What workout provides the biggest bang for your buck?

Tempo

There is no such run. They're all good in different ways. So is running slow.

I'm a big fan of hill repeats.

1. anyone can find a hill and run up it. X number of times. No need drive to a track or seek one out that's opened or not in use by a school.

2. very versatile. You can do long hill reps for one purpose, you can do very short very fast for others.

3. lots of benefits with less risk of injury.

4. not a structured as track work, so easier for newbies to grasp.

5. you don't have to do gobs of hills to get in some good work.

Find a hill a few miles from home, jog to it, sprint up it X number of times, jog home. Done.

Today -- Burpees

You can consolidate this list some. Fartlek is really just an alternate way of getting some other form of workout in, so drop that from the list,

I'd also consider a tempo run and a progression run to have similar enough desired physiological adaptations to consider them functional equivalents.

So, I would consolidate your list as follows, and assuming that you are looking for overall fitness benefits with the ability to race some and assuming that you are doing easy distance as well, I would go with tempo/progression runs. That being said, as someone who considers the 5k his primary race, I view the intervals as being the key to getting me into peak shape. I think the tempos establish a fairly high level of fitness (say 90% of where I want to be), but that the intervals take me that last 10%.

Long run

vo2max intervals

hill reps/mile paced reps

tempo/progression run

If I could only do one type of workout and everything else had to be easy mileage, that workout would definitely be a tempo run.

off base wrote:

If I could only do one type of workout and everything else had to be easy mileage, that workout would definitely be a tempo run.

I think this is a really interesting hypothetical. My choice would be intervals because they are so versatile. By playing around with the rest, and the speed/number/length of the efforts you can accomplish a lot of different things. 6 x 300 at 800 pace with full rest is so different than 6x1000 with a 200m jog. I also feel like I can simulate the benefits of a tempo reasonably well (obviously not perfectly) with the right type of intervals, but there's no way to use tempos for the sharpening up or speed endurance type work.

It would make me sad though, I love tempos. Also maybe I'm cheating by lumping so many different types of intervals under the same umbrella.

Good question, OP.

It would depend upon your goal race. For the marathon and half marathon, the nod would certainly go to the long run, particularly the long run with some tempo mixed in.

Long run... I think someone could get and stay in decent shape w 2 long runs a week and some cross training

Long run(s) , without long(ish) runs for at least a good part of a cycle , for most serious distance runners , there isn't much reason to do the other stuff.

As a recreational runner, I concur with the long runs, the ones that release joyous endorphins. Long runs focused on breathing and gait until you feel the need to change. By then, you would have built a good base if not yet.

As for the limited time, it's a matter of will.

I agree with you, but I assumed that intervals are vo2max style 5k paced intervals.

I also assumed short intervals at 800/1500m pace are "reps" and not "intervals" and I have assumed mile repeats at roughly tempo pace with short rest are "cruise intervals" which really fall into the tempo category.

I fully acknowledge these assumptions on my part and that others could view this differently, but I think your answer is kind of like answering "one more wish" as your last of three wishes.

If I had to pick one workout, I'd do a hilly loop, something like 3-5 minutes on, 2 minutes off. Going hard up and down, around the loop. Works on many systems.

Maybe for 30 minutes.

I actually do this.

agip wrote:

If I had to pick one workout, I'd do a hilly loop, something like 3-5 minutes on, 2 minutes off. Going hard up and down, around the loop. Works on many systems.

Maybe for 30 minutes.

I actually do this.

Most guys can keep this up for a min or 2 tops .

tempo

Runrincerepeat wrote:

Long run... I think someone could get and stay in decent shape w 2 long runs a week and some cross training

I totally disagree with that. Unless you are talking about marathon training if you are a guy doing some 5ks-1/2s you can skimp on the LR, but do some other stuff and make it work really really well.

Boulder fan boy wrote:

agip wrote:

If I had to pick one workout, I'd do a hilly loop, something like 3-5 minutes on, 2 minutes off. Going hard up and down, around the loop. Works on many systems.

Maybe for 30 minutes.

I actually do this.

Most guys can keep this up for a min or 2 tops .

not sure what you mean. On plus off is say 7 minutes. if you do that for 30 minutes, you are doing 4 or 5 x 5 minutes. five 5 minute pieces. That's a pretty normal workout, no? depends on pace of course.

the long run fartlek

BOOM!

Is this a trick question? I don't see how the limited amount of time you have affects what kind of workouts you do. A 60 minute easy run takes as much time as a 15 minute warm-up, 30 minute tempo, 15 minute cool-down.