Glycerin Runner wrote:
Clown? I'd beg to differ. His aerobic philosophy is a sound program, with enough credible success that anyone who can not seem to make the jump to the next level, may want to bank some aerobic HRM training for awhile. No different than what the kenyans are doing albeit by feel instead of HRMs.
Maybe I was too hard on him. His philosophy may be sound, I don't know. I read enough of his posts (several of them) to know that his logic and writing style are bad, I will commit to that.
Also, most lurkers and internet experts seem to be so sure about various party's training. I am never sure about it unless I hear it from that person, or see it in print multiple times from credible sources. Some kenyans may be doing as you say, but this thread is about Mutai's training and he is definitely NOT doing aerobic training at his maximum aerobic level that Maffetone talks about.
Look at the schedule: a lot of it states that he is running at 6:30-8:00 pace. Unless you are running at 25,000 ft altitude neither 6:30 nor 8:00 would be the Aerobic maximum that Maffetone espouses. So I am not saying that Mutai's training, or Maffetone's plan are wrong. I AM saying that they are not the same.
Of course, I am breaking my own rule by believing this confusing schedule. I.E. why would he do 1K reps at 10secs per mile slower than marathon pace? and mile reps at 20 secs slower? Again, many have claimed that these paces and workouts make sense because of the altitude. I don't buy it. I have run at 6000, 7000 and 8000 ft (and occasionally at 10,000ft) in California, various parts of Colorado, Alamosa, and North Carolina. It was harder but not that much harder. I can't see never running faster than 4:50 pace when you hope to race at 4:42-45 in a marathon.
Clearly, if he really is doing this training, or not, he knows more than I do as he is the one who is running at world leading levels. So I am not saying I know more than he does. I am saying I don't buy this sample week the way it was presented.