Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 67, February 2015 | Page 36

Ma Training

Pay Attention, Shorty!

In a world where mileage is king, always remember the short guys: The recovery run, the easy run and the high intensity
workout. – BY RAY ORCHISON

A

week of training should be made up of far more than just
long slow running, or LSD as it is known. LSD has many
benefits, such as developing aerobic capacity and
endurance, and it also prepares the mind to go the distance come
race day, but this is where runners go wrong. The focus tends to
shift entirely to LSD with not much room for anything else in the week.
You don’t get fast by only running LSD – there’s a reason the
middle word of LSD is SLOW. LSD runs should be done at Two
Oceans and Comrades race pace, which will be slower than your
marathon pace, and after two or three months of this, it will take
a notable effort in the second half of the year to get some speed
back into your legs.

GO SHORT

The good news is that shorter runs will help you rediscover your
speed, and they have a number of benefits which supplement LSD’s:
• They teach the body to run in a fatigued state.
• They add bulk to the overall mileage of the week.
• They enable speed maintenance.

There are three types of Short Runs:

1. THE RECOVERY RUN: This easy run is usually done the

day after a hard workout or long run, and the purpose behind the
recovery run is not always recovery. It can certainly aid recovery by
relieving stiffness, but the real benefit is teaching the body to run in
a state of depletion.
Imagine you’re in a peak building week, running consecutively
for six days. You’ve had two hard days and a long run on Sunday.

Instead of taking your normal rest day on Monday, you get up and
head out for a short ‘recovery’ run of 30 minutes. You will be doing this
run on tired legs and with low energy reserves. This will teach your
body to run through fatigue, something you’re sure to experience as
you make your way up Constantia Nek or Polly Shortts.
Limit the recovery run to between 15 and 45 minutes. Doing it
without a watch will help you avoid the temptation of running
too fast, and be careful not to push your body too far and end up
injured or sick! Make sure that you still allow yourself adequate
recovery on a weekly basis.

2. THE EASY RUN: When it comes to Two Oceans and

Comrades, the easy run makes up the bulk of the weekly training
and should be done at Two Oceans and Comrades race pace – a
pace that feels like you could run all day.

3. THE HIGH INTENSITY WORKOUT: This is usually a

short but hard effort workout, like intervals or fartlek, and is taxing on
the body. If you have never done these types of workouts, do not add
them to your training just before a major race. Once you’ve recovered
from your race, you can then reduce overall mileage and gradually
introduce one light session of high intensity a week and build from
there. I suggest you always keep a light session of high intensity work
in your week, so that you maintain the speed developed in preceding
months.

KEEP IT BALANCED

Each short run has its place in training, depending on season and
upcoming races. Avoid trying to find that one ‘magical’ workout,
rather keep a balance of training types as you progress.

Find him at
www.runetics.com or
[e-mail].

Ma crossfit

Upper Body Focus
Crossfit Flaming Heart’s Pierre Ferreira gives us a workout that will test your will to push
on when the going gets tough. There is no time for going easy in 2015!

MOBILITY MENU

WARM-UP (3 ROUNDS)

“It’s a nice aerobic piece to loosen up. This gets the body ready for stress
“These beginning stretches open up the hips nicely because
and gets the heart pumping!”
of all the sitting most of us do at desks,” says Pierre. “I
• 200m run
would suggest about two minutes in each stretch to see a
• 5 roll-outs
change. If you have pain in your knees, glutes or back, it
• 10 squats
can relieve that.”
• Banded Wall Stretch: Wrap a band over your back and
stretch the loops around your knees whilst in a squat
position. Roll onto your back and lie as close to a wall as
possible, keeping your feet parallel to the floor. You should
feel your hamstrings and glutes pulling.
Back 67 Roll.
36• Upper ISSUEFoamFEBRUARY 2015 / www.modernathlete.co.za

Images: Fotolia

Ray Orchison is a
Johannesburg-based
USATF and NAASFP
certified coach.