[t gellenbeck]

While many of our running groupies are racing a half marathon this summer, I personally am focusing on a shorter distance ~ the 10K.  I’m somewhat pleased with my 5K, half marathon and marathon PRs, but my 10K one is less than stellar.  Therefore, many of the interval and speed sessions I’ll be attempting over the next 8-10 weeks will be geared towards that shorter distance.

For you half marathoners out there, a common goal is to break two hours.  This magical finish time is the one several of our runners have set their sights on for their spring race. If you want to see that 1:59:59 on the finish time clock, you need to keep your pace at 9 minutes & 9 seconds [or faster] per mile.  During training, you want to get your body used to running this pace, so running your tempo and some of your intervals at that 9:09 [or faster] will help you mentally and physically prepare for your half marathon pace [HMP] goal.  You can do it!  

For today’s speed session, I kept the 2 hour half marathon finish time in mind.  My ‘recovery’ pace was a 9:05/mile ~ this way your HMP seems easy compared to the rest of the workout!

You can substitute songs as desired below [hey, not everyone is a Tswift fan!] but the just of it is to alternate periods of speed with periods of recovery [your HMP].  Take 30-60 second breaks between songs as needed, eventually working up to NOT needing breaks.

I was sweaty and felt like I got in a great run.  Hope you can make it work for you!

Try to make sure you are getting in at least one speed/interval session per week and one tempo session per week.  Hill work is never a bad idea either.

Good luck & stay fit!
Disclaimer:  I am not an expert, just a seasoned runner.  Please consult your doctor and make sure you have been running, injury-free, for 6-12 months before introducing speed work!