I would like some volunteers to test my new low mileage, high quality training plan. The idea behind it is that there is no need to increase weekly volume and risk injury until you race as fast as possible using the current plan. Best results will be seen over time after using the plan consistently. I have been using this plan and find it nearly impossible to get injured with it.
My plan calls for two quality workouts a week. What you do the rest of the week is your business, but I think it should be easy running and low mileage. In this plan, there is one primary goal in every 6-week period and every other workout is maintenance. There are four types of workouts. It is progressive because the intervals are shorter each week over a 3-week period so you will run faster over the same total distance. Every fourth week in a period, you start over and you should be able to run faster at that workout than you did 3 weeks earlier. Each period emphasizes a different pace. Here is how each workout type progresses:
Type I
60 minute run (May do run-walk method at a 9:00/1:00 ratio). I do not progress to longer times for this aerobic workout. You should be able to run faster over 60 minutes by the 4th week so the progressive nature comes from running the same distance faster. If you want to turn a portion of this workout into a tempo, do it.
Type II
3 X 1 mile
4 X 1200m
5 X 1K
Type III
6 X 400m
8 X 300m
12 X 200m
Type IV
4 X 200m
8 X 100m
16 X 50m
I also throw in Hills to prepare for Type III workouts but stop doing them once I reach the period where Type III is the primary emphasis. Type III trains for greater economy and Type IV is for greater power. The period with an emphasis on Type IV training is only useful for mid-distance track athletes or for developing a final kick, thus 5K and up should skip it or place it earlier in the plan. In any given week, the longer, slower workout will be the first workout. This way, each week is progressively faster, shorter.
Period 1
Week 1, Workout 1: 60 minute run
Week 1, Workout 2: 3 X 1M
Wk 2, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 2, WO 2: 4 X 800m
Wk 3, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 3, WO 1: Hills
Wk 4, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 4, WO 2: 5 X 1K
Wk 5, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 5, WO 2: 6 X 500m
Wk 6, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 6, WO 2: Hills
Period 2
Wk 1, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 1, WO 2: 3 X 1M
Wk 2, WO 1: 4 X 1200m
Wk 2, WO 2: 4 X 800m
Wk 3, WO 1: 5 X 1K
Wk 3, WO 2: Hills
Wk 4, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 4, WO 2: 3 X 1M
Wk 5, WO 1: 4 X 1200m
Wk 5, WO 2: 6 X 500m
Wk 6, WO 1: 5 X 1K
Wk 6, WO 2: Hills
Period 3
Wk 1, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 1, WO 2: 4 X 800m
Wk 2, WO 1: 3 X 1M
Wk 2, WO 2: 5 X 600m
Wk 3, WO 1: 6 X 500m
Wk 3, WO 2: 8 X 300m
Wk 4, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 4, WO 2: 4 X 800m
Wk 5, WO 1: 5 X 1K
Wk 5, WO 2: 5 X 600m
Wk 6, WO 1: 6 X 500m
Wk 76 WO 2: 12 X 200m
Period 4
Wk 1, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 1, WO 2: 6 X 400m
Wk 2, WO 1: 3 X 1M
Wk 2, WO 2: 8 X 300m
Wk 3, WO 1: 4 X 800m
Wk 3, WO 2: 12 X 200m
Wk 4, WO 1: 60 minute run
Wk 4, WO 2: 6 X 400m
Wk 5, WO 1: 5 X 1K
Wk 5, WO 2: 8 X 300m
Wk 6, WO 1: 6 X 500m
Wk 6, WO 2: 12 X 200m
Period 5
Wk 1, WO 1: 3 X 1M
Wk 1, WO 2: 4 X 200m
Wk 2, WO 1: 4 X 800m
Wk 2, WO 2: 8 X 100m
Wk 3, WO 1: 6 X 400m
Wk 3, WO 2: 16 X 50m
Wk 4, WO 1: 5 X 1K
Wk 4, WO 2: 4 X 200m
Wk 5, WO 1: 6 X 500m
Wk 5, WO 2: 8 X 100m
Wk 6, WO 1: 12 X 200m
Wk 6, WO 2: 16 X 50m
I found it nearly impossible to get injured with this plan as long as I keep the other (non-quality) workouts easy and am unafraid to take 1-4 days off per week for any reason. In spite of what I do (or don't do) on the other days of the week, I have been still getting faster. If you are not patient, you will be injured and on the sidelines again while the user of this plan is racing and getting faster all the time. Please excuse my belief in this plan.
We need a name for this multi-pace, non-injuring plan. I will let you decide on the name of it. Once we have a name, I would like users of this plan to start a thread using the name of the plan in it. We can find ways to modify it for improvement in that thread if necessary. Any volunteers? What should we name it?