In my lowercase-q quest to improve my running I’ve started interval training, which is when you have a period of high intensity exercise followed by a recovery period (and repeat). Interval training benefits include the following:
- Makes you run faster
- Requires a shorter workout
Sounds like a win-win to me.
Today I did a formula of a three-minute warm up followed by eight repetitions of 30-second intervals with 90-second recovery times. This is actually a plan I read about today but can’t seem to find the link. It seemed good to start. I was surprised, I didn’t always need 90 seconds to recover, but the 30 seconds were pretty intense.
I figured I’d let my iPod tell me when to start and stop, since I’m no good at actually knowing how long a minute and a half is. So, I employed this little stopwatch method at Lifehacker. One thing to note, though, is that if you change the start and stop time of a song in iTunes it will change it everywhere — in any playlist or album it’s in — so I got around this by changing the start and stop times on my iPod directly.
Interval training is a great way to improve your fitness and race times. And, I also think it does a great job preparing you mentally to race because it gives you confidence that you can handle a tough workout.
Thanks for pointing me to the Lifehacker tip – I’m sure it’s one I’ll use.
Good luck in your training.