David Rudisha completely takes off THREE MONTHS at the end of competitive season

perhaps ol' dave doesn't need to train all year long? perhaps he needs to "cycle".

He's only 24 and only runs the 800 (and the rare 400). He can get away with it.

Omfg he only runs 37ish mpw

If you read more carefully, he runs 37ish miles per week when easing back into training.

He's an 800m runner, dude. We (lol, we..) don't need all that crazy mileage.

Btw, if Cam Levins has 11.5 100 speed from a standing start off 120+mi/wk...why isnt he an 800m runner? He could save himself untold hours per week and probably be sub 11 with a little speed work.

I didn't take three months off, but I expect he can probably still beat me.

I'm curious to have more details of what kind of physical activity goes on in that time "without any kind of training". Is he just sitting on a couch with popcorn watching soaps all day? Somehow I doubt it.

ryan foreman wrote:

I'm curious to have more details of what kind of physical activity goes on in that time "without any kind of training". Is he just sitting on a couch with popcorn watching soaps all day? Somehow I doubt it.

Lagat takes 5 weeks off on the couch and puts on something like 10 pounds. He has talked about it in the past. The typical Kenyan distance runner takes 2 months off. Kenyans are not obsessive compulsive mileage nuts like people posting here. They pretty much don't run at all (as adults) if there's not $$$ involved. Some you can meet in Kenya actually can't understand Americans and Europeans running because they like it.

But keep in mind that Rudisha is a 400/800 guy. He's a sprinter, not a distance runner. We have had 400/800 guys in the US running 1:44 off 20-25 mpw.

Lets be critical of the greatest 800m runner ever bc we can and know better

He's done! If he ever races my boy Galen, Rupp may very well upset him.

It doesn't come as any surprise to me. It's kind of funny that most runners find that so scandalous - it goes to show how ignorany and whacked out the mainstream running community really is.

The reaction on here will be that none of them believe it.

Just like when a really good runner says he does 60-70 miles a week.

People cant accept that some runners are tremendously talented and dont have to train like a plow horse.

AnonymousPseudonym wrote:

The reaction on here will be that none of them believe it.

I am reading the responses and no one has said that.

Ryan Foreman indicated that he thought he at least did some kind of activity in those three months.

But no one has posted that they didn't believe Rudisha took three months off of running.

AnonymousPseudonym wrote:

The reaction on here will be that none of them believe it.

Just like when a really good runner says he does 60-70 miles a week.

People cant accept that some runners are tremendously talented and dont have to train like a plow horse.

Pretty sure it takes more than just tremendous talent to run a 1:40 800...

bigtool wrote:Pretty sure it takes more than just tremendous talent to run a 1:40 800...

. . . and less than 60 miles per week.

coach d wrote:

Some you can meet in Kenya actually can't understand Americans and Europeans running because they like it.

Well, that's depressing.

When I spent some time with Brother Colm in Iten in 2004, he would talk about how Isaac Songok and Augustine Choge took time off after they were done racing for the year. When I pressed for details, Colm said that during this time if they wanted to run they were free to, but he didn't write schedules for them.

This may or may not be the case with Rudisha, but he might very well do some running on his own as he feels like it, and not consider it "training."

15mph wrote:

If you read more carefully, he runs 37ish miles per week when easing back into training.

Admittedly, I didn't read the full article. But coach says, "slowly but surely we increase quality, but mileage remains the same. In March we add track workouts."

xenonscreams wrote:

coach d wrote:

Some you can meet in Kenya actually can't understand Americans and Europeans running because they like it.

Well, that's depressing.

On the other hand, Haile does love to run. He's admitted that he's addicted. I suspect that's the more common attitude among the African greats. I'll bet Paul Tergat still runs a bit. I know Filbert Bayi does.