2:10 -> 2:00?

bump, bored and lookin for somethin to read tonight

What are you doing training wise? Just looking at your times you are weak aerobically

komenizer wrote:

hello everyone, i have set a goal for myself for track season, and i would like the knowledgeable members of LR to help me reach it.

my goal is very simple, go from a 2:10 800m, to a 2:00 800m. current PR's are 4:50 1600m, 55 400m, and a 24 point hand-timed in the 200. anything you think that would help me make the drop would be very beneficial, and i would love to see what some of you have to say.

i am willing to bike, swim, lift, anything it takes to reach this goal. or in the words of eddylee "i will not stop until i reach my goal."

p.s. senior in high school

It's a longshot kid. I went from 2:06 to 1:59 my senior year, but all of my other PR's were faster. 4:30 Mile, 52.9 400, and I never ran the 200 as a race.

Now, just get distance in so you have an aerobic base. A 24 200 is quick, so you have the speed required, you just need the endurance. Make sure you do striders so your fast twitch muscles still get used. (I'd suggest between 45-55 mpw, but I don't know what your training is like currently)

my current training is about 40-45 miles a week, with 2 hard efforts a week, usually a long tempo and a fartlek. i did run a 16:20 on a fast 3 mile course this xc season, but haven't come much close to it since, all other results lay in the 17's.

'It's a longshot kid. I went from 2:06 to 1:59 my senior year, but all of my other PR's were faster. 4:30 Mile, 52.9 400, and I never ran the 200 as a race.[/quote]'

Its not a long shot if you can do 200m in 25 or under any basic training plan should get there as long as it has an emphasis on middle distance

could you recommend any lifting programs? i have access to a 24 hour fitness.

bump, if you need more info just ask

You are pretty much there bro. Work on repeatable 200 meter speed. Try sprint repeats with little rest. And don't decreasee your mileage.

thanks for the support mate. any specific workouts you would recommend, maybe to do over winter break?

Your 800m PR isn't in line with your other current PR's (or perhaps mine weren't), but as a freshman in HS I had identical PR's at 200, 400, and 1 Mile, but my 800 was 2:04. Sophmore year I ended at 24.mid (didnt run the 200), 52.mid (only 4x4s), 1:57, and 4:27.

But in all honesty, the training didn't change much bewteen freshman and sophmore year. The mileage was upped a little, but my coach never got me above 45 mpw give or take a few, even as a 1:52/4:12 senior. So, maybe 5 more mpw on average over the indoor and outdoor seasons (35 give or take as a soph vs. 30 give or take as a fresh). But I stayed consistenly healthy over the course of the whole year and, to my recollection, only had 1 very minor issue patellar tendonitis (which was due to old shoes and quickly solved and rehab'd within 3 days). The ability to get out and do what my coach asked of me day-in-day-out for the entire school year was, probably, the biggest factor in improving as much as I did between freshman and sophmore years.

But if I were to make a suggestion other than keep your nose to the grind stone, keep healthy and training well, it would def be to change the workouts that you do. Going from a 2:04 freshman to a 1:57 sophmore required alot of specific speed. The long tempos and fartleks are good, but you've got to hit that 60sec 400m pace (or faster) alot. I can't remember any long tempos or long, continuous aerobic efforts (like fatleks) that sophmore year. Track work, track work, track work. We may have had workouts that were designed to be aerobic in nature, like your tempos and fartleks, but they were done on the track as 1k-mile repeats with little rest, and they weren't done frequently. You've got to develop and refine that race specific speed. Get to the track and run those 200s and 400s and 600s.

You don't need to lift, you need to RUN. If you aren't doing 60 miles a week yet, getting there should be your first order of business. Then you can worry about lifts, etc. My senior year, my 400 time was the same as yours, and there's no way I could run a 24.x 200m, and my 800 was 2:07, but I ran 4:30 and 9:40 for 16/32. The winter before, I averaged 70 miles a week for about 11 weeks. I ALSO did some lifting and plyometrics, but that was all secondary to the RUNNING. This should be your plan too, even if you want to focus on the 800m.

so you're suggesting double days right? i averaged about 70 miles a week this summer, but to no avail, i still feel like my aerobic system isn't getting strong enough.

forgive me if this sounds silly, but is there a certain pace i should be hitting for every run to strengthen the aerobic system? normally my runs are done at 7:40-8:00 pace. thank you for the support, both of you.

You need more power & speed, and it may take a few months.

The 1st month run all steady state runs, except for an 8 x 200m hill repeats once a week. Try to average 55 miles per week.

Next month, drop down to 45 miles per week, but run 2 hill workouts a week. One workout should be 10x60m hill repeats (focusing on quick acceleration) and the other workout should be 6x400m hill repeats. You can gradually increase the lengths of the 2nd workout if your hill is long enough. Always walk or shuffle back down the hill to get completely rested on these workouts.

Month 3, drop down to 35 miles per week. Return to doing the 8x200m hill repeats once a week, and add in sprint intervals once a week. Week 1: 6x200 fast as you can go without losing form (5min recovery). Week 2: 5x300 fast again with (6-7min recovery). Week 3: 4x400 at 800m pace (8-10 recovery. Week 4: 8x200m fast (5min recovery).

Month 4, drop down to 30 miles per week. Stop running hills and switch to intervals twice a week. One sprint interval session with full recovery and one aerobic interval session with short recoveries. Take 2 days off of running per week and cross train with bicycle.

Week 1a: 4x100 cold start curves (focus on acceleration), 4x100 flying start straights (focus on efficient form) 4min rests

WK1b: 8x200m with 1min rests

WK2a: 2x200 (5min rest) 2x400 (6min rest) 2x200 (5min rest)

WK2b: 6x400m (1min rest)

WK3a: 5x400m (7min rest)

Wk3b: 8x400m (1min rest)

Wk4a: 10x200m (5min rest)

Wk4b: 8x200m (1 min rest)...need to be able to hit 26s ea. by this time.

You have to hammer the sprint workouts, but if you feel something starting to tweak, back off immediately and end the workout.

Ignore all fast stuff, just start running miles, tempo, and 3k race pace stuff. Race a couple times to bust off the rust and then you'll probably crack it.

24 basic speed is WAY more than enough to run sub-2. With enough endurance you could run 1:50 off of 24 speed.

specificity. lots and lots of work at 2:00 pace.

8 x 200 in 29.5sh with lots of rest.

work on relaxation.

this should be a relatively easy workout.

exhaustion is not important in this type of workout.

like another poster already said, you are already there.

I recommend putting in mileage. There is almost no better way to shape your base training then just running some plain and simple miles. Put in more than you've already done to improve.

You won't see results right away however. It takes about a month to see any results from an increase in mileage. Approach the extra mileage carefully by building up each week.

Say you want to increase your training from 35 to 45 miles. When increasing, make sure you add 2 to 3 miles a week each week till you get to 45. You will ease into the harder training better, and reduce the risk of injury.

Also, to make sure you don't lose your fast-twitch fibers which show from your 24 second 200, I will still recommend doing striders after every other run, and plyometrics will not hurt either.

You got the speed, time to build the base.

this is all awesome information, thanks guys, keep it coming! i'm documenting all of this and trying to figure out a universal plan that works. like i said, i'm willing to do as much as it takes to hit sub 2.

another question, what potential do i have in the mile with 24 point 200m speed? with lots of aerobic training what could i look to shoot for?