i lived the absurdity of being a fall 5k XC guy and a spring sprint relay anchor leg/300H or 400 runner, 2 years. who could then be called on to deputize for 4x800 or shuttle hurdle (110s).
i was a select/HS soccer guy. it's a running sport where one could be natural fast or picked for explosion but the games and training mean you are already well conditioned for endurance. i suspect some soccer and hoops athletes could do it.
If you’re going 95% of top end speed it’s going to hurt if you’re a 10.5 guy or 13.0 guy.
I disagree. If you're a 13.0 guy you simply are not generating the type of force and power and speed that can get your body fully anaerobic nearly as quickly (if at all, since 13.0 pace could arguably be considered aerobic rather than anaerobic for an elite mid-distance runner). If the slow 13.0 pace means you're becoming anaerobic later on, or not at all, then of course the 400 is fun doesn't hurt particularly badly.
An elite sprinter at full 400 race speed will start to become anaerobic at around 18-20 seconds into a maximal effort and from then on will begin to feel the burn (and will want to die) for the remaining 25 or so seconds of the race. A distance runner loping along at 13.0 pace will certainly not become anaerobic in just 18-20 seconds, but instead much later since they're generating the type of force and pace that would put their body into an anaerobic state as quickly. Maybe they're feeling some lactic burn for the final 10 seconds or so, but surely pain building exponentially for 10 seconds is much more "fun" than pain building exponentially for 25 seconds. A 400 run well is not fun. ;)
Incorrect. Training for the 10k is not about being tough, its about being able to do boring and repetitive training. Thats why 800m training is fun. 10km training is (mostly) repetitive volume-based training.
Ah, but which would you rather do?
Training or comp? Always 800 before 10k.
The 800m training is more fun and the competition is more fun, I don't mind longer distances but the 10k is (for me) too much fluff, too much boring distance before it starts to be fun. And again, the training is repetitive and boring. Its not hard, but most top athlete training isn't actually hard, its medium hard. And in a way you can call it all hard, just in different ways.
Long distance training = Hard in the way that you have to do a lot of volume and boring training
Sprint training = Hard in the way that you have to go harder in workouts and being explosive is mentally hard on tired legs.
800m training = A mix of both, just "harder" in actual pain due to the nature of the event. But also more fun and enjoyable training, especially if you find joy in both long and short distance training.