I’m not arguing these programs you mentioned never did them, I am arguing they weren’t nearly as focused. Canova typically only has 6 weeks of “specific” workouts that could be called V02 max. Even then it really is not V02 max because they are performed at around 100% of your race event. Remember, he bases training off of percentage of your race pace. So if you are a 5k runner, almost all of your training is north (10k or slow) or south (1500 or faster) of your event. The only time you run large amounts of 5k-3k pace is during the “specific” period after a huge time was spent in the global and fundamental periods. If you are 10k runner or 1500m runner the workout focus in the early periods shift a lot as well.
As for the guy talking about Lydiard doing a lot of V02 max work. Dude...he didn’t. He did it for about 4 weeks. Here is a literal quote from Running to the Top:
"The heavy anaerobic period also lasts about four weeks and this is the time at which you develop anaerobic capacity to near maximum. It entails three days a week of heavy overload work and in this you can do any kind of anaerobic work you feel like. You can run straight-out long distance hard, say, three, five or ten kilometers; you can do hard repetitions over whatever distances you feel like; you can run hard on forest trails, if such luxuries are available to you."
Four weeks is hardly any time at all. He mentions it being as hard a you
like or whatever distance you like. Who is to say this is even V02 max work? Why not just a lot of 1500-800 work? Here is a sample schedule from the book. It includes time trials in there. Races can be substituted as well.
Monday: Repetitions (800x6 or 1000x4 or 1500x3 depending on the week)
Tuesday: Aerobic running 90 minutes
Wednesday: Time trial (5,000 or 3,000 depending on the week)
Thursday: Aerobic running 90 minutes
Friday: Relaxed striding 200x6
Saturday: Time trial 10,000 meters at 3/4 effort, or 5,000 meters depending on the week)
Sunday: Aerobic running 120 or more
Most of what he writes is based on effort and vague by the way. Lot of 1/2, 1/4, 3/4, “full out” writing of efforts that have been transcribed to suit the needs of transcriber
Per Daniels 3rd edition, his “heavy V02 max period” is also only 5-6 weeks. So arguably three of the five (aside from
Bowerman/Coe) most famous programs in history have V02 periods of 4-6 weeks. Yet people on letsrun constantly claim that there is lots of V02 work used throughout a training cycle? To the guy talking about random good runners throughout history...that’s not what we meant by a program. That is THEIR program in the sense they followed their own training, but it isn’t a “system” in the sense that large swaths of people have tried to break it down to a recipe to follow.
If you want to be successful, get aerobically strong and get quick. The stuff in between can be served by races or by a small amount of work. You don’t need a lot. If you think you do, you are frankly ill-informed and stuck in your ways.
To the guy with the son talking to his coach...I personally don’t think your easy run pace matters as long as you are not breaking down. Some people respond to faster paces and some don’t. People are not robots and there is huge variance in what easy pace does for someone. I would just choose your words carefully if you speak to the coach. Do it from a position of respect, as I am sure his goal is the same as yours—to make your son fast.