How long do you typically reduce mileage per week to bring in intervals?
ie
base build
reduce miles for speed
brining milage back up
1 mile/2 mile/5k events mostly
How long do you typically reduce mileage per week to bring in intervals?
ie
base build
reduce miles for speed
brining milage back up
1 mile/2 mile/5k events mostly
You don't need to reduce mileage (or more correctly, total time spent running), you just need to reduce your tempo work to a maintenance level and make up for that with more, faster, intervals. For example, if you run 100 mpw with 80 easy and 20 moderate - Tempo, then in season you'd do 80 Easy, 10-15 moderate to tempo and the remaining 5-10 miles at 10k or faster. If you decide to reduce mileage, make sure at least one day is 15-20% of your previous mpw otherwise your aerobic ability will gradually decline (fine for an 800 guy, horrible for 3k+). To peak, drop a few miles but mostly transition to a larger percentage of fast miles and then only your final 1-4 races should have reduced mileage by 10-40% depending on your experience and ability.
Another thing, if you're fatigued, take a down week. It's not uncommon for collegiate programs to take a week of 50-80% of normal mileage before the racing season begins to feel a bit fresher and you won't lose fitness from a couple days off, it just "halts" it in return for feeling fresh.
Awesome thank you