I'll second that wrote:
don't be pedantic wrote:Semantic quibbles.
We all know what HE meant.
We knew what HE meant... and in HS I remember a "workout" being hard/speed of some sort. Hills, 400s, miles. A run wasn't a workout. Can't remember college terms.
Exactly.
In fact, CALLING an easy half-hour run a "workout" is exactly why the US stinks in the marathon.
Last time I checked the definition of workout was- a session of vigorous physical exercise or training.
All your opinions and such don't matter. I sure hope you consider your easy runs "training" or you should rethink what your goal of preparing for a race is.
But, I do agree that the slang of "workout" used by a runner today usually means intervals or speed work and when I use the term "workout" with my teammates I'm always using it in this context.
How come you stink in the marathon?
william3rd wrote:
Looking to hear from anyone who ran some great races off of consistent easy mileage with barely any workouts. Is it possible?
Yep. The year I ran high mileage (65-70 on average) and mostly easy for 6 months and some workouts, I had my best PRs. Granted, I'm older and started late in life.
However, when I decreased my mileage and added more quality work...that is when I started to get injured.
My best lesson? Listen to my body...:)
From what I have read your peak is determined by your aerobic functioning. Since the 5K is about 85% aerobic, it would seem that you are improving yourself by continuing to build a strong base.
However this might not always immediately bring racing success. Along with the base building you should be working on speed all year long. (Speed Development is 100 meter repeat running or less, dynamic running drills, bounding, hill running, and etc.) You can and should develop your speed all year long.
Also often overlooked is running multiple speeds, hence I would do at least one fartlek workout per week and mix paces.
I think it would be far fetched to run 7 minutes per mile in training all week and then expect to run at 5:30 per mile pace for a race.
This is not a complete analysis of what needs to happen. One still must race, and do intervals of 400 meters and above. (In fact you will see your best gains with those in the short term!)
The key may be to be doing the right thing at the right time. Periodization is important.