is the cake. Set up your bike on a
trainer at a track or other site with a measured, out-and-back or
circular course. Warm-up on the bike for 15 minutes to spike the
heart rate. Then, transition to the track for a 400-meter run at
10k pace. Transition back to the bike for a 5-minute ride in which
you spin easily for 2 minutes to recover and then build heart rate
to the 4-5a zone and hold for 3 minutes. Transition to an 800-meter
run at 5k race pace. Repeat this pattern of 5 minutes on the bike
followed by an 800-meter run 2-3 more times. After the last one,
cool down on the bike by spinning easily for 10 minutes. This workout
will take approximately 1 hour and should be done during the build
1, or 2 phase (3/4 of the way through your training for a peak race).
Another great track recipe, done with or without the bike, is a
set of 6 X 1 mile at 10k race pace or slightly faster. The recovery
should be a 600 meter jog or half the work interval time. For example,
a 6-minute mile pace recovery would be 3 minutes. If you want to
“layer” the workout to simulate race legs, add in a 40 minute ride
prior to the run. Build up to zone 3-4 and maintain the effort in
this zone for at least the last 15 minutes. Try to run each mile
at about the same pace. Test yourself a couple of weeks later to
see if you can sustain a faster pace for all 6 repeats. This is
either a confidence booster or a reality check. Is that pace you
were planning to run in the race realistic? Far fetched? Too conservative?
Consistency is the key factor in this workout.
