Should Masters Runners Do Speed Work?

Audio Transcript

Haughey: Hey Runners Connect fans. Coach Haughey, your community manager here. I hope you guys are having a great day and thanks so much for tuning in. We have a great question from Tom today.

He asks, “As a 61-year old runner, training for a 10K in November, how do I incorporate speed work without getting hurt? Or should I just do a distance specific training?”

That’s a great question Tom. Whilst it’s true that, as we age we may lose some muscle strength and flexibility, there’s no reason why a healthy masters runner shouldn’t incorporate speed work into their training.

Speed work is a crucial part of race day performance and this doesn’t change as we get older.

It’s actually one of the best ways to reverse some of the changes associated with aging.

It can help with weight loss, muscle strength, and heart health, to name a few things. There are some great examples of masters runners who are successfully incorporating speed work into their training.

American marathon legend, Deena Kastor and Pete McGill, who’s broken 15 minutes for 5K, aged 49.

It’s true that we’re more at risk of injury as we age. We lose some of that muscle elasticity and our recovery rate is slower.

However, by following some simple steps we can minimize these risks.

One of the best things you can do is make sure that you’re fully warmed up and ready to run.

A proper warmup will help to loosen up those muscles and increase blood flow and body temperature, which will reduce that risk of injury.

Make sure that your warmup includes at least 15 minutes of easy running. You should follow this with some dynamic stretching like lunges; 5-10 minutes is about right.

Add in some strides, 2-3 times 45-60 seconds at around 90% of your max speed is about right. That should ensure that you’re ready to go.

You’ll also want to minimize the number of speed workouts that you do. Whilst younger runners might be able to manage multiple high quality sessions per week, as a masters runner you’ll need more recovery time.

As a general rule, runners over 50 should complete no more than two hard sessions a week. Runners over 60 should do only one.

Whilst you want to minimize the number of speed workouts you do, there are other ways to sneak speed into your training, for example, strides.

Strides are short bursts of fast but relaxed running. You could incorporate these up to twice a week after an easy run.

You run for about 20 seconds at a hard but relaxed pace and then recover by jogging back to the start and repeat this 4-5 times.

You can get really great gains in your speed whilst keeping the risk of injury fairly low by doing these strides.

When it comes to your effort sessions, your speed work, you may also find it helpful to take a longer recovery between repetitions.

For example, if you previously would have done 8×400 meters with a two minute recovery, you might want to take three minutes in between those reps.

This will allow you to keep your pace high whilst not getting so fatigued that your form suffers.

Another big tip, don’t compare yourself to the previous you.

If you used to smash at intervals, don’t assume that you’re going to be able to do them as fast as you used to.

One of the worst things you can do is to compare yourself to that old you. Accept that your intervals might be slower. You can run them without a watch and go by feel, if you find that helpful.

I do this if I’m coming off a break or an injury. It really helps me to feel more positive about my session and listen to my body.

Finally, when you’ve done your session, as important as is including a proper warmup, is including a really good cooldown.

You should do at least one mile of fairly easy jogging to kick start the recovery process. You should also make sure you take on some protein and carbohydrate as soon as possible after you’re finished.

As your recovery rate may be slightly longer as a masters runner, you’ll need to pay even more attention to the post-session rest and taking those easy days after the hard sessions.

On the easy days, and I’d suggest at least two after a hard day, make sure that recovery is your focus.

Go as slow as you need to feel easy. Don’t be afraid to jog if that’s what your body is telling you to do.

You’ll also want to pay even more attention to those extras. It goes without saying that sleep and healthy diet is even more important as you age.

Then the tip I personally like to use, when I coming back off a break or feeling [inaudible 05:28], is to take my session away from the track or the road.

Doing sessions on a flat firm grass is a great way to reduce the impact and also take some of that focus off of times.

I hope that’s given you some helpful tips and a little more confidence to do some speed work. There really are some great benefits and by following these tips, you can keep your injury rates low.

For those of you listening that want your questions answered by one of the Runners Connect coaches, head over to runnersconnect.net/daily and click the record button to send your question over.

Finally, I want to thank today’s sponsor.

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Have a great day and be sure to tune in next time.