Interested in becoming a faster runner? One of the best ways to do so is by doing speed work at the track 1 day per week. My favorite is “¼ Mile Repeats.” (Heart rate monitor recommended but not required)
¼ Mile Repeats
• Run a lap around the track at a steady and a much faster pace than you would typically run a 5k or 10k race. You should be pretty winded at the end of your lap.
• After a lap, walk for the next 30 seconds or so, and then do a very slow jog around the rest of the track until you are back at your starting line.
• Once your heart rate has come back down (I shoot for my heart rate to drop below 100bpm), go through the same routine 4 to 8 times – alternating between fast laps and recovery laps.
Pick a pace you can repeat consistently for all of your fast laps. My goal, for instance, is to run each lap in 80 seconds. I even have my watch set to beep every 20 seconds so I can make sure my pace is consistent as I’m ¼, ½, and ¾’s of the way around the track. And as my speed, stamina, and leg strength increase over time, I decrease my ¼ mile repeats from 80 seconds to 76 seconds, 72 seconds, etc…
Most people find every 8 weeks of speed work at the track takes a minute off of their 5k race times.
Our Downtown Athletic Club has an indoor track that is great for speed work. If you choose to do ¼ Mile Repeats on this track, you will run 2.5 laps for every ¼ mile.
