there is a recent post about recovery runs being too fast sometimes. I’m curious - for hard runs…how many do people do per week? what distance and what HR zone (non interval runs).
It’s going to be very dependent on athlete, injury history, and events being trained for.
Pure runners may do three ‘harder’ runs a week, while others may only do one run. A run doesn’t necessarily need to be fast to be ‘hard.’ Accumulating time on a longer run can be just as taxing on your body as a shorter run with tempo or speed work mixed in.
Personally, I’ve been doing two ‘hard’ runs a week. One is my long run on the weekend. As HIM is my focus this season, I try to get in 6-10 miles around goal HIM pace during this run. Runs have been 13-17 miles each Sunday for the past 6 months. My other harder run has been on Wednesday when I’ve done intervals ranging from 1/4 miles up to 3 miles at a tempo pace - total mileage during this run is 9-11 miles. I’ve averaged around 215 miles a month since September, but others running less may not want to put in as much ‘harder’ running.
Again, harder running is very individual and depends on a lot of factors.
Overall training schedule (periodization, specificity, race prep, etc.) must be kept in mind when evaluating “hard runs”.
no real “hard” runs personally, it ruins my legs (knees/Achilles). I’m in tri for the long haul so I’d rather be slower than I can be but can race year to year. Got teammates that can handle hard and fast track sessions and it shows, they seem to recover pretty good, race pretty fast too. Some are older than me so it might be just my genes.
When I was a pure runner we’d do three or four per week (including interval days).
As a triathlete I do two of my three weekly runs hard. I’m getting my aerobic base from biking and recovering on non-running days, so easy runs are much less important.
It’s going to be very dependent on athlete, injury history, and events being trained for.
Pure runners may do three ‘harder’ runs a week, while others may only do one run. A run doesn’t necessarily need to be fast to be ‘hard.’ Accumulating time on a longer run can be just as taxing on your body as a shorter run with tempo or speed work mixed in.
Personally, I’ve been doing two ‘hard’ runs a week. One is my long run on the weekend. As HIM is my focus this season, I try to get in 6-10 miles around goal HIM pace during this run. Runs have been 13-17 miles each Sunday for the past 6 months. My other harder run has been on Wednesday when I’ve done intervals ranging from 1/4 miles up to 3 miles at a tempo pace - total mileage during this run is 9-11 miles. I’ve averaged around 215 miles a month since September, but others running less may not want to put in as much ‘harder’ running.
Again, harder running is very individual and depends on a lot of factors.
Pretty much my approach to running as well. Personally I’m doing the canned Marathon Plan in the back of Daniels Running Formula to get ready for Triple T. I’ve used it successfully in the past.
jaretj
Thanks, All. I’ve been doing about 2 harder interval runs per week and one longer easier run, so i guess thats pretty on track. I’ve recently gotten back into tri training after a few years of hiatus (pretty much no activity…started out being due to family and work, and then just because of laziness to get back into working out. I’m the all or nothing type). Been training about 10 hours per week since end of October - 2 olympics and 1 sprint on the calendar so far for this year. the biking and the swimming came back pretty fast, but the running has been tough. Right now I can run a 10k at a steady 8 min miles pace…and thats hard running after the first couple of miles for me - which is very discouraging for me…but considering a couldn’t string together a couple 10 min miles 5 months ago, I’ll take it for now…but want to get to a 45 min 10k at some point this season.
I’ve had about the same success doing lots of slow running compared to much less running but all fast with lots of cross training.
2 weekly “non-easy” runs is a good standard. Typically it’s a longer run on the weekend (20-30% weekly volume) and a shorter aerobic power workout during the week. Tempo, short reps, hills, etc.
Last few years I would do 1 hard run (intervals, threshold etc…) and 1 long run. I was predominantly doing half marathons and that worked quite well for me.
This year I am racing mostly 5 and 10km so I am up to 1 threshold, 1 intervals and 1 long run per week. Overall my mileage is about the same as my long run aren’t quite as long. Neither are my other easy runs.
2 weekly “non-easy” runs is a good standard. Typically it’s a longer run on the weekend (20-30% weekly volume) and a shorter aerobic power workout during the week. Tempo, short reps, hills, etc.
One long run and one tempo.
My guess is I could do more if I wasn’t also doing two hard bike workouts a week and occasionally a hard swim workout.
2 weekly “non-easy” runs is a good standard. Typically it’s a longer run on the weekend (20-30% weekly volume) and a shorter aerobic power workout during the week. Tempo, short reps, hills, etc.
One long run and one tempo.
My guess is I could do more if I wasn’t also doing two hard bike workouts a week and occasionally a hard swim workout.
Pure runner here. I’m doing 2-3 key runs weekly and the other days are full of regeneration runs or fartleks. 2 seems to be a good number for me, or 3 in a 10 day cycle. 10 hours of running weekly.
2 weekly “non-easy” runs is a good standard. Typically it’s a longer run on the weekend (20-30% weekly volume) and a shorter aerobic power workout during the week. Tempo, short reps, hills, etc.
One long run and one tempo.
My guess is I could do more if I wasn’t also doing two hard bike workouts a week and occasionally a hard swim workout.
Pure runner here. I’m doing 2-3 key runs weekly and the other days are full of regeneration runs or fartleks. 2 seems to be a good number for me, or 3 in a 10 day cycle. 10 hours of running weekly.
Being a pure runner you might have seen this article but in case you did not, about 5-6 yrs ago I saw an article on one of the fastest 1/2 mary guys in the U.S., not Hall or Meb but a guy just below them. Anyway, he ran 12-15 mi/day every day, so about 100 mi/wk; almost every day he ran the last 3 miles as hard as he could, and that was his program in total, with no intervals, tempo run, fartleks, etc. Given all the emphasis on doing “special” workouts at a certain pace, I think that this was/is a refreshingly basic run training program. I’ve tried Googling to find this article but w/o success as the searches always come back with mostly the fastest marathons in the U.S., just b/c appar that’s the way Google works:)
I’m in the 2 “non-easy” runs a week camp. I’ll do a tempo or interval run, plus a long run, in addition to whatever other steady mileage I manage to get in that week. I also have at least one killer trainer ride and a hard swim each week. Now that the weather’s nicer, I’m adding a longer outdoor ride with some intervals/hills along with whatever aerobic trainer rides I have time for.
Being a pure runner you might have seen this article but in case you did not, about 5-6 yrs ago I saw an article on one of the fastest 1/2 mary guys in the U.S., not Hall or Meb but a guy just below them. Anyway, he ran 12-15 mi/day every day, so about 100 mi/wk; almost every day he ran the last 3 miles as hard as he could, and that was his program in total, with no intervals, tempo run, fartleks, etc. Given all the emphasis on doing “special” workouts at a certain pace, I think that this was/is a refreshingly basic run training program. I’ve tried Googling to find this article but w/o success as the searches always come back with mostly the fastest marathons in the U.S., just b/c appar that’s the way Google works:)
I absolutely agree with this. Simple and easy. When I started “going hard” on the end of my 35km long runs, I barely had the strength to pick up the pace at all. Reduced the long run to 30 and was able to run the last 5km harder. Now, my entire 35km runs are faster, more comfortable, and the last 5km I can pick up the pace. (4:35/km avg, pick it up to 4:15/km for last 5km.) My running has improved by leaps and bounds with this way of training. Once in a while I will run a hard 15km that puts me in just under 60minutes; great for running efficiency and to know the pain of running “fast” (by my standard this is fast). I do think, however, these kinds of hard runs put me at much greater risk of injury than the method mentioned by Eric Mulk.
Generally two non easy runs for me per week and two easier runs.
I think the one thing that seems suspect about that idea is that it lacks specificity of any kind or maybe has way too much. Anyways, although I think that doing really complicated workouts is probably unneccessary(some people mix distances, paces, sets, and rest to a ridiculous degree), being able to Do more or less the same run everyday and see improvement is probably unique as well.
To the OP, right now I am only running and training for mile/5k, and do a hard run every third day alternating between different paces(one day I do goal 3k, one day I do current 5k pace, and one day I do threshold). I run longish once a week and will run some of my harder paces in my long run but I dial back duration a little. But I’m in my last push before my A race, at which time I will back off a bit and do less structured difficult days(hills, fartleks, and strides).
When I was going training just for triathlons I usually did some vo2 max efforts, some threshold efforts and some long runs. Probably 2 of any of those per week depending on the goal.
**I think the one thing that seems suspect about that idea is that it lacks specificity of any kind or maybe has way too much. **Anyway, although I think that doing really complicated workouts is probably unnecessary(some people mix distances, paces, sets, and rest to a ridiculous degree), being able to Do more or less the same run everyday and see improvement is probably unique as well.
To the OP, right now I am only running and training for mile/5k, and do a hard run every third day alternating between different paces(one day I do goal 3k, one day I do current 5k pace, and one day I do threshold). I run longish once a week and will run some of my harder paces in my long run but I dial back duration a little. But I’m in my last push before my A race, at which time I will back off a bit and do less structured difficult days(hills, fartleks, and strides).
When I was going training just for triathlons I usually did some vo2 max efforts, some threshold efforts and some long runs. Probably 2 of any of those per week depending on the goal.
It seems to me that the plan of running 13-15 mi/day every day, with last 3 miles hard, is very, very specific to the half mary race. I’m not sure how a training plan can be “too specific”???
Well, it’s a debate that comes up a lot when people talk a lot about cycling and 2x20. Some people point to FTP gains and say, “it’s clearly an effective workout” while others insist that for long term development and potentially more effective overall development, you need to throw in shorter harder efforts and longer rides.
I’m not exercise scientists but there’s probably some muscular changes and metabolic changes that can benefit a half marathon runner that are left on the table by not running shorter and harder and longer and easier.
Well, it’s a debate that comes up a lot when people talk a lot about cycling and 2x20. Some people point to FTP gains and say, “it’s clearly an effective workout” while others insist that for long term development and potentially more effective overall development, you need to throw in shorter harder efforts and longer rides.
I’m not an exercise scientist but there’s probably some muscular changes and metabolic changes that can benefit a half marathon runner that are left on the table by not running shorter and harder and longer and easier.
Ah, now I see your point. It def worked for this guy (whose name escapes me) though, as IIRC he was going 1:01-1:02 for a flat half mary.