I’m not racing 800 until spring and no indoor track
I want to start 200s, like 8x200 with some rest. When do people start 200s at race pace.
I’m not racing 800 until spring and no indoor track
I want to start 200s, like 8x200 with some rest. When do people start 200s at race pace.
Right now.
When, for all training themes is "all year round.". The real question is "how often.". You want to develop and ability and then maintain that ability. There is no reason you couldn't do that during xc season, but you mabe only once in a 10 week period, while it might be 3* month in January in preparation of April racing.
For 800m even in the base season I'd say 8-12X200m @ race pace with plenty of rest (2min ) every other week. You need to be in touch with this year round, it allows you to pivot to more specific work come race season.
Building into the season these need to be extended to 300's then 400's.
400's are the bare basic requirement for actually racing the 800m. 4X400m .
800 race in spring wrote:
I’m not racing 800 until spring and no indoor track
I want to start 200s, like 8x200 with some rest. When do people start 200s at race pace.
I highly doubt Clayton Murphy is running repeat 200's right now at 25/26 seconds a pop. Right now you should be doing some longer threshold workouts to be your best in the spring/summer. Like 1k repeats at threshold pace with short rest. You can do a few 200's at the end but they shouldn't be crazy fast. Running high intensity ramps up your fitness quickly, but it is not 'never-ending'... You don't want to ramp it up now or else you'll have nothing left in a few months. Build the base right now, and do the higher intensity stuff later to time your peak for the appropriate races. A few weeks of high intensity does a lot, so I wouldn't start doing those types of workouts until the last six weeks or so of your season.
You need a base not only for aerobic side of things but also speed. Also threshold is not the most important thing for 800m runners.
Support paces for 800m should be at 5K pace on the high end of things, with long reps, good rest.
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
8X200 at 800m race pace is pretty hard at any time of year.
I see that as more of a peak workout.
But you could do (4-6)X200 at 800 race pace a couple months out get the turnover.
That would not be a frequent workout.
800 Expert wrote:
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
Who is the current men's 800m World Champion which was run in Championship Record time?
Star wrote:
800 Expert wrote:
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
Who is the current men's 800m World Champion which was run in Championship Record time?
One world champ after years of silence is hardly being competitive. Look at men’s 400, 400H, 4x400.
Why is the US so good at the 400?
Give yourself an edge and run 150s instead. Intensity yields results.
Gold in 2019 WC
Bronze in the 2016 Olympics.
Silver in 2013 WC
4 men under 1:43 in recent years.
Kenya is the only other country in the world that puts up as many top level 800m runners as the US.
Your statement that the US is not very competitive at the 800m does not hold water.
800 Expert wrote:
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
There is a workout wednesday with Clayton Murphy the year he won olympic bronze (2016). In that winter workout was he running 200's as fast as he could? No, he was running 1k repeats in like 2:55. His 1k race pace being 2:20 or better, so nowhere near as fast as he could be going. He obviously would have done other workouts besides that, but the point is that you can't blaze fast repeats all year long.
Hot Takes wrote:
800 Expert wrote:
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
There is a workout wednesday with Clayton Murphy the year he won olympic bronze (2016). In that winter workout was he running 200's as fast as he could? No, he was running 1k repeats in like 2:55. His 1k race pace being 2:20 or better, so nowhere near as fast as he could be going. He obviously would have done other workouts besides that, but the point is that you can't blaze fast repeats all year long.
On the other hand Murphy is wildly inconsistent. Maybe he should be doing fast 200s rather than slow Kms.
Star wrote:
8X200 at 800m race pace is pretty hard at any time of year.
I see that as more of a peak workout.
But you could do (4-6)X200 at 800 race pace a couple months out get the turnover.
That would not be a frequent workout.
I don't think 8x 200 in 30 seconds with 2 minutes rest would be too hard for a 2:00 800 runner.
The thing with "800 pace" is that every 200m segment of an 800m race is run at a different pace, usually slower each one.
I think of 800 pace as what you go out in.
I ran 1:49, so I am thinking 26/27 is what I needed to feel for 800 pace.
In the fall, I would never do an 8X200 at 26/27 with 2 min rest.
I know I did 6X200 at that pace as racing began. Or 2X3X200
I feel 8 of those is pretty hard workout and something to build towards.
Now, 8X200 at 28/29 was a comfortable sharpening workout close to race day. Usually before a 1500 for me. And that's a little quicker than my 1500 pace but not far away and slower than 800 pace.
The OP's question was when do you run 200s at 800 pace.
I think you can introduce them early but rarely and maybe do only a few after a distance run.
Early training would be usually more reps at a slower pace.
This is absolutely in NO WAY a peak workout for the 800m. Not even close to a peak workout and if someone says it is PLEASE laugh at them and tell them to put the foil back on their head.
It all depends on what your PR is in the 800, if you have run at that pace it's a good place to build up after your first base cycle. The trick is to do it enough and eventually increase reps to 8 and to decrease the interval recovery.
Remember, this is a distance based forum and mainly from people who watch youtube videos. If you want speed I would go elsewhere, there is so much information out there if you actually go out and meet people. Try your local HS coaches, club coaches and even reach out to people on insta or facebook. There are plenty of legit track pages with real pro's giving advice.
8x200 is common for any level 800 runner.
Star wrote:
800 Expert wrote:
This thread is a great example of why the US isn’t very competitive at 800m.
Who is the current men's 800m World Champion which was run in Championship Record time?
Star, you are making 800 Expert's point. Donavan Brazier, 2019 800m W.C. winner is not a Lydiard-type 800m guy. A bunch of Lydiard-types are offering their 800m training philosophy on this thread.
this is a great question, one with possibly a few different correct answers. and we get a bunch of people in here with condescending, know-it-all attitudes, while offering very little in the form of any kind of answer.