Final Virtual Session and Plans for a Return to Training

Some exciting news today, but first up our (hopefully) last virtual session from Coach James.

'This is the last 'virtual' session before the return to face-to-face on 27 April, which I expect everyone is looking forward to! 

To help with the transition to some of the faster track work, this week's session is a fartlek. This is Swedish for 'speed play' and means exactly that; it's a way to test your limits and find your different gears. It was used to great effect by Swedish athletes when they stormed on to the international scene years ago, and is still a staple of many training programmes today. It can be done on any route; pick one that takes you about 45 minutes, and gives you the opportunity to run fast.

Warmup (10 min) Start with a jog, then build in to some surges of 5k efforts of 20 secs. Complete some drills to include high knees and heel flicks.

Session: The purpose of this session is to get in tune with your effort and recovery times, which is why it is very unstructured. Start a 30 minute run at an easy pace, then pick a landmark (e.g. a tree or lamppost) and run at an increased effort until you reach it. Then pick another landmark and use that stretch as a recovery. Repeat this for the rest of the session, remembering the 'play' element - vary the distances and the intensities of both the efforts and the recoveries. Cool down with a 10 min jog.

Technical points: As with any session, maintaining good form throughout is very important. For this, focus on 'running tall' and give yourselves a reminder of this as the session progresses. This should help you to avoid the slouching that can often accompany the end of a harder session.

With practice, you'll find that you become much more knowledgeable about your limits and how your body responds to efforts and recoveries, and it's great fun into the bargain. Happy Fartleking!'

Return to Training

We will resume training on Tuesday 27 April with early (1830hrs) and late (1920hrs) sessions. The first early session will be out popular Drielauf for 27 runners, while the late session will be a new 400s session on the track for 16 runners from any pace group - you will be asked for a current 5k time on registration to allow the coach to place you in groups of 4. As always, by registering for any session you are acknowledging that you have read, understood, and will implement the risk assessment/session planner. Look out for the email from about Thursday. Thereafter we will alternate the early and late sessions.

Social runs will resume from Thursday 29 April, and will likely be a return to the Piercefield Park and Great Barnet Wood routes. Again look out for the registration emails.

Dickie