Should I run tempos during base?

that is a very good question.

Some will tell you no, I'm sure.

I am not sure if this has been proven either way, but my personal experience is that it helps me:

1) it helps break up the monotony of just doing miles - I feel better after my temop and look forward to getting back to some mileage after.

2) I think it helps set the stage for future tempos by allowing you do run without any pressure to preform/no upcoming races = so you are more likely to do the tempos right (this is not too fast).

Two summers ago I build my mileage up to 200 max (ave 140-160 for much of the summer) with 2-3 tempos per week...never felt stronger that following fall. the tempo went really well, by fall I was going sub 5:15.

If doing tempos in the base phase was or is detrimental to aerobic development then I would have thought I would see it. I did not. Instead I found that I could do way more reps on shorter rest than ever before once I starting doing workouts.

Ultimately the only way to find out is to try it for yourself. I say go for it - you sound like you have a good plan of not trying to kill them....and gradually getting faster. I would add that there will be days when the summer heat or just tiredness will get to you - so don't feel like you have to do every tempo you have scheduled. Sometime I sit one out - others times I go ahead and do them and find I feel much better afterwards - they kind of wake up the body.

My stats and training are pretty close to yours. I'm around 60-70 and am aiming for 100. Senior in college next year, 25:4x 8k.

My coaches have always had us do tempos or fartleks, one or two a week starting around this time of the summer. I like starting them now because it gives you enough time to ease into the speed work, which I definitely need after training for a half in the spring.

Bobdog wrote:

Im into my 4th week of base training. running near 60 mpw but will be elevating my mileage over 80 mpw by the end of summer.. Im training for xc 8k ..will be a sophamore in college this fall..My question is should I start adding a tempo component to my training? Im thinking of adding a 4mile tempo at 5:45 pace to start and over the weeks dropping the tempo pace down each week until I reach 5:20 pace over the next 4-6 weeks...Is this to much? I ran a 15:00 min 5k this spring ..and a 25:45 8k last fall...

Tempos, yes, but not like you have in mind. What you want during the summer are relaxed, "run to the barn" tempos. The goal should be to show up at the end of summer ready to start doing harder runs.

Read Summer of Malmo, and you will see that doing tempos is encouraged

malmo fan wrote:

Read Summer of Malmo, and you will see that doing tempos is encouraged

It would be more instructive to know what he actually did.

Yes, as long as you can make it a high end aerobic run. Barry Magee told me that during his base phase he regularly did 10 mile runs where he'd go "out" for 30 minutes and come "back" in 26-27.

Ok

http://www.bunnhill.com/BobHodge/rtp3.htm

Scroll down and you'll find his log

Foul mouth bass wrote:

Ok

http://www.bunnhill.com/BobHodge/rtp3.htm

Scroll down and you'll find his log

The log doesn't have anything to do with SOM.

(1) twice-a-day, as many days as you can - four, five or six days a week (2) increase your mileage, look, you guys are made of the same muscle and bone as me, you can do it. Find your own sweet spot (3) meet with a group twice a week (4) one tempo run of just four to six miles and (5) one workout of 1200m to 2000m repeats OR 16 to 24 by 150m to 300m (5) don't try to impress anyone, run within yourself (6) relax, the real training doesn't begin until September.

HRE wrote:

Yes, as long as you can make it a high end aerobic run. Barry Magee told me that during his base phase he regularly did 10 mile runs where he'd go "out" for 30 minutes and come "back" in 26-27.

This is outdated. Current practice is to do "tempos" too fast.

Bobdog wrote:

Im into my 4th week of base training. running near 60 mpw but will be elevating my mileage over 80 mpw by the end of summer.. Im training for xc 8k ..will be a sophamore in college this fall..My question is should I start adding a tempo component to my training? Im thinking of adding a 4mile tempo at 5:45 pace to start and over the weeks dropping the tempo pace down each week until I reach 5:20 pace over the next 4-6 weeks...Is this to much? I ran a 15:00 min 5k this spring ..and a 25:45 8k last fall...

I would start this in week 5. I would say go ahead and start with cruise intervals at that pace. Maybe run 4x1600 2x2 mile at LT pace. Dont go faster then LT pace.

You could also start running in and out pace 200's starting in week 6. Good way to add variety to mileage. Just cruise them about 2-3 seconds faster then LT pace per 200

ten hard wrote:

HRE wrote:

Yes, as long as you can make it a high end aerobic run. Barry Magee told me that during his base phase he regularly did 10 mile runs where he'd go "out" for 30 minutes and come "back" in 26-27.

This is outdated. Current practice is to do "tempos" too fast.

Huh?

jude fawley wrote:

malmo fan wrote:

Read Summer of Malmo, and you will see that doing tempos is encouraged

It would be more instructive to know what he actually did.

That was what he did.

Bobdog wrote:

Im into my 4th week of base training. running near 60 mpw but will be elevating my mileage over 80 mpw by the end of summer.. Im training for xc 8k ..will be a sophamore in college this fall..My question is should I start adding a tempo component to my training? Im thinking of adding a 4mile tempo at 5:45 pace to start and over the weeks dropping the tempo pace down each week until I reach 5:20 pace over the next 4-6 weeks...Is this to much? I ran a 15:00 min 5k this spring ..and a 25:45 8k last fall...

I think you should run some tempos during base, but I would encourage you to not stress too much over the pace. If anything, keep them a little bit on the easier side.

Based on your race times, it does look like a tempo pace of 5:40 to 5:50 is good. But can you do those race times right now? If not, trend toward a slower tempo time.

I would also not recommend striving to lower your tempos to 5:20. I have no doubt you could do it. You've got some good fitness and fast times. But to get there I think you'll start burning some matches you'll want to keep for the season. As others said, go into the season slightly undertrained, if anything.

So if it were me, I'd shoot for a tempo a week. Start around 5:50ish pace, but I wouldn't worry if it was a little slower. I'd add some time, and just see what happened to the pace while keeping the effort as consistent as possible. If the pace starts dipping into the 5:30s, that's great, but I wouldn't push it there. And I certainly wouldn't push it to the 5:20s. Use some 100 to 200s to keep your leg speed. Or fartleks. I love fartleks for that.

Well,.,. wrote:

jude fawley wrote:

It would be more instructive to know what he actually did.

That was what he did.

Were you running with him?

jude fawley wrote:

Well,.,. wrote:

That was what he did.

Were you running with him?

In the "SOM" threads he has explained the background for it.

jude fawley wrote:

Well,.,. wrote:

That was what he did.

Were you running with him?

If you would go ahead and read Summer of Malmo as you've been advised, you would see that he includes his training log for every day of the whole summer in the writeup.

IMO, yes, but no way should the workouts be intense as you are building volume.

Managing pace is important in this phase as you don't want to end up with lots of slow miles.

go ahead and read it wrote:

jude fawley wrote:

Were you running with him?

If you would go ahead and read Summer of Malmo as you've been advised, you would see that he includes his training log for every day of the whole summer in the writeup.

No I didn't.