Craig's Track Tempo
Workout - Craig's Track Tempo
- 1.6km @ 5'30''/km
- 4 lots of:
- 200m @ 5'00''/km
- 200m @ 5'30''/km
- 6.4km @ 3'10''/km
- 1.6km @ 5'30''/km
- 5min @ 5'50''/km
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Intro: Here’s a breakdown of Craig Engels: Your Mother’s Favorite Runner from the Running Warehouse channel. Here are the main ideas so you can use the workout right away. Watch the full video for Craig’s stories and deeper thoughts.
Key points:
- Tempo focus: Craig’s previous team relied on 8-mile tempo runs at around 4:40 per mile, which burned runners out. They switched to shorter 4 to 5 mile track tempos to make training more sustainable.
- Super shoe strategy: wear a high-stack “Super Shoe” for speed work, then follow up with sand drills or barefoot running to build foot strength and ease Achilles strain.
- Foot size: correct shoe sizing, often half a size larger than standard, can prevent ongoing foot problems.
- Consistency and injury prevention: steady weeks mixing easy runs, tempo sessions, and strength work kept Craig healthy and avoided the fatigue that hurt earlier programs.
Workout example:
4 to 5 mile tempo on the track
- Warm-up: 1 mile easy, then 4 x 200 m strides at 5K effort.
- Main set: 4 miles at target 4:40 per mile (roughly 7:20 per mile) on the track at an even pace. GPS watch or manual splits both work.
- Cool-down: 1 mile easy followed by 5 minutes of sand drills (high knees, bounding, or barefoot shuffles) for foot strength.
Adjust the distance or pace to your level. If you’re newer to this, try 3 miles at 5:00 per mile.
Closing note: Try the tempo session, finish with sand drills, then customize the paces in the Pacing app.