I've become fascinated by the recent trend towards threshold training, no doubt due to its successful use by the Ingebrigtsen family and other Norwegians. The basic theory is that the runner spends as much time as possible running at a threshold effort which is arrived at by measuring blood lactate. Gradually your speed at threshold becomes faster and along with that, your race pace. It's important not to run threshold sessions too fast or the accumulated lactic acid in the muscles extends the recovery time. Jakob Ingebrigtsen runs two days of 'double threshold' (a morning and an afternoon session) on Tuesday and Thursday with a 'special session' (often hill sprint repeats) on Saturday mornings with another threshold session that afternoon. His weekly training volume is around 160 kilometres.
Can the average recreational runner learn something from how Jakob trains and possibly adapt those methods for use in our own training? I think we can, and Irish 2:09 marathoner Stephen Scullion has produced a detailed video on what we can learn from the Ingebrigtsens. Jakob's older brother Kristoffer is a recreational runner and his training (you can find him on Strava) gives an insight into how an average runner uses a threshold training system to improve race times. Kristoffer runs around 105 km per week or for 8 hours 10 minutes and he doesn't do 'double threshold' days. His week usually consists of one rest day, three threshold days and three 'steady' running days, one of those being a long run. He uses a Lactate Pro 2 Meter to check blood lactate and make sure he is running at the correct threshold effort. His 'best times' on Strava include 16:22 for 5k, 33:09 for 10k and 73:43 for a half marathon, all very good results for a recreational runner.
If I'm to train similarly to Kristoffer Ingebrigtsen but at 6.5 hours per week, it seems I need a way to judge threshold effort correctly so I can recover sufficiently with one steady running day between threshold days. This will call for some experimentation as the key to good recovery is to run threshold effort 'just right' erring on too slow rather than too fast. I'll use heart rate as a guide. I race 5k at an average heart rate of around 146 (my maximum HR is close to 156). For a start I'll try threshold effort runs/intervals with my heart rate between 130 and 139. General and easy running days will be under a heart rate of 130. My days of the week will go: Monday a variety of threshold running with the Speedygeese group, Tuesday a steady Lake Stakes, Wednesday a threshold BBQ Stakes fartlek, Thursday a steady 65 minutes of running, Friday a threshold Customs Joggers session, Saturday an easy parkrun, Sunday an easy short run or bike ride. Sometimes I'll run the Customs Joggers 5k as a race effort if there are no suitable local races. That's the plan until Masters' track racing starts in October so I'll report back before then with how things are going.
A few of the Speedygeese group at the Coombs parkrun
4 comments:
A very good plan to improve your speed.
I made the decision to not make anymore specific speed works to not stress my old body (I'm almost 67).
Alle the best.
Thanks Stefano. You are still running and enjoying it, that's the main thing. For me threshold running seems okay so far as I build into the runs, not going too fast early in the run. My threshold speed is quite modest and doesn't seem to be straining the leg muscles.
That is interesting. One of the principal arguments for polarised training is that running in the vicinity of threshold creates disproportional stress relative to the benefits. There is little doubt that the various physiological developments required for racing near threshold pace can be achieved via a polarised approach including only a minor amount of threshold running. I still consider a polarised approach is a good strategy if you wish to achieve longevity as runner. On the other hand, there is little doubt that many of runners have achieved world leading levels of performance with a training schedule including a lot of threshold running. Every individual needs to find what works for themselves. There is also some value in challenging the body in new ways, provided you include adequate rest and recovery. I look forward to hearing how the threshold training works for you.
Thanks for your comments Canute, I'll be careful to monitor how my recovery goes with that one easier day between threshold efforts. The threshold effort/pace I'm aiming for is quite a bit slower than 5k race pace/heart rate, my guess without a meter, under 2.5 mmol/L lactate, so sub-threshold really. For example, today I ran 5k at 5:40 per km (average HR 136) which felt a lot easier than the 5k track race in March, 5:02 per km at an average HR of 147. Last week my amount of sub-threshold running was about 20% of total volume which aligns with an 80:20 system if you consider sub-threshold as 'hard' running.
Post a Comment