Im mainly an 800/1500m runner but i believe that i need to develop my speed as my 400m pb is only 55secs therefore i want to get it down to 53/54 at least.
So i have come to a conclusion that it would be common sense to dedicate one session a week to devleop my speed.
Are there any thoughts on this? I havent done hardly any speed sessions in the past so i aint got much idea on these sessions.
Thanks
boing
If your best 400 is 55 sec, you are running at 27.5 200m pace. You need to do some reps in training that are faster than that.
Fast (relative) 150's or 200's, with quite a bit more recovery than usual.
Perhaps 8-10 X 150 (19 sec) 3-5 min rest OR
8 X 200 25 sec 5 min rest OR
4 X 200 24 sec (this would be pretty much 100%) 10 min recovery.
You could also run 10-15 X 100 (12-13 sec), jog back recovery
Most likely he can't run one 25 second 200 let alone 8
Even with a 55 second flat PR, and because he is a middle distance runner for the most part
and not a 200 meter runner moving up,
his best 200 out of the blocks is no faster then 25.5 I would guess.
Even a 4:05-4:10 1500/2:01-5 800 runner, most of the time does not have a 200 faster then 25 in them. Not always, but a lot of the time
Scratch the 4x200 at 24 and go for 4x 200 at 26 The other workouts look good, but unless you are flying and stopping your watch early you won't be able to run 12 seconds int he 100's.
once a week sounds good. Every couple of weeks try 2x 300 all out at close to 40 flat or just under with a full recovery whatever that may be for you. It will take a few 400 meter races to run under 54, but it will happen,
and oh, do a few plyometrics
agreed
to keep your efficiency you could do the 8x200 session off a shorter recovery than 5 mins. Whatever allows you to run faster than your 400m race pace. Could be 3 mins. As soon as you have adapted to that just drop off a couple of reps and add a minute recovery. Later, when you adapt to that, you do follow the same adjustment and now have 4x200 off 5 mins within a second of your 200m personal best. That should set up a 52 odd eventually. Lots of guesswork of course but the principal of gaining speed whilst keeping your natural running mechanics (and the efficiency you've already developed) and not straining so much that it is lost.