Optimal/Recommended interval volume?

It depends a lot on the size of your base. But generally speaking, you should finish tired but not reach for a race-like effort. When it would take a race-like effort to repeat the same quality, you're done.

ok, but it would be great to have some guidelines on how muchI should do in each pace. I believe there should be an optimal volume for each pace for each athlete. But how to dermine this? Just feel in your body like you said?

You should consider doing multi-pace interval workouts

But to answer your question, the other poster is right. It depends on your base. At 40-50 miles per week, a rough estimate would be about 3-4 miles not including w/up and c/d.

I found this from a post by Renato Canova

SPEED : 60-200m (global volume 1500/2000m)

SPECIFIC SPEED : 200-1000m (global volume 2000/4000m)

SPECIAL SPEED : 400-2000m (global volume 3000/6000m)

BASIC SPEED : 800-6000m (global volume 5000/10000m)

GENERAL SPEED : 5000-12000m (global volume 7-12 km)

REGENERATION : What you feel better for you.

thanks. great

sorry but I think this is for long distance runners. No way a 800m runner ca run reps from 200m-1000m at race pace and a global volume of 2-4k. ;)

In the Coe books the standard workouts are something like:

6 x 1000 at 5k pace

6 to 8 x 800 at 3k pace

8 x 400 or 16 x 200 at 1500 pace

4 to 6 x 400 or 6 to 9 x 300 at 800 pace

300 + 2 x 200 + 4 x 100 at 400 pace

But, like steeper said, if you are doing 8 x 400 at 1500 pace and you have to go all out to keep the pace on the 6th one, you are done.

So like a general rule: When I have to really struggle to keep my assigned pace, then its time to stop. I still find it hard to find the right volume on the interval training. It should be like the more u do the better u get, but there must be a individual limit where f.ex 10x400m is perfect, but if you do 13x400 you feel u have done a better jog and better training, but maybe the body cant absorb it? Like its very possible to do it but the body has a more negative reaction to it than f.ex 10x400. My english is limited, but I hope u understand

Your English is good. In general, a 400-800 guy would do less volume than an 800-1500 guy. An 800-1500 guy would do less volume than a 1500-5000 guy. So Seb Coe might do 6 x 1000 at 5k pace but maybe K. Bekele might do 8 x 1000 at the same pace. Maybe Nijel Amos only does 4 x 1000. But maybe Rudisha does 6 x 1000 and John Walker does 5 x 1000. So everyone is different. These are just examples that may not be actual training by any of these guys.

Now 10 x 400 might be perfect for you on Monday May 13, but not perfect for you on May 23. For some reason, on another day, the workout that was perfect for you and not too difficult on May 13 is difficult and in fact impossible to complete on May 23. Are you getting sick? Didn't sleep well the night before? Overtrained or under recovered? Drank too much? Had a fight with your girlfriend? It could be anything and maybe you can't figure out what caused the problem. Who knows why? All you know is that after 7 x 400 you feel much worse than after 10 x 400 10 days ago. That's just how it is and the thing to do is stop the workout, jog a little, go home and recover well.

Thanks SFM.

I have another question for you. I follow the 5 pace prinsiple by Coe and so far the training is going very good. 2 days of easy training with slow milage and 1 day hard intervals.

I actually have 6 paces. And I might think that I can/should skip the 10k/HM pace? I do 4x2000m on that day. Since I think I am more a 400/800m guy I think maybe I should skip this pave and instead go for a 5k/10k session of 5-6x1000m.What do you think? Is this 2k threshold reps really necessary for me in your opinion?

serious runner wrote:

Thanks SFM.

I have another question for you. I follow the 5 pace prinsiple by Coe and so far the training is going very good. 2 days of easy training with slow milage and 1 day hard intervals.

I actually have 6 paces. And I might think that I can/should skip the 10k/HM pace? I do 4x2000m on that day. Since I think I am more a 400/800m guy I think maybe I should skip this pave and instead go for a 5k/10k session of 5-6x1000m.What do you think? Is this 2k threshold reps really necessary for me in your opinion?

To know if it's okay to remove certain paces, it takes a lot of understanding about how you sit with your base and in your season, as well as how you respond to certain paces. If you've already done a lot of work in the 10k/HM range and maxed out it's benefits, it's probably fine to skip for a while. But don't forget the value of that either. It just depends on what will give you the biggest bang for the buck leading up to your goal.

400 pace about 600-800 meters in total

800 pace about 15-2000 meters in total

1500 pace about 3 miles in total

3000 pace no more than 18 minutes in total (from Pfitzinger)

10000 pace treat as a tempo run or cruise interval up to 24 minutes

I agree with steeper and I also agree with mgm. I am a 400-400 guy too, and I like 10k pace workouts. For a 400-800 guy, I find that 10k pace intervals are easier to do with good form than a continuous threshold run.

The problem with the 800 is unless you touch on almost every pace every 2 to 3 weeks, you start to lose the qualities that you are building with the workouts at particular paces. So like mgm said, combine paces in workouts. You can do something like 4 x 200 at 800 pace with 200 jog, then 4 x 1000 at 10k pace with a 100 jog, then another 4 x 200 at 800 pace with a 200 jog. So you got some work at 10k pace and some work at 800 pace when fresh and 800 pace when fatigued.

Antonio likes those combined workouts too. If you look up some of Antonio's threads, he makes it even simpler than 5 paces or 6 paces. There is race pace, faster than race pace, and slower than race pace. That's all!

Yes I will do more combo workouts. I especially like going down like 1600-1000-800-600-300 with increasing speed. When the season starts most of my specific interval sessions will be in that manner, but of course with abit lower volume than what I used as an example here.

While I am in the mood, what about recovery between intervals in the summer (peaking)? I have always wondered how important it is topush the recovery on specific workouts vs taking longer rec and being able to run at assigned speed.

I can see the benefit of both maybe. Long rec makes it easier to run a large volume at specific 800m pace, and also your form will be good.

Shorter rec maybe gives better speed endurance and stress, but its makes it harder to run at spesific speed with good form.

I have read that the coach of Kaki gives him good recovery between the intervals in the spesific period. Usially 7 minutes!

Whats your opinion? On which session should recovery be limited, and which should allow good/complete recovery?