D1 1500 guy trying to lose a little weight

two options

Sleeping pills to skip dinner like Tyler Hamilton

Or just run baby

Firstly, there aren't going to be any strengthening exercises that'll make you lose the weight in your legs. That doesn't mean that there aren't leg exercises that could benefit you, it just means that they won't make you cut weight. If you want to cut some weight either run more or eat less (that includes making better choices eating).

Secondly, you are running your "tempos" too fast. Generally speaking here (there is no real consensus so this could start a flame war) a tempo run is a lactate threshold or LT run. You're running at a pace that is near your body's limit to clear blood lactate as it accumulates. The thought is that by training near this limit, that it will somehow increase your efficiency to do so and thus you will be able to increase the pace of this limit. Whether or not this is actual scientific fact, I'm not sure, but it seems to work nonetheless (I'm not qualified to argue one way or the other, I just use it as a training tool). For a 15:39 5000m runner your tempos should be around 5:30. There's no point in speeding up because as you speed up you are accumulating more blood lactate than your body can clear. That cut down workout while I'm sure it has value, could be done much smarter. Just try a three mile tempo at 5:30 pace instead or 3x2 mile at about the same pace. When doing workouts even in the summer or off season, it's always better to err on the slower side. You'll get a lot more out of a race by heading into it fresh from working out a hair too slow than you will being tired from being a workout king. If you feel your speed is lacking just do strides a couple times a week or some very short (10-15 second) hill repeats with a couple minutes rest. I think that you'll go into the season a lot fresher by doing these than what you're doing now. You have decent natural speed you should be able to be much faster in the 5000m and 8000m. I don't know what your workouts are like during the season ( what they are geared towards) but breaking 15:00 and 26:00 should be realistic goals for you.

I agree that I should be doing them slower, it's just a little frustrating to see people on my team that can easily do them quite a bit faster. So 5:30 has been a good pace in the past, yet I'd still like to try and get in a little longer of a tempo run before the season starts up, maybe a 5 or 6 miler. In season last year I was able to do a 6 mile and 7 mile tempo run both at 5:30, yet right now that seems out of reach, It just doesn't feel like a 3 miler would help me get ready for cross. I might be over thinking this but I'm curious anyway.

JeffryFFX wrote:

I agree that I should be doing them slower, it's just a little frustrating to see people on my team that can easily do them quite a bit faster. So 5:30 has been a good pace in the past, yet I'd still like to try and get in a little longer of a tempo run before the season starts up, maybe a 5 or 6 miler. In season last year I was able to do a 6 mile and 7 mile tempo run both at 5:30, yet right now that seems out of reach, It just doesn't feel like a 3 miler would help me get ready for cross. I might be over thinking this but I'm curious anyway.

If it's out of reach then you are running too fast. With a tempo run, the longer you run it, the slower the pace should get. So if you want to do a longer tempo, do it at 5:45 pace.Don't worry about the other people on your team, just do what you're capable of. That's how you'll improve. A three mile tempo will help you get ready for cross. Just chill. Like I said, you can do something longer, just slow it down.

would like to mention, thank you for your post. So many runners lack a clear understanding of tempo " LT" training and end up racing tempo workouts. Op would do well to take your advice.

for what it's worth wrote:

would like to mention, thank you for your post. So many runners lack a clear understanding of tempo " LT" training and end up racing tempo workouts. Op would do well to take your advice.

I'll second this. And you (OP) want to compare race times, not training times.

Back to the subject, you either have to burn more calories or eat less, it's your choice which one. When Lydiard saw one of his athletes gaining weight he sent him to train with a partner that was notorious for training at hard paces and the athlete lost the weight. So even if 80mpw is your max you could cut down a very little on mileage and make up for it with intensity, just for a couple weeks while eating very well. Logging what you eat helps a lot.