|
I don't care for early season base building for most runners and I believe that intervals are crucial, even for a marathoner.
There's a lot more than that, but most online (or even self-imposed) training programs, just lead you through mile after mile, without much thought to pace changes and speed development.
Through 25 years of running coaching, I have found that shorter intervals (400-800's) support medium length intervals (mile repeats), which supports the long runs. Tie all of them together and you have a comprehensively trained body.
If a runner chose to do 7-8 mile runs at their race pace instead of intervals, every single day for a year, that runners will get really good at going at that pace and will see improvements for the first six months of training, but then a plateau sets in.
I choose to train athletes in a much larger sphere around the specific training length and pace. That is, train all of the energy systems in the proper percentage that is defined by an athletes biggest genetic weakness. For most distance runners, that is speed development. Not so that they can win the finish sprint, but so they can change gears during a race, seamlessly tackle the hills and not have to settle into a plodding pace for an entire race.
And this philosophy holds true for the beginner as well. Finishing your first marathon (or even 5K) is a great accomplishment, however, after that, running mile after mile won't help you run much better.
More is not better... better is better.
The quality and specificity of training based on one's genetic (and psychological) strength and weaknesses are the best way to improve.
Why improve? Because it makes running SO much more fun and rewarding! |
