Verheul method

Klaas,

I appreciate the response and please accept my apology as there was no mal-intent meant by my post. I understand though and respect your position.

I had thought this wouldn't be any different to what is already available on public websites. This is also my personal interpretation of your advice and not a direct representation. I have a copy and have read your book, which I do find fascinating. Not only the schedules but also the explanation you provide. So thank you for spending time translating to English.

Unfortunately, Letsrun won't allow me to delete posts (unless someone can tell me otherwise). You may have to report the post for it to be taken down.

I'll email you as per your website.

Hi Alex, Thank you for your understanding. You can possibly report the post yourself. Meanwhile I received your e-mail. I will respond to that later.

Kind regards, Klaas

43yo newer runner here chasing a sub 18min 5K this summer (currently 18:43). I am very excited by this book and will order it tonight. It reminds me of some things I have read by strength guru Pavel Tsatsouline where he rejects going into the acidic or glycolytic state outside competition, says that the goal of training is to 'do as much work as possible while remaining as fresh as possible,' uses the term 'practice' instead of 'work out' and says that after your daily practice you should feel more energy than before.

Can't wait to read the book!

Incredible book. Literally no one I personally know does things this way.

The book has recommendations on how to start this method safely. I've been at that for about a week now so there is obviously no way to know at this point how well it works for me. However, I have to admit that this is probably the most enjoyable week of running I've had since I've started running regularly about 5 years ago. Like the runners highlighted in the book, I can't believe how good I feel. Full of energy and my legs feel like they have a lot of pop.

At any rate, I think I'm going to stick with this for awhile simply for the fun factor. I do expect to have faster race times simply because I'm so used to running long and slow meaning this will work on my biggest weakness as a runner.

Have my first 10km race of the year this Sunday. Just completing 4th week of training and now feel i've adapted mentally too. A few early niggles have disappeared. I initially put that down to not running smooth and easy, and breaking the habit of hammering intervals. Feeling more springy and have noticed a definite shift to more of a mid foot strike. I'm historically a strong heel striker. Also enjoying it much more. Every day is different and i can adapt the session to be track, road, treadmill or trails now i have the feel for each pace. No regrets at all.

I've bought Klaas' book (in Dutch) many years ago and have run using that method for close to 10 years, focussing on 5k and 10k races. What I loved about it is that racing is an essential part of the schedules, I raced 2-3 times every month. I also really liked running those "easy" intervals. I ran a marathon PB of 2:59 on very low mileage (I think the biggest week was under 90k). I loved running 400's almost every week.

Interestingly, for the marathon I've had a lot of success in the last two years by doing just the opposite. After not even getting close to my PB again I decided to switch to Pfitzinger and did high volume (peak week was 140km) with lots of slow running. The few intervals I did were fast, more at 5k race pace. Over the years, I learned to love the long runs (but I still enjoy a 400 session every once in a while).

Sometime soon I probably won't have the time for high volume anymore, and even though volume works wonders for me, I think I'll go back to the Verheul method then. Where I live now, racing is a bit harder (longer distances and less time available) so I'll have to figure something out there.

Hi Klas, I read your book and started training according to these principles.

A clarification I'd like is on the race imitation for 5-10km (p.78).

What's a good rest interval between the 10k race intensity surges?

Hi,

Sorry for my late reply.

About every 5-7 minutes (see page 59) you implement a surge of 1 minute. Do it on feel: if you feel great maybe in the second half the last 2-3 surges could be every 4-5 minutes.

Cheers!

Folks,

Could some of you be so kind to promote my book via FB-groups in the USA and maybe other countries?

I would appreciate very much!?

Thanks!

Regards,

Klaas Lok

I'll be buying this book as soon as it's back in stock as I love reading training books and this one is novel (at least in my experience).

One observation - I know quite a few 70 to 90 year old lifelong runners and all of them were pretty quick back in the day. I always ask them what they would do differently if they could re-do it. Almost all of them say 1- run their easy days easier and 2 - run on softer surfaces as much as possible. Never heard one of them ever say I wish I would have run intervals (even relaxed intervals) every day.

Klaas Lok wrote:

Hi Alex, Thank you for your understanding. You can possibly report the post yourself. Meanwhile I received your e-mail. I will respond to that later.

Kind regards, Klaas

Okey Klaas! :) Here comes my experienced analysis over your "easy interval method" , original by Verhuel.

It seem to be a method as I guessed very similar to Gerschler, Stampfl and Igloi. The difference mostly less reps in the intervals at often slower paces . According to the example weeks of your own weekly schedules I see it was not only a question of running intervals but also steady runs sometimes.It`s a strong system on relatively low mileage but it lack optimal development of mitochondria, both quantitatively and in terms of quality/effect.

I've been doing runs by feel for months, including many easy and moderate runs that incorporate walk-jog-runfast cycles. Great for mobility and bounce! And they are fun to do. Too many runners are locked into plodding mileage to mark down in their log. I can travel almost the same mileage, but have more fun, and include more fast running, while still keeping a run easy. Wish I had figured this out when I was younger. Do some middle-distance runners train like this?

I started trying this some time last year, after reading some posts re Verheul system. So thanks Klaas for posting!

...and thanks OP Johnfrog.

SUPERIOR COACH JS wrote:

Klaas Lok wrote:

Hi Alex, Thank you for your understanding. You can possibly report the post yourself. Meanwhile I received your e-mail. I will respond to that later.

Kind regards, Klaas

Okey Klaas! :) Here comes my experienced analysis over your "easy interval method" , original by Verhuel.

It seem to be a method as I guessed very similar to Gerschler, Stampfl and Igloi. The difference mostly less reps in the intervals at often slower paces . According to the example weeks of your own weekly schedules I see it was not only a question of running intervals but also steady runs sometimes.It`s a strong system on relatively low mileage but it lack optimal development of mitochondria, both quantitatively and in terms of quality/effect.

Beste Klaas, deze "zogenaamde" wereldcoach moet je gewoon negeren.

Zegt dat ie een paar Kenianen traint, maar geen van zijn "pupillen" kent hem of wenst geen samenwerking met hem.

Zelf train ik al sinds eind 2017 via jouw methode, nog steeds verbeter ik mijn prestaties.

Dank

Here you have to try to translate in English! But I think I figured out what you said to Klaas. Anyway his system is just a variation of the great coaches Gerschler, Igloi and Stampfl, nothing that is close to the Holy Grail of running system.

-The coach seeking the Holy Grail of running! -

SUPERIOR COACH JS wrote:

Okey Klaas! :) Here comes my experienced analysis over your "easy interval method" , original by Verhuel.

It seem to be a method as I guessed very similar to Gerschler, Stampfl and Igloi. The difference mostly less reps in the intervals at often slower paces . According to the example weeks of your own weekly schedules I see it was not only a question of running intervals but also steady runs sometimes.It`s a strong system on relatively low mileage but it lack optimal development of mitochondria, both quantitatively and in terms of quality/effect.

Genuinely curious. Why do you say it lacks 'optimal development of mitochondria, both quantitatively and in terms of quality/effect'?

I have just read the book last week and am trying to implement a few workouts and seeing how it goes. I am a hobby-jogger by LRC standards.

Workout: 1 mile w/u + 6 x 1K with 800 recovery + c/d

My execution:

- The warmup was at my regular easy pace. HR: Middle of Zone 2

- The 1 K repeats were at just slower than MP because that felt aerobic enough to me. 4 ish minutes of high-end aerobic running repeated for 6 times. HR: Lower end of zone 3 at the beginning of repeat to higher end of zone 3 by end of repeat.

- The 800m recovery also took me about 4 minutes. Easy pace. HR: Middle of Zone 2

- The cooldown was at my regular easy pace. HR: Middle of Zone 2

Maybe, I could have gotten more mitochondria development by doing the whole run as easy/zone 2. But, from my typical marathon shuffler's POV, I liked this because it forced me to run with proper form for 24 minutes as part of the 1K repeats.

This workout also did not beat me up in any way, as I did my regular 10x400 workout today without any ill-effects from yesterday.

Key, IMO, is to run the aerobic intervals from Klaas' book in a manner that it does not leave you tired for the next day.

I don't recommend that. His elder brother coaching him destroyed some talented younger Norwegians.

Souplesse methode rules wrote:

SUPERIOR COACH JS wrote:

Okey Klaas! :) Here comes my experienced analysis over your "easy interval method" , original by Verhuel.

It seem to be a method as I guessed very similar to Gerschler, Stampfl and Igloi. The difference mostly less reps in the intervals at often slower paces . According to the example weeks of your own weekly schedules I see it was not only a question of running intervals but also steady runs sometimes.It`s a strong system on relatively low mileage but it lack optimal development of mitochondria, both quantitatively and in terms of quality/effect.

Beste Klaas, deze "zogenaamde" wereldcoach moet je gewoon negeren.

Zegt dat ie een paar Kenianen traint, maar geen van zijn "pupillen" kent hem of wenst geen samenwerking met hem.

Zelf train ik al sinds eind 2017 via jouw methode, nog steeds verbeter ik mijn prestaties.

Dank

In english: "Dear Klaas, you just have to ignore this "so-called" world coach. Says he's training a few Kenyans, but none of his "pupils" know him or want to cooperate with him. I train myself at the end of 2017 through your method, I still improve my performance.

Thank you"

JS goes home devastated....