Is mid June to early to start doing tempo runs

Tanner1213 wrote:

I am going to be a senior this fall and I made my own training plan and I have me doing tempo runs right now once a week. Is this too much.

It's not enough.

Better luck next year

I ask myself, what would Mark Nenow do?

Tanner1213 wrote:

I am going to be a senior this fall and I made my own training plan and I have me doing tempo runs right now once a week. Is this too much.

To give you a real answer I'd say its fine. Vary it, though. Do some longer slower tempos, some faster shorter ones, some fartleks where you really vary the pace, and run over hilly terrain if you can.

Thank you

Don’t do it your legs might fall off, hair fall out, and you’ll develop a bad odor

I agree with the poster about varying it. Personally, I like adding in tempo runs when I have been running consistently for approximately 5-6 weeks, so consider this as an option.

The idea that you should ever stop doing workouts is very outdated. You should be doing tempos and intervals all year. Just back off the difficultly when you're a long ways from your competitive season. So for example, instead of 20x400 with 45 seconds rest, do 10x400 with 60. Instead of 5 miles at 10 mile race pace, do 3x1 mile with 2 minutes steady between. Basically, cut off 30-50% of what would normally be a tough workout. These easy workouts will not cause you to peak early or burn out, and they'll leave you in much better shape when the season starts. It's much easier to build from season to season if you go into a holding pattern than if you land and then have to take off again.

If you pace tempo correctly you can run 2-3 every week. Problem is many people tend to run them too hard.

800 dude wrote:

The idea that you should ever stop doing workouts is very outdated. You should be doing tempos and intervals all year. Just back off the difficultly when you're a long ways from your competitive season. So for example, instead of 20x400 with 45 seconds rest, do 10x400 with 60. Instead of 5 miles at 10 mile race pace, do 3x1 mile with 2 minutes steady between. Basically, cut off 30-50% of what would normally be a tough workout. These easy workouts will not cause you to peak early or burn out, and they'll leave you in much better shape when the season starts. It's much easier to build from season to season if you go into a holding pattern than if you land and then have to take off again.

Don't listen to this guy. There are several books out there that explain the why behind your training. I suggest you go read one. I recommend healthy intelligent training to get started.

Depends on your definition of tempo run...

Not really outdated, but miss-translation. For example,people miss-translate LSD for long slow running, when it stands for long steady running. Or, they think Lydiard base phase had no speed training, but to do 5:30-6:00 minute miles over the hilly terrain that his athletes did was as Frank Shorter said speed work in disguised. And, Lydaird said that a athletes should do fartlek runs as often as they like during the base phase, as long as they felt recovered. People forget this, and this is why you have people on this board who claim Lydiard does not work, when they did not do it right.

Assuming you are a kid in high school that is trying to get in shape for xc in the fall. I would recommend that you do some hilly fartlek runs, where you run steady over a hilly course and surge on the up hill sessions.