3 x 3 Miles + 1 Mile
3 x 3 Miles + 1 Mile
Designed for 1/2 Marathoners
Intensity
Cutdown effort within each 3M rep:
1st Mile @ Marathon
2nd Mile @ 1/2 Marathon
3rd Mile @ 15K
1M rep at 10K or faster
Recovery
2-3 minutes after 3M reps
5 minutes before the 1M rep
Exertion
7/10
Periodization
Foundation Period, Stabilization Block
Context & Details
This workout can be best thought of as an Aerobic Capacity building exercise. One of the key benefits of this session is it maximizes aerobic enzyme stimulus but with minimal mechanical and metabolic stress.
It is important the runner cutdowns the 3 Mile reps with control.
Ideally, we’re only looking for a modest lactate stimulus of between 2 - 4 mmol/L to be accumulated on the 3M reps. The aim is to teach the runner how to manage their energy while increasing their pace, rather than drain it.
Runners should be able to recover quickly between each rep within the session and recover fully in a day or two after this workout. If not, then it means the paces were too intense.
A common trap coaches and runners can fall victim to is thinking every workout in training needs to be really hard to be of benefit. That isn’t always the case. It’s better to think of workouts as a catalyst to stimulate adaption and growth. Work performed only needs to be stimulating enough.
Since this session takes place in the Foundational Period (or “base” phase) of training the objective is to enhance the runner’s Aerobic Capacity to higher levels. This sets up the runner for the Specific Period, where the goal is to translate their increased Aerobic Capacity to improved Aerobic Power resulting in faster race times.
A quick reminder:
Training to increase the capacity of an energy system general proceeds similar training to enhance power.
The intention is to increase the supply of energy-rich substrates before increasing the power of the energy system through training.
Some argue that you could increase Power before Capacity, but that is an illogical sequence for the training of distance runners, as the intensity of training to increase power is greater than increasing capacity, requiring a high amount of energy to fuel intense work. If your supply, or capacity, is relatively small, the time you are capable of working at higher intensities will be short. Another drawback with the “Power before Capacity” style of training for runners is the time needed for recovery and repair will quite long (several days) as the higher intensity efforts will be more draining.
The final “fast” mile rep is more about the mind than the body. It’s included to help psychologically callous the runner to deliver as best of a final mile on race day, despite the presence of accumulated fatigue. It’s short enough so it won’t overly fatigue the runner, but long enough to challenge their focus and concentration.
Many performance-minded runners struggle with anxiety on race day. Including a final A.U.G. (All You Got) rep of a manageable distance in workouts is designed to lessen anxiety and build confidence — since we gain confidence through frequency and familiarity.
By regularly performing a final A.U.G. rep in workouts throughout the training program the runner will feel well prepared, both physically and mentally, to will their tiring body to run as fast as possible over the final stretch on race day. It won’t be a big deal, they’ll just go for it, without worry, as they’ve done hundreds of times before in practice.