It can be two tempo runs or an interval session plus a long run with a tempo finish. Use Appropriately - One to two workouts per week of this type of effort is more than sufficient. All work should be done with 25 percent recovery (distance) or 50 percent recovery (by time) You can eventually build up to 15-minutes as your fitness improves. Pick Manageable Intervals - Start with threshold work in the 5-minute range. Test & Implement - The 5K distance is just long enough to get a decent result without crushing you in training. This ensures that a long run's effort is as properly correlated to your marathon goals as your speed work. We also use this vDOT score to determine your best case scenario marathon finish time, as well as appropriate training paces for the rest of your runs. Want to run faster? Then you have to earn the right to do so by demonstrating an improved test result.
This resultant pace, based off of your tested fitness and not a randomly selected goal marathon time, is your goal repeat effort for the track workouts. Then we leverage Daniels' vDOT score, part of his Running Formula, to determine your actual threshold running pace for training. We start your training with a 5 K test run. Inside Marathon Nation we solve the "speed for speed's sake" problem by connecting the speed work you are doing to regular benchmark runs. In-depth scientific arguments aside, training at or just under threshold is still aerobic (and therefore marathon-specific), w hile super-threshold efforts are anaerobic in nature and not complimentary.
In layman's terms, the effort you put out for a 10k race is pretty comparable to your running threshold. Sub-threshold you can run for long periods of time above threshold you are done (literally) in a matter of minutes. You recognize this effort as marked by heavy breathing and a rapid decline in economy. This point is also known as Lactate Threshold, as this level of intensity is also marked by an increase in the amount of lactic acid present in the blood. Whether you are talking heart rate or pace, the concept of threshold states there's a point of intensity at which our body switches from aerobic to anaerobic exercise. The fatigue means sub-optimal runs for the next few days. Run too hard and you'll earn too much stress.Run too fast and the work yo u do won't actually be aerobic in other words, it won't be specific to the energy systems you need to train for race day.Chasing the fast folks simply becomes an end in and of itself instead of proper marathon preparation. Without benchmarking your fitness, you have no context of what speed is for you.If you are fortunate enough to have a group to train with, you probably spend one day a week flying around the oval chasing the wicked fast folks. Most marathon plans include some form of track work, with repeats ranging from quarter-mile (400s) up to one mile in duration. While including speed work is important, the typical marathon training program falls short in regards to specificity.
There are many common misconceptions around speed work for marathon training. This article will examine the value of speed work and the role it can play in your marathon training.