I apologize in advance, but I ask: is the base phase really NECESSARY?

distance and speed are not mutually exclusive aspects of training. however, if you don't build strength, you will lack it when you need it. you CAN go straight into intervals, but know that there there is no shortcut to your best performances, just hard work

MasterDisaster wrote:

I'd agree with Craig as far as base not being 100% long slow distance. The goal is to tax the aerobic system and to develop capilary and mitochondria to help boost your aerobic capacity. Lydiard, Pfitzinger and Daniels all have base phases in their programs so if you are a distance runner it's probably a good idea to at least run the majority of your mileage at a good, strong aerobic pace. For some people that's 9 minute pace, for some it's 5:45.

In the book Born to Run there's mention of a stat where Joe Vigil says the average Kenyan distance runner has an 18,000 mile advantage as a teenager over the average teenager running in America. That's some serious base mileage right there.

Kenyan teenagers without a huge mileage base will probably do much better than runners from developed countries who have run more mileage, because they will have much better developed feet. This is a huge advantage. Try walking on a pebble beach. It hurts doesn't it, your feet are hopelessly weak. Strengthen them, and your whole body will feel much stronger when you run.

There are no secrets there are no shortcuts.

Yeah I think we as westerners are starting to understand that more and more. I ran in the wedge/counter dual-density shoes over the years and they beat my plantars up plenty. I've transitioned to running in just plain old regular running shoes with a smaller heel and haven't had any of those nagging foot pains I had in the past.

I've started adding in some short barefoot runs of 1/2 mile to one mile and the dirt path and grass runs feel just fine. Running on the sand isn't quite as comfortable as the sand really scrapes up the skin between the toes.

I did a barefoot 10 x 1 minute very fast uphill and down with 1 minute recovery session on Tuesday and it felt awesome until my poor lil footsies got tired. Walking on pebble beaches is definitely a way to strengthen our feet, they get such a workout even at the ver slowest of walking paces. Imagine trying to run on pebbles? I couldn't do it, but I can run miles barefoot at at race pace.

I think there is so much development possible in strengthening our feet, the possibilities are very exiting to me.

I think it depends where you're coming from and how regularly you're running before you begin your "base" phase. A huge proportion of the training plans you see in books, magazines, etc. are geared towards people who are out of shape before they start training for their goal race. In that case I think several weeks of easy running is appropriate and I wouldn't encourage those people to jump on the track right away. But if running is a consistent part of your daily routine then I can't see how you would benefit from cutting out workouts for 6-10 weeks. I try to include a tempo run, a set of intervals at VO2 max pace, and a long run into every week that isn't immediately before or immediately after a race. Maybe it doesn't make the most sense physiologically, but it keeps me fresh and engaged. I also tend to run more mileage when I'm doing workouts, as I can easily put in 10-12 miles on a workout day without getting worn down, whereas I tend to limit my daily easy runs to 7-8 miles.

i add a threshold 3 miler to 5 miler and cruise intervals of either 6 to 10 x1000s or 5 to 6x 1 mile at t pace.these give you strength and gives you some faster running during the week instead of the boring same runs

Skuj wrote:

Time Constraints wrote:

Is the base phase really necessary?

Can one just enter right into interval/speedwork training without a base?

This is actually a very good question, and worthy of an epic thread.

I don't believe in "the base phase" per se.

What if you do 5km warmup / cooldown jogs on speedwork? Isn't that "base" as well as warmup/cooldown?

As long as the "speed" is progressive, I think this works well. You might need to do 1x200m at Mile pace at first. Then 1x400m, then 3x200m, then 2x400m, then 5x200m....etc etc etc.....

Right?

This explains Canadian distance running excellence of the past 30 years.

--Totally kidding.

I believe base phase is necessary for anything above the 1500.

1500 and below you can get away with out it; but likely your performances will suffer.

One could argue Coe did not do much base, as his weekly mileage was so low, but were they really reporting every step run...warm ups, warm downs etc.

Time Constraints wrote:

Is the base phase really necessary?

No its not, just skip it, just go right to peaking. You'll revolutionize the sport. We'll all sit around in 20 years and talk about the day when "time constraints" asked the big question and changed the sport forever.

There's an interesting story from Alan Webb in the Born to Run book. I guess he was flat footed and wore size 12 running shoe when he started high school. His coach had him do some "special walks in bare feet" and other foot strengthening exercises to strengthen his feet. As a result his arch rose to the point where his foot actually shrunk to where he started wearing size 9-10 running shoes. I'm not sure how that happens but the story is in the book.

Thankfully I'm too modest.

Kenyan teenagers without a huge mileage base will probably do much better than runners from developed countries who have run more mileage, because they will have much better developed feet.

-------------------------------

Right, tough feet. Or maybe it's a higher vo2 max. Or better running economy. Or enhanced glycogen loading, probably from drinking chocolate milk. Or pure water to drink, not Coke. Or Ugali, no french fries. Or just 1500 calories a day, doesn't matter what the f... they eat: Leaner is meaner. Or skinny calf muscles. Or lighter bones for flying over steeplechase barriers. Or better genes. Or an enhanced epigenetic environment. Or high altitude living. Or the motivation of money. Or cattle raising culture. Or many heroes to emulate. Or they hate soccer, so focus only on running. No, wait, they hate boxing, so focus only on running. Or warm, dry climate is great for training year round. Or lack of smog prevents exercise induced asthma. Few TVS, kids must play stickball in streets. No iPods, no one dreams of growing up to be Lady Gaga. No cineplexes, no one dreams of becoming Sidney Poitier. No high school and college running programs; we all know it's the damn coaches and meet pressures that screw up American kids.

Nah, come to rethink it all, any idiot can see it's obviously the tough feet. That also explains why so many of those walk-on-nails-and-hot-coals dudes from India have run sub 2:06 in the marathon. End of debate.

I enjoyed reading that...funny!

I don't think heavy loads of base work is necessary. But, base work is definitely helpful such that it allows you to engage in tougher workouts earlier in the season, which probably will result in more improvement than starting from scratch at season start. Junk miles are still junk miles though. A lot of low-quality base work can definitely take the pop out of a runner's legs.

Facts. The slower you run, the longer you can run. The longer you run, the better your muscles get at running economy, storing glycogen, and burning fat stores. Running long also builds more mitochondria and capillaries.

To paraphrase Peter Snell "It's not the mileage that makes you a great runner, it is the workouts you can do BECAUSE of the mileage". He was coached by Lydiard who stressed running at a high aerobic pace as much as possible. Err on the side of too slow rather than too fast so that you can do more of it. The speed phase only lasts 12-16 weeks in the Lydiard program. Why? That is all you need to reach peak performance and that is how long your body can stand Anaerobic development before it starts to lose its Aerobic base and you start to get "stale".

You can do speed work all year and run pretty well. You will likely find that your performances are consistent and you never really peak and don't improve much year over year. However, if you do base, speed, peak, then back to base, you don't restart back at your previous base level, so each year you improve. Lydiard says it takes 3+ years of this cycle to reach your true ability.

Read Daniels. He list the most important workouts if you only have a short time to a race. Not surprising, the base workouts are where he says to start. This is because you will make more gains from aerobic development than from speed.

JustTheFactsMaam wrote:

To paraphrase Peter Snell "It's not the mileage that makes you a great runner, it is the workouts you can do BECAUSE of the mileage".

That's a great point.

JustTheFactsMaam wrote:

You can do speed work all year and run pretty well. You will likely find that your performances are consistent and you never really peak and don't improve much year over year. However, if you do base, speed, peak, then back to base, you don't restart back at your previous base level, so each year you improve. Lydiard says it takes 3+ years of this cycle to reach your true ability.

I definitely agree with this philosophy for the purposes you outline, but what happens when you are on year 15, and not year 3? When I was in high school and not really running year-round, that was the program-- base, peak, speed, and it worked really well. Kind of the same in college, except running year-round with three distinct championship seasons, and no real time for a proper base phase between indoor and outdoor track. Still, I think the cycle you outline was the guiding philosophy, and as you say, it was great for improvement year to year.

The OP doesn't say what situation he's in, but for me, almost 10 years out of college and with probably 30,000+ miles in the bank, I haven't gotten a lot of benefit from going back to 8-12 week periods of long, slow distance, even after peak races. Honestly, I just get bored. Can't reasonably paced and sensibly designed workouts be part of the year-round running plan, especially for post-college/non-championship caliber runners? No, I'm not PRing at my competitive college distances (everything from 800 to 8k), but I continue to improve my times from 10k up. To me, the best training plan is the one that gets me out the door.

I generally take about 4-12 weeks every year as "base" - mainly just to get some time away from "training/racing" and just run. I still run high mileage and do some fartlek and lower mileage tempos (3 miles) every week to keep "fresh". But during this time I also focus on other aspects of my life, I travel, I hike, sometimes I actually miss a double or run shorter than anticipated so I can go to a movie. It is a nice time to regroup and recharge, not to mention fix those niggling little injuries by stretching and focusing on some core work. I always come back from base ready to train and antsy to race.

I generally take about 4-12 weeks every year as "base" - mainly just to get some time away from "training/racing" and just run. I still run high mileage and do some fartlek and lower mileage tempos (3 miles) every week to keep "fresh". But during this time I also focus on other aspects of my life, I travel, I hike, sometimes I actually miss a double or run shorter than anticipated so I can go to a movie. It is a nice time to regroup and recharge, not to mention fix those niggling little injuries by stretching and focusing on some core work. I always come back from base ready to train and antsy to race.