I've heard it's actually unbenificial to do your workouts too hard. Just curious what your guys' opinions on this are. How hard do you do your workouts? I had been doing mine as hard as I possibly could, but I'm doing them a little lighter now.
I've heard it's actually unbenificial to do your workouts too hard. Just curious what your guys' opinions on this are. How hard do you do your workouts? I had been doing mine as hard as I possibly could, but I'm doing them a little lighter now.
Very good question!!!
I've always believed that one must finish every session in a state of exhileration, vice devastation. There is sometimes a fine line between the two.
Thing is, many of us would rather do 4x400m in 59sec than 61sec. 59sec looks better in the diary, and sounds much better on a chatline, or when bragging about the daily running. But if 59sec was achieved in a devastated state, you strained, not trained. Pace, don't race.
This is not to say that some (most?) speed sessions should not be hard. But "controlled" hard is the way to go, not eyeballs out.
IMHO, the art of the science of speedwork is completely misunderstood by many. One can (and should) DEVELOP their anaerobic / aerobic capacity throughout the year by doing the speedwork correctly. I believe it is wrong to think of speedwork as something we just throw on top of "base" in order to "sharpen the pencil". The whole year should see speedwork conducted in steps. "Controlled" running allows for this.
Sorry, I've rambled!