20 x 200m

my junior yr of high school i ran 20x 200w/ i min rec in 29/30. I t was also a rainy, windy day,yet warm(durinig outdoor track) Before this workout i was splitting 2:01-2:02, three weeks after i was capable of handling this workout my progression was something like this (2flat, 158 and 156).

that 75 seconds is an awful lot of rest for 200m. this is probably why you felt so comfortable.

maybe 4:30ish 1500m shape? 2:08ish 800m shape? it's hard to tell - if you had pushed harder / had less rest, it would be easier to tell what you can actually throw down in a race.

i did 25x200m about 4 weeks ago on sixty seconds (whatever's left of the sixty after the 200m is your rest) and was doing around 31-33 for each one. it's probably actually a bad indicator of 1500m shape - look to something more like 10x800 / 6x1000 to let you know what you can hit.

Well, i have ran a 4:21 1500 and a 2:04 800. The session was basically aimed at approxmatley 1500 pace. The session was taken from the "training for distance runners" written by peter coe(seb coes father). He recommends not pushing the pace too much to get the best benefits from the session. He claims you should finish the session feeling you can do a few more and should be able to bang out at least 1 or 2 a good few seconds at the end. The reason i did so, im not going to disagree with peter coe!

Basically the reason i didnt run the session flat out.

Zatopek did 10x220, 20x440, 10x220 and got an Olympic Medal his first time out. He then increased the quantities (20x220/40x440/20x220 or some absurd number like that...someone here doubtlessly knows) then pulled down a few more Medals in later Games.

You do that kind of work and you're likely to improve.

Go for it, what the heck? It's a New Year.

Well wrote:

Zatopek did 10x220, 20x440, 10x220 and got an Olympic Medal his first time out. He then increased the quantities (20x220/40x440/20x220 or some absurd number like that...someone here doubtlessly knows) then pulled down a few more Medals in later Games.

You do that kind of work and you're likely to improve.

Go for it, what the heck? It's a New Year.

40 x 440?? really? what is the point of that workout?

is this who i think it is??? muppet baby?

Aside from what you can do for 20 x 200 - a 20 x 200 does not tell you very much. Also with 75 seconds rest, it indicates even less. This is certainly a good workout; but not much info can be gained from it. The exception is that if you run the workout then you run some particular time in a race, you might be able to say "I ran the workout faster; therefore, I should be able to race faster". What so often happens is that youngsters will start "racing" the workouts thinking that they are in better shape when in fact they are not - obviously disappointment ensues when they fall short of their new race goals.

you're from scotland.

Yes I agree, your point is well taken, the recovery needs to be decreased- as the OP said - in future sessions. The difficulty lies in the fact that this is NOT a predictive session. Time-trials, simulations, etc. are predictive sessions, whereas this is a "training to train" LA/O2 energy system session. Martin/Coe (20 to 30 reps) indicate that this may be defined as a 1500m pace session.

The difference between "training to race" and "training to train" sessions are about proximity to racing preparation. For training, the Bowerman/Dellinger (amongst others) idea of Date pace to Goal Pace to determine intensity of training is the intelligent approach, where training intensity follows racing performance (or at least a history of it) NOT the other way round. For developed runners, doing specific sessions at Goal pace (as B.kennedy often stressed) is the way to go - but one assumes sufficient knowledge from coach/athlete to be able to not let sessions get out of control. In other words I could go out and "race" a session of 200's at 32sec (which is what you are saying), but that won't necessarily mean that I can run a 4 minute 1500m unless there is a relationship to something I have done before or a trial at a similar pace.

If you want to "test" for a race - do a time-trial (e.g. 1000-1200m, for 1500m/Mile) or a simulation (500+300 with short 30sec recovery for an 800m). Save the training sessions (20x200m) for what they are supposed to be about - advancing your training (for speed endurance/anaerobic capacity or whatever).

Nice rest pussy.

How bout you either quickly jog 200m - 50-60sec or better yet run accross the infeild - 30sec.

while not a predictive session, it is a good workout in that it teaches you good race-pace mechanics (as long as you don't go too hard and flood yourself with lactic acid). It also improves economy and stimulates your fast twitch muscle fibers. I'd keep the rest at 60-90sec if you're still in early season. It might be better to not reduce the rest to 45 sec...but instead do something more like 800s at 2 mile race pace with a 1min rest to train the V02max. If you want to do 200s at mile race pace with a short (30-45sec rest) you should probably do less (ie 10-15) and do them towards the end of the season when you are looking to peak and should develop a lactic buffer to give you "the edge"

75 seconds is a lot of rest. Do 20x200 on the 60 - every minute you start a 200, you rest whatever is left - so if you run a 35 second 200, you only have 25 seconds to rest. My college coach would have the guys do that workout several times a season...us girls got 70 seconds :)

Thanks for the replies. I have often raced my sessions, but have been reading peter coes "training for distance runners" and have learned a lot so have decided for a new approch to training. So have been holding back. Cheers have had some interesting feedback.

Also regarding the person, whining about the longish recovery. If you read my above post it is still some 8 months away from the end of my track season and it hasnt even begun and i dont fancy peaking now! I will have 45 secs recovery when peaking.

I don't see how waiting to cut the rest will help you peak. Cutting the rest will improve your recovery ability.

Especially early in the season if you feel like you can run faster, run the rest faster not the on.

Late in the season cut your on to wicked fast and maybe allow for a fuller recovery. not the other way around.

I dont want this to turn into an argument but i disagree. Everyone has their own opinion though.

But i wouldnt argue with seb coes father, where i get the idea from. Seemed to work wonders for him!!