Every time we speak about Lydiard, we find a lot of interpretations, and many times they are fruit of personal ideas, but not of the essence of the project.
Nobody deny that, when we want to build a strong 800m runner, we need to increase the specific endurance. This is what Rudisha does today, what Coe did yesterday, what Snell did 50 years ago, what Whitfield did 70 years ago.
The point is : in order to develop this quality, according to the specific characteritics of the athlete, which kind of road have we to use ?
Start for considering some points. These are facts, not opinions.
a) In the typologies of 80om runners, we can find athletes with high percentage of Fast Twich Fibers, and athletes with good (but in any case not too high) percentage of Slow Fibers. We need to design their training according to those differences.
b) Top champions, in every event, need to exalt, in their training. their most important characteristics, rather than spending time in trying to fill in the gaps. We don't say that improving where you are more weak is useless, but to spend to much time in that direction is ALWAYS a methodological mistake.
c) We have, sometimes, clear typologies that can indicate the right way of training. For example, if an athlete has 60% of Fast Fibers, 20% of Slow Fibers and 20% of Fast Fibers Type II (also called INTERMEDIATE, because it's possible to steer them in one or another direction according to the type of training), it's clear his training MUST be in direction of speed, so he can reach a level equivalent to 80% of Fast (practically). On the contrary, if the athlete has 60% of Slow Fibers, it's better he looks at a longer distance.
Where we can have some problem in chosing the right way, is when the percentage of Fast and Slow fibers is equivalent (for example, 40%, with a 20% that can work as Fast or Slow).
d) Cases as Rudolf Harbig (46" / 1'46"6), Tom Courtney (45"7 / 1'45"7), Alberto Juantorena (Olympic Champion in 400 / 800), Luciano Susanj, Marcello Fiasconaro, Billy Konchellah (45"1 / 1'43"), David Rudisha or, among women, Jarmila Kratochvilova (47"99 / WR 800) and Fidelia Quirot, are very obvious : THEY STARTED AS LONG SPRINTERS (400m) AND DEVELOPED SPECIFIC ENDURANCE IN A SECOND TIME, INCREASING THE VOLUME OF THE INTENSITY.
Cases as Peter Snell, Sebastian Coe, Steve Cram, Jim Ryun, Dave Wottle, Van Damme, Bucher, Steve Ovett and, among women, Kazankina, Melinte, Decker, Dorio are the opposite : THEY STARTED AS MIDDLE DISTANCE RUNNERS (with some Cross Country when young) AND IN A SECOND TIME, USING THEIR SUPERIOR AEROBIC POWER, DEVELOPED SPECIFIC SPEED ENDURANCE MOVING TO SPEED, INCREASING THE INTENSITY OF THE VOLUME.
The problem is HOW TO IDENTIFY THE TYPOLOGY OF THE ATHLETE from the beginning of his career. Under this point of view, is easier to identify the athlete FAST, because he's able to run REALLY fast when still young in 400m.
Instead, is more difficult to understand, in the case the young athlete doesn't show particular attitudes in 400m, if the best way is to move DIRECTLY to long distances, or if is better to try to develop his speed, that in any case can allow him in running 800 and 1500 at the same time, after some year 3000 and 5000m too.
I had a personal experience with Marcello Fiasconaro. In 1971-73, I was the assistant coach of the Italian responsible for 400m / 400 hs / 4x400 (Salvatore Morale, in 1962 winning European Championships in 400 hs with the WR of 49"2, and in 1964 bronze in Olympic Games), and I was the first working in Italy with Marcello, coming from South Africa. He came Italy on 28th June 1971 with a PB in 400m of 45"9 (Italian Record) in South Africa, and ran his first Italian competition winning, on 1st July, his 400m during the meeting "Notturna di Milano" (in the same occasion, Marty Liquori beated Franco Arese in the fastest 1500m of the year, 3'36" vs 3'36"3). After few days (we had a training camp in Viareggio) we had a match against Cuba, and he ran 400m against a new Cuban (Alberto Juantorena, very young and in Europe for the first time). Marcello bettered the Italian Record with 45"7.
Morale sent me as responsible for a period of 2 weeks in altitude (Abetone, 1800m) without any track, with the athletes of the relay. One day, I went running 30' fast with March (nobody of the other 400m runners in Italy was able to stay with me) and he was very comfortable with my pace. I remember I told him "you must try 800m, you can become the European Record Holder", and he told me "I never want run 800m, are too long".
In European Champs (Helsinki) March won the silver medal in 45"49 (NR) behind Dave Jenkins, and in the relay Italy won bronze medal for the first time in its history.
In 1972 March had a stress fracture in the navicular bone of his left foot, and in OG he couldn't run. This happened because of the first syntetic tracks, so at the end of September he went to Johannesburg, and in December started training on grass under the programs of Stewart Banner,a coach owner of a chain of restaurants.
Increasing his long run till one hour 3 times per week, and using long intervals (400-600m) during the other days, he bettered 3 times the Italian Record of 800m (1'45"7 / 1'45"2 / 1'44"7) in epic duels against Malan and Botha. He came to Italy at the end of March.
I organised for him in Turin morning training sessions on the Golf Field in La Mandria, and March went there 5 times per week, running every day 10 km between 35' at the beginning of the period and 33' at the end of May. On the track, his program was very easy : twice per week (Tuesday and Friday) alternating this type of workouts :
a) 10x150m in 18" with 2' recovery
b) 6x300m in 36" / 36"5 with 6' recovery
c) 3x600m in 1'21" / 1'19" with 8' recovery
d) 6x150m in 16"5 with 5' recovery
e) 3x300m in 33"5 / 34"5 with 8' recovery
I remember that the week of the WR (he ran 1'43"7 in front from the first meter with splits of 50"1 / 1'16"5) he ran, 5 days before, on the track (earth) of the Club Fiat, 3 times 600m in 1'18"7 / 1'19"2 / 1'18"8 with recovery of 8' between the first 2, and 10' between the second and the third. I remember also that after the second he was very tired, so I advised him to run slowly (about 1'23"), and I asked to another runner with a PB of 1'51" to pace him for the last 300m in 41". But this athlete, fearing to run too slow, started when March was still 15 meters before the line of 300m (he ran the first 300m in 42"), running very fast. March, that didn't want to lose also in training, started to increase his speed, and overtook the other athlete with 10 meters to go, running the second 300m in 36"8 !
So, we must to establish some things :
1) What does it mean "HIGH MILEAGE" ? Because it seems that, when you speak about 100 miles per week, this is a very high mileage. For me, it's a normal mileage for a specialist of 800m of the second type, and in any case NOBODY runs 800m fast with less than 70 miles per week, if we consider ALL the miles they run. For example, I followed PERSONALLY in the Winter of 1986 Seb Coe (in Tirrenia, Italian Olympic Venue for middle distances) when he ran 30 km at 3'22" pace (1 hr 40') on the road, with the car of the Center, so IT'S NOT TRUE HE DIDN'T GO FOR LONG RUN. However, the big difference between the Lydiard system and the Peter Coe system was that, ALREADY IN WINTER, Sebastian used high speed, going for a competition/test every year in Loghborough at the end of April of 800m (if I well remember, his best was 1'44" alone), running also a 3000m indoor (his best around 7'51").
2) What does it mean "TO INCREASE THE VOLUME OF THE INTENSITY" ? It means to put in training some test longer than before at the same intensity, and to run more tests at an intensity a little lower, but reducing the recovery time. For example, if Billy Konchellah used 3x300m in 34" with 10' recovery when ran 400m, when he moved to 800m he started to use 600m (twice) in 1'21" with 10', and 6x300 in 36" with 5', DEPENDING ON HIS LACTIC POWER LEVEL. More than before, but very far from the volume, the speed and the recovery of, for example, 10x300m in 39" with 30"/40" recovery, workout used by Steve Cram, depending on his AEROBIC POWER LEVEL.
3) What does it mean "TO INCREASE THE INTENSITY OF THE VOLUME" ? It means to try to run faster in the tests normally used, and to put some shorter distance in order to increase the speed. Sebastian Coe while junior ran 1500m in European Junior Champs, Steve Cram in 1979 won 3000m, Andrè Bucher beated the Swiss Junior Record of 10000m in 30'10" and ran steeple, Olga Kazankina beated the WR of 3000m.
4) Which is the function of long and slow run for the 800m runner of type a) (coming from 400m) ? It's to enhance the "general efficiency" in order to train better in the "specific area". So, it's clear that doesn't have any DIRECT INTERVENTION in the performance, but can be considered "TRAINIG for TRAINING".
5) How long must this long run last ? We must always remember that TRAINING IS NOT THE PROPOSAL, BUT THE ANSWER TO THE PROPOSAL, and the effect of SUPERCOMPENSATION can exist only if the STIMULUS is adequate.
We can have stimula in two different directions : INTENSITY and EXTENSION. This means that, if at the beginning of the preparation EVERY TIME WE RUN LONGER AT THE SAME SPEED WE PRODUCE A NEW STIMULUS, when we reach an ultimate duration WE NEED TO INCREASE THE INTENSITY, otherwise we create adaptation that is the best way for DECREASING the effects of training.
So, the best way is to increase DURATION and SPEED, alternately, during the same period.
6) For how much time this long run must be done ? If we accept the idea that LONG AND SLOW RUN is the fundation of the training, AFTER THE FUNDATION THERE IS THE FIRST FLOOR, AND AFTER THE FIRST THERE IS THE SECOND, and so on.
This means that TO REPEAT THE SAME TRAINING EVERY SEASON IS A MISTAKE, BECAUSE DOESN'T HAVE ANY EFFECT. So, going ahead in the career, WE HAVE TO REDUCE THE LENGTH OF LONG RUN INCREASING THE SPEED. Supposing, for example, that an athlete can arrive to run 2 hours of long run at 7:00 per mile (that is really very slow), the evolution can be 1 hr 30' at 6:20 for moving to 1 hr at 5:30, because this intensity can have an impact on the Aerobic Power, but slower long run cannot have. Of course, we can use (for example, in 1999 Christopher Koskei, winner of the only gold medal for Kenya in WCh, when we were in St. Moritz, went running 3 hours easy, and when I asked him why, he told me "after running 3 hours I feel better") some time long run as regeneration (expecially when we don't have masseur working with the athletes in systematic way), BUT THIS CANT BE CONSIDERED ANYMORE PART OF TRAINING.
I repeat : during a career, we have to build the SPECIFIC HOUSE of every athlete, and for building a house we need to ADD FLOORS TO FLOORS, not to destroy what we already built, resting too much or ending to stimulate the body.
At the end, I don't agree with the idea that, after the long and slow run, there is depletion of glycogen, because at the speed Peter Snell speaks about (7:00 per mile), an athlete of his level used ONLY fatty acids. We can have depletion only running LONG AND FAST (for example, a HM at the speed of the Threshold), because really the turn-over of the fibers doesn't exist in athletes trained with a mix, in the same period, of Aerobic and Lactic workouts.
And, in any case, the depletion of glycogen doesn't have any importance in competition lasting 1:40 / 4:00.
My final idea, only for speaking, is that Peter Snell could run faster, especially in 1500m (where he could have the same attitude of athletes as Morceli, if cultivated), and that, if the organisation of the general activity in 1960-1964 was similar what we have today, Lydiard (that had a great ability in managing the reality) probably changed the structure of his plan, in order to give the athletes the continuity in competing for all the season, cancelling the systematic use of long and slow run for long periods of time.