Closing speed ability testing?

uhh dude - that is called a race.

if you are running the first distance at "1500m race pace" and the second distance is "100%" ... uhhh ???

some of you guys are borderline retarded.

Good idea, but you have to make it more realistic.

1400m at 1500m race pace? Yeah, that's called a race.

1200m at 1500m race pace would even be too far for most and even so you wouldn't do that once a week maybe not even once a month. 1200m at 1500m race pace would be a good last workout leading up to a race.

Run 1200m exactly how you plan to run the 1500m. If it's a championship race that means slow as ass balls the first 800m, then picking it up a bit from 800-1200m. Jog 400m. Then sprint all-out 300m.

Sprinting ability at the end of a race has little to do with actual raw speed and more to do with strength/endurance and how well you can hold form while sprinting all-out. It's not something you can easily practice because those all-out sprints come at the end of race. That kind of sprinting is very damaging and takes a while to recover from.

Example workouts:

For 5k/10k guys:

3-6 x 1 mile at race pace

400m jog

4x400 progress to all-out the last 2

Could also cut down: 4x1mile at race pace with 400m jog, then 800, 400, 200, 200 progressively faster to sprint all-out last 200s.

You can also get into the bear on the back "lactic acid" death by doing fast reps with little rest:

400s with 100m recovery. Run those at mile pace and you won't make it far but it will get you to sprint with good form with crap legs.

Alan

How about a set of eight 30/40s (classic Oregon workout with 200 at 30 sec/200 at 40 sec), with the last 100 to 150 m of the last two 200s accelerating to kick speed.

See Terrance Mahon's powerpoint from the last high performance summit on critical zone training for 3K/5K, which you can find here:

http://www.usatf.org/groups/Coaches/library/EnduranceTraining/PEP3kAnd5k-TerranceMahon.ppt

Rather interesting to see him having endurance people doing 60 meter flying sprints and high load squats, and I think many here aren't going to like his comment that to secure a podium position a male 3K/5K runner needs to have the ability to run the last 400 in 53. Some interesting training.

Closing ability involves all of the following:

anaerobic threshold

anaerobic capacity (300-400m ability)

alactic power (how fast can you run 60?)

submaximal VO2/RE

explosive power

PAIN THRESHOLD

It is not merely one thing to train or to test

Thanks.

Thanks for the interesting responses.

Here is a concrete example of what I would test for:

Take 2 guys with 1500 bests of 3:45.Which is 60 secs per 400 or 15 secs per 100.

The 3:45 guys racing at even pace reach 1200 in 3:00 flat.

Have them hit 1200 in 3:12.This is 16 secs per 100 which would be like a tactical race.

At 1200 have them go 100 percent over the final 300.A powerful kicker might be able to finish at in 39.A poor kicker would finish in 43.

I would use 100,200,300,400 and 500 meter distances off various race paces to determine their best distance to kick from given the race pace.

Explosive acceleration give Manzano and Lagat a big advantage in tactical races.Having witnessed what these guys can do first hand I am convinced as to how important fast reaction/acceleration is.

This was why I suggested the other measurement.