A workout you can do anytime for any distance oriented race

Can 30 seconds make a difference? 

The workout I'm going to talk about today, we call 30:30's. As a runner, I have done as few as 3 of these at a time, and as a coach, I have prescribed as many as 40 of these at a time. I have done them at the beginning of training cycles as well as at the end of a long training cycle. They can be fun, and if you do them in a place you don't enjoy running, they can be miserable. Ultimately I think they can be a workout anyone can do any day of their training, and they will help you improve your running speed. Technically, they should help you improve your velocity at VO2max (vVO2max), your lactate threshold running speed, your running economy, your heart muscle, your lung function, etc. They probably won't make you run the 100 meters significantly faster.

Warm Up

For now, I would suggest an easy jog, but do some "striders" to get up to the speed you plan to run. What are "striders"? Just short bouts of speed that you build up to a planned speed, and then gradually ease out of. In the future, I'll talk about warm up drills and routines, but a simple run with "striders" should be sufficient to raise your heart rate.

30:30's - The workout!

You get to decide how fast you are going to run today. I don't suggest this workout be any faster than your perceived 1 mile race effort, nor do I think you should go any slower than your 5k race speed. Ideally you could calculate your 3000 meter or 2 mile race speed and aim for that, but the decision is yours. (How to find your 3000 meter pace from a different race) 

Once you have determined how fast you want to go, you'll run the workout. Minimally you'll do 1 repetition at that speed. Hopefully you'll do more. If you have a weekly mileage goal, shoot for that, but stop when you are no longer hitting your target times. You might want to to give yourself a second try if you're not near your goal, but if you miss twice in a row, you're done; the workout is no longer benefiting you in the ways you were planning for.

How to do the workout?

Run for 30 seconds at that speed, and then walk or jog slowly for 30 seconds. Repeat! Does it matter if you walk? No, you'll be able to do more of your quality speed. Does it help if you jog? Not really, you'll do less of your quality speed, but you will have a higher percentage of total effort during your workout. If you're training for a marathon you might want to jog and a 5k you might want to walk. If you've never run before, walking might be great, if you're running 100 miles per week, jogging may feel more normal. Either way, it is 30 seconds of rest, and while it might not go by too quickly to begin with, by the end of your workout, it will seam like 30 seconds isn't enough. That's called overload, and that's a good thing!

Cool Down!

After the run is over, cool down with a jog. 5, 10, 15 minutes, maybe longer, but cool down. Easy jogging can help you be able to bounce back and feel like running tomorrow. It will begin the flushing of the accumulated lactic acid in your muscles, and that's a good thing. When you're done, you should probably stretch, my runners should probably stretch, and I should probably stretch. I'm terrible at that and don't spend anytime at all stretching. When I do stretch, I don't notice a difference, but when I skip the cool down I do notice the difference, I wake up the next day as if I had a much larger truck run over me the day before. 

When? How often? 

The great thing about this workout, you can really sprinkle it into any part of your training. As I stated earlier, we have done them very early in the season, and we have done them very late in the season. Sometimes they just spark the legs to get going, other times I am looking to add a boost to an otherwise easier day. Either way, I consider it a moderate workout. You probably don't want to (or need to) do it more than once a week, but you can do it in every microcycle, or for a period throughout a mesocycle of training. Have fun, and do them in a place you like to go feel fast. 

A Warning

I'll start by saying that I am not a doctor, and your decision to read about running doesn't mean I qualify you to begin a running program. They say you should talk to your doctor before beginning any exercise program, and I guess I'll just say if you haven't been running, you might want to get checked out. My only suggestion for seeking out a doctor, find one who seams like they might be active. They don't have to be a runner, but someone who is active may be able to understand what it is you are going through.