As befitting the hardcore masochistic image that us endurance runners like to project, we all want to hear about the “killer” sessions that are going push us to our limits. But one of my most effective regular sessions is neither a killer session nor just a steady run. It’s the ‘In-Between Fartlek’. That uninspiring description doesn’t do justice to the important role it has played in my training as a former elite athlete and now for the athletes I coach.

What is the ‘In-Between’ Fartlek?

Fartlek is a well-known term that essentially means mixed pace running and describes a range of differently structured sessions. However, my fartlek runs have a very specific purpose as a session that’s somewhere in between a high intensity hard intervals session and a good steady run.

The key to this session is to manage the variation in pace between the faster and slower sections. The change of pace should be far less extreme than you might run for interval sessions and the overall average pace should be marginally faster than a good steady run.

So you might usually aim for 5k pace or 85-95% of your max. heart rate then recover with a slow jog or walk. By contrast the faster sections of the fartlek are run at a more conservative 10k-half marathon pace or approx. 70-80% HR max. The kicker comes as the slower sections should be faster than most jog recoveries and much closer to your regular steady run pace at around 60-70% HR max.

The challenge is to avoid running too hard for the fast sections, especially at the start. Run too fast and it impacts on your ability to maintain the necessary pace for the slower sections and you lose the point of the session. The effort comes from the constant change of pace and the duration of the session rather than the intensity of the hard efforts. I usually suggest a mix of longer and shorter sections for 25-35mins. However, it can be less or more depending upon your level of fitness, the stage you are at within your overall training cycle and your target race distance.

Why is it such a good session?

Run like this, the fartlek can be very effective in building fitness quickly but the “in between” nature of the session means it’s deliberately less mentally and physically demanding than other interval sessions. And so I run this session in two main circumstances – to build fitness and to avoid overtraining.

Key times for building fitness are during periods of comebacks from injury, illness or end of season breaks and base-building aerobic training such as in the early stages of a marathon training plan. At these times the fartlek is perfect. What’s more it provides a change from monotonous steady aerobic running which many runners can find boring and demotivating but without slipping back into higher intensity running too soon.

But that’s not to say you can’t run the session during periods of high intensity training too. And that’s when its shift of focus from the pace or set distance of traditional intervals can be invaluable. Its role as an in between session means you can lower the intensity – either mentally or physically – to avoid over-training but you still get more training benefit than a steady run. The cumulative load of the constant change of pace and faster-than-usual recovery sections ensures the fatigue builds as the session progresses and you can finish feeling like you’ve still had a hard workout.

So despite its terrible name the ‘In-Between’ Fartlek still forms a core part of my own running these days and often pops up on the training schedules of my athletes. After many years as an athlete and now as a coach I know the real secret to being a hard-core endurance runner is knowing that it’s not always the killer sessions that make difference.

Jo is a former GB marathon runner and now fully qualified British Athletics coach. To find out more about her coaching or see what running she’s still doing you can visit her website herewebsite here or follow her on InstagramInstagram, TwitterTwitter or Facebook.

The post Fartlek – the ‘inbetween’ session appeared first on Fast Running.

Variation in training, whether it’s simply an extra mile or two added onto a fartlek run or increasing the repetitions in a hill session, can lead to both psychological and physiological benefits. This includes stressing the body differently aerobically and anaerobically, and boosting motivation when runs become stale.

Before you jump into any of the below 10 running sessions, it’s always important to stress a few guidelines before and after high-intensity training.

• Warm-up of 10 to 20 minutes of easy running, dynamic stretches and movement drills.
• Include a recovery period if you are doing repetitions.
• Finish with 10 to 20-minute cool-down.
• Proper hydration and nutrition afterwards to aid your recovery.
• An easier day of running or rest day should follow the session to recover.
• Only push to 90% maximum effort.

High-intensity training should push the boundaries of your comfort zones. The idea is that they provide a different stimulus to your body and mind to force an adaptation in your body when it recovers during easier days. Becoming stronger and fitter can only happen when you give your body adequate recovery time between high-intensity training.

Only ever push to 90% maximum effort, this is more than enough of a stimulus to force an adaptation and it reduces the risk of any injuries.

Example high-intensity sessions

Session 1
WARM UP
Run 8 x 60-second repeats uphill at 85% max effort.
To recover, jog back down after each repetition.
COOL-DOWN

Session 2
WARM UP
Run 3 x 1 km repeats at 85% max effort.
4 minutes recovery between each repetition.
COOL-DOWN

Session 3
WARM UP
Run hard for 2 x (3x400m) at 90% max effort.
1-minute recovery between each repetition and 3 minutes between sets.
COOL-DOWN

Session 4
WARM UP
Run 2 x (4mins, 3mins, 2mins, 1min) with 60 secs recovery between repetitions and four minutes easy jog between sets aim to do these at 90% max effort.
COOL-DOWN

Session 5
WARM UP
Run 5 x 5 minutes with 90 secs recovery at 70-80% maximum effort
COOL-DOWN

Session 6
WARM UP
Run for 10 minutes at 70-80% maximum effort.
Then run easy to recovery for 5 minutes, followed by 6 x 30 seconds uphill at 80% effort with good running form.
Walk back down between repeats for recovery.
COOL-DOWN

Session 7
WARM UP
Run the following sets with 60 seconds recovery between reps and 2:30 minutes between sets.
Sets: 4 x 60 secs, 4 x 2mins, 2 x 4mins, 4 x 2 minutes, and aim to do these at 85% max effort.
COOL-DOWN

Session 8
WARM UP,
Run a 20 to 30 minutes fartlek session surging to 80% max effort for anywhere between 1 minute to 5 minutes while allocating an equal amount of time with a recovery jog.
Mix up the time intervals or choose landmarks to run faster between.
COOL-DOWN

Session 9
WARM UP
25 minutes of tempo running at 75-80% of your maximum effort, be consistent with your effort and speed this will require good pacing. Follow with a 5-minute recovery jog.
COOL-DOWN

Session 10
WARM UP, Uphill progression repeats, COOL-DOWN
Week 1 – 6 x 60 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down after each repetition
Week 2 – 8 x 60 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down
Week 3 – 10 x 60 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down
Week 4 – 8 x 90 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down
Week 5 – 10 x 90 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down
Week 6 – 12 x 90 secs hard uphill at 85% max effort & jog back down

About the Author

Majell Backhausen is one of Australia’s finest elite trail runners. He has enjoyed success on the shorter distance trails right up to the 170km Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc (UTMB).

The post 10 Running Sessions to Spice up Training appeared first on Fast Running.

One of the main benefits of a fartlek session is it works both the anaerobic and aerobic systems.

The session can be done virtually anywhere: trails, roads, parks, flat or hilly terrain.

The session can be structured, for example: run at hard effort for one minute, then easy effort for two minutes, then hard effort for three minutes etc.

Or it can be ran as freeform as you like, for example: run hard to that house in the distance, jog easy to the tree, then run hard up that hill in the distance, and so on.

If you decide to try a structured fartlek session, the shorter intervals of a minute and less should be ran a bit harder than your 5K effort, helping to improve your speed. While longer intervals for up to five minutes should be ran between marathon and 10K effort, allowing you to work on your race pace.

Structured Fartlek

First warm up for 15 minutes of easy running.

Then try 3 sets of:
5 minutes at marathon race pace.
4 minutes easy jogging.
3 minutes at 10K race pace followed
1 minute easy jogging.
1 minute at 5K race pace.
30 second easy jogging.
30 seconds at 3K race pace.

In between sets jog easy for 5 minutes.

Finish with 15 minutes of easy running to cool down

Unstructured Fartlek

An unstructured fartlek should be exactly that, unstructured, but it’s a good idea to roughly know the amount of time you will spend mixing up the intervals, for example 30-45 minutes and know where you plan to finish the session.

Once your ready, warm up with 15 minutes of easy running and then start picking out objects in the distance, such as a tree, house or a pole and run to it by feel. The aim is to get a feel for race effort while being aware of how you’re feeling as the session progresses.

Once you reach the object you picked out, jog easy until you are back to a relaxed conversational pace and feel recovered. Then pick out your next object and repeat the process until you reach your destination.

The post Running session: Fartleks appeared first on Fast Running.