Tempo Mix-Up

Workout - Tempo Mix-Up

• 5min @ 10'30''/mi
• 5 lots of:
  • 2min @ 7'20''/mi
  • 1min @ 10'30''/mi
• 5min @ 10'30''/mi
• 4 lots of:
  • 800m @ 7'20''/mi
  • 1min 30s @ 10'30''/mi
• 5min @ 10'30''/mi

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Intro

Here’s a breakdown of Tempo Runs: Examples, Pacing, and Types of Tempo Workouts from StrengthRunning, worth watching in full. The essentials are below so you can put this session into practice today.

Key points

• Tempo runs are lactate-threshold runs. Running at the edge of your aerobic capacity (just before you cross into anaerobic territory) sharpens your body’s ability to clear lactate and sustains an effort that feels “comfortably hard.”
• Tempo pace sits between your 10K and half-marathon pace. Not a race-day speed, but the intensity you could sustain for roughly an hour. Find your pace from a recent race result or a pace calculator.
• Trust the feel, not the watch. Sleep, stress, heat, and caffeine can shift your tempo pace day to day. Running slightly slower is fine. What matters is staying aerobic, not sprinting.
• Types of tempo workouts:
  1. Fartlek tempo: tempo-pace segments mixed with easier jogging.
  2. Tempo intervals: short repeats (e.g., 0.5 mi/800 m) at tempo pace with brief jog recovery (1-2 min).
  3. Continuous tempo: 3-5 mi (or 20-35 min) at a steady tempo pace.
• Example range: 7:15-7:30 min/mi (or whatever tempo effort feels right for you).

Workout example

Tempo fartlek plus interval session:

1. Warm-up: 10 min easy jog.
2. Fartlek block: 5 x 2 min at tempo pace (around 7:20 min/mi) with 1-minute easy jog between each.
3. Recovery: 5 min easy jog.
4. Tempo intervals: 4 x 800 m (or 0.5 mi) at tempo pace, 90-second jog recovery between repeats.
5. Cool-down: 10 min easy jog.

Scale the distances or duration to fit your current fitness, and use the Pacing app to set your personal tempo pace based on a recent race time.

Closing note

Try this tempo workout over the coming week. Adapt the distances or duration to your training, and use the Pacing app to set your pace. Building tempo capacity strengthens your aerobic system and mental toughness for distance races.

References

• Tempo Runs: Examples, Pacing, and Types of Tempo Workouts - YouTube (YouTube Video)