Nick Symmonds 5x300 - Terrible

Remember, every workout must be an all-out race effort, and you must be near peak form, even if you're coming off an injury last month! Otherwise you are DONE.

HardLoper wrote:

Remember, every workout must be an all-out race effort, and you must be near peak form, even if you're coming off an injury last month! Otherwise you are DONE.

Haha, yeah - even week to week, things can vary wildly coming back from an injury. I remember one spring I ran a 3x300 workout with 4 minutes rest, in 40, 40, 39. Then the next week, I did the same workout, and ended up running 42, 44, 46! The fatigue sometimes accumulates in odd ways, especially when playing catch-up fitness-wise. I bet he bounces back and has some pretty good workouts in the next couple weeks, and is in good shape within a month.

HardLoper wrote:

Remember, every workout must be an all-out race effort, and you must be near peak form, even if you're coming off an injury last month! Otherwise you are DONE.

This.

I think if more pros posted all their workouts, a lot of people on here would be blown away. Either that or everyone is just trolling and knows that this one workout doesn't mean NS is done.

Yep, probably option 2. Everyone is trolling.

Call Outer of Trolls wrote:

I think if more pros posted all their workouts, a lot of people on here would be blown away. Either that or everyone is just trolling and knows that this one workout doesn't mean NS is done.

"Galen Rupp ran 10 miles in 55 minutes this morning. I've run 10 miles in 55 minutes before! Rupp must be finished!"

Call Outer of Trolls wrote:

HardLoper wrote:

Remember, every workout must be an all-out race effort, and you must be near peak form, even if you're coming off an injury last month! Otherwise you are DONE.

This.

I think if more pros posted all their workouts, a lot of people on here would be blown away. Either that or everyone is just trolling and knows that this one workout doesn't mean NS is done.

Yep, probably option 2. Everyone is trolling.

Haha I think most, including myself, are trolling/having a laugh.

Nick isn't done yet he'll be there at the trials and probably make the team.

The workout is still cack though lol.

Metric Miler wrote:

Or even more impressive:

Race Pace

10 x 400m between 53-54 seconds with only 30 seconds recovery. He gets help from a "rabbit" the last 200 m in each repetition.

That's 40s en route...

i can't imaginE having that kind of sPeed... must be wOnderful...

more info needed wrote:

Call Outer of Trolls wrote:

I think if more pros posted all their workouts, a lot of people on here would be blown away. Either that or everyone is just trolling and knows that this one workout doesn't mean NS is done.

"Galen Rupp ran 10 miles in 55 minutes this morning. I've run 10 miles in 55 minutes before! Rupp must be finished!"

Well, I've run 10 miles in 54 minutes. Rupp MUST be in a bad way or something. :)

Please forget the transitive property, which doesn't exist in running. If you ran fast workouts and raced slow, while Nick Symmonds works out at relatively relaxed paces in the spring but still runs 1:44 every summer.... Maybe there is a lesson about how best to train.

He should move to the 1500 this year

i would agree. I recall doing 10-12 at these paces (finishing between 39-41 last few) w/ 35-45s recoveries. not sure the purpose of those for anything more than long strides but def not a "workout," not in the traditional sense of the term anyway.

answers4questions2k16 wrote:

What is going on here?

Honestly, 43, 41, 40, 39, 40 off 4 mins. - that is an awful work out, especially for a '1.42'

This isn't a "Terrible" workout, certainly no where near 1:42 type shape; this would typical for ncaa all-American types. Btw, one workout does not tell you much without knowing what the goal.

Caster would crush him.

If that was his hardest workout of the week, it's not good.

If it's the middle workout between two hard workouts, it's more of a rhythm workout and he wouldn't want to go faster.

If it's two days before a race, it may be a bit hard. 300's put a little junk in your leg.

answers4questions2k16 wrote:

What is going on here?

Honestly, 43, 41, 40, 39, 40 off 4 mins. - that is an awful work out, especially for a '1.42'

Symmonds is one of the best 800m runners in US history. I'd think that it makes more sense to presume that he knows what he's doing and learn from what he posts.

tighty whitey wrote:

answers4questions2k16 wrote:

What is going on here?

Honestly, 43, 41, 40, 39, 40 off 4 mins. - that is an awful work out, especially for a '1.42'

Symmonds is one of the best 800m runners in US history. I'd think that it makes more sense to presume that he knows what he's doing and learn from what he posts.

Nick is stupid.

You're stupid.

Everybody stupid.

tighty whitey wrote:

answers4questions2k16 wrote:

What is going on here?

Honestly, 43, 41, 40, 39, 40 off 4 mins. - that is an awful work out, especially for a '1.42'

Symmonds is one of the best 800m runners in US history. I'd think that it makes more sense to presume that he knows what he's doing and learn from what he posts.

Joking aside, apparently Symmonds said he was 'very disappointed' with the work out, according to the OP.

So maybe not a tempo or deliberately easy session?

answers2546 wrote:

Its on his 'sweat' profile. He also says he was 'very disappointed' with the work out.

There is a more recent work out of 8x800 off 2 mins. in 2.22-2.35. I can safely say that for a 3.34 runner, that is terrible.

I have run 2:08/4:38/9:51 and could easily do that workout. That's bad.

Metric Miler wrote:

Joking aside, apparently Symmonds said he was 'very disappointed' with the work out, according to the OP.

So maybe not a tempo or deliberately easy session?

But the OP didn't say that Nick was very disappointed did he?

not my real name. wrote:

i would agree. I recall doing 10-12 at these paces (finishing between 39-41 last few) w/ 35-45s recoveries. not sure the purpose of those for anything more than long strides but def not a "workout," not in the traditional sense of the term anyway.

If you were doing 10-12x300@ ~40 off 35-45s recoveries, then we've probably seen you on the front page of this website before. That is an elite level 1500 workout. Either that or you're recalling incorrectly (hint: probably the latter--if not and I'm talking to a 3:35 1500 guy, do let me know).

It's early spring, this was Symmonds' first sprint workout in months, and he's an endurance based 800 guy. Part of the reason Symmonds has been so successful on the US--and honestly even world--level as a 1:42/43 guy is because he's super strong through rounds and times his peak perfectly. He'll probably run 1:46 - 1:48 in a week or two, these boards will flip out and call him done, and then he'll coast through each round of the US championships, running just as fast as he needs to, before perfectly peaking to make the team.

Phoebe Wright wrote a really great blog article a few months back about the importance of peaking perfectly as a pro athlete, and it's all very applicable this year: US finals will be a race full of 1:43 - 1:44 guys, and who is able to best peak for that race will probably determine the winner. Symmonds is really, really, really good at doing just that.