My long runs have been 10-15 miles at anywhere between 6:16 and 6:45 pace (so tempo pace). I was thinking I should change my long runs to fartleks. Is this a good idea (I'm pretty sure it is)? How long/fast should the reps/rests be?
16 yo, 5' 9"/ 132 lbs/ 40-50 mpw
17:08 XC 5K
4:58 1600m
Tempo pace is roughly what you could run if you exhausted yourself at one hour, so your long runs are slower than tempo pace, which they should be.
The purpose of your long run is not to run a tempo, nor is it to run a fartlek. It's to get in a long run. Stop trying to make it something else or to combine workouts, because you would do so at a cost to the actual benefits of a long run (and to a tempo or fartlek for that matter).
Long runs help red blood cell development, capillary development, and get you better used to handling fueling. They can improve your running efficiency. Really, you're teaching yourself to take oxygen and get more out of it as an endurance athlete. The benefit of this comes mostly during the latter part of the long run, because otherwise it's just another run. You don't want to add further risk to the run by doing it at a pace that borders on something less than aerobic, nor do you want to add bursts of speed that could make it harder to reach the latter stages of the run aerobically or with legs ready to continue the distance. This is why most people will set aside a 20 minute tempo run for another day or do an interval session. With a good run schedule you should have no real need to combine all these things together into one run, because you should be able to do them on different days. Some people do finish their long runs faster than they started, but do so by recognizing what their body can handle and ensuring they get the long run done without risk.
Shoebacca wrote:
The purpose of your long run is not to run a tempo, nor is it to run a fartlek. It's to get in a long run. Stop trying to make it something else or to combine workouts, because you would do so at a cost to the actual benefits of a long run (and to a tempo or fartlek for that matter).
So what kind of pace should long runs be ran at?
3200y5000 wrote:
Shoebacca wrote:
The purpose of your long run is not to run a tempo, nor is it to run a fartlek. It's to get in a long run. Stop trying to make it something else or to combine workouts, because you would do so at a cost to the actual benefits of a long run (and to a tempo or fartlek for that matter).
So what kind of pace should long runs be ran at?
Easy pace.
If you need a number I'd say that is 7:30 for you. Maybe a few seconds quicker. But not sub 7.
With those PRs, I'd encourage you to average no faster than 6:45 pace. I'd start around 7:30 for the first mile, move to 7:10s for the next several miles, then run low 7s/high 6s from about 5 miles to the finish. I suppose there's no harm in running a fast last mile (say, 6:15) if you're feeling good. I prefer to think it terms of effort instead of pace, but since you asked for paces, there you go.
You could speed up the last 2 miles of your long run. What I have come to find out over the months is that elite runners don't do their entire long run at the same pace. Lets say your long run goes for 14 miles. You cold run 12 miles at easy pace, and then finish the last 2 miles at 15 to 30 seconds faster than your easy pace. Your slow twitch muscles have already absorbed the benefits from the majority of the run, and speeding up slightly will prepare the body to surge on fatigued legs during a race.
The last two miles at a slightly faster pace will not tax you much. You should still be comfortable,but with a tiny bit of stress to your system.