Marshall
Burt’s Velocity Focused Training
Part 5 –
Q & A
Over time various runners have
asked Marshall the following questions. I have included them
here, along with Marshall's answers, in the hope that it will help the
reader form a clearer understanding of Marshall's training philosophy
and recommendations.
Q: Marshall, how would you
advise someone who is a beginner or returning from a long layoff if
they wanted to try your approach to training?
A: 1. See the training
program
2. Choose some race distances and
goal paces as suggested in the posted training programs.
3. Plug your own workouts into the training schedule posted or your
own training schedule.
4. Get started!
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Q: Should runners who
specialize at a distance of 1500 meters generally be racing full
marathons as part of their training?
A: Running a full marathon in
training is unnecessary.
Having a standardized long run of some length is necessary. Thus,
since you're going to have one, set it at a distance that is relevant
to some race distance in our sport, establish a goal time for that
distance, and train at that pace during that run.
You don't have to start off at the full race distance, you can start
off anywhere.
On the other hand, I have nothing against a 1500m runner choosing to
use the marathon distance for their long run since there is no
requirement in my suggested training protocols that requires one to
run the full distance. They are free for example, to start off at 6
miles [or 18 miles, 3 miles, 12 miles, i.e.. any distance] and
progress over time toward the full marathon distance as their
progression in fitness allows.
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Q: Do I have to strictly adhere to the training distances you
recommend?
A: The only point is to chose
a race distance as to be doing something relevant to the sport, and to
train at a pace that is relevant to a time one might want to run some
day for that distance.
I can’t say at present that for
someone training for short distance races that plugging in a 30k vs.
35k goal pace workout instead of a marathon goal pace workout is less
or more important physiologically.
I can’t say at present that for someone training for fairly long
distance races that plugging in a 1000m vs. 1500m goal pace workout
instead of a mile goal pace workout is less or more important
physiologically.
The broad velocity and power output principles are well defined. The
details within these principles are less defined. Feel encouraged to
join in and work on those issues. These are the areas where
you’ll see training programs founded on the exact same principles,
looking dramatically different from one another.
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Q: Will the research support
the theory that some people do better with more/slower while some do
better with less/faster?
A: No! The training
adaptations in question, are power output specific, and power output
dependent. The "more/slower" situation ignores the fundamental
stimulus, which is power output. The specific isoforms of
mitochondrial proteins, sodium pumps, sodium and potassium channels,
etc., are all power output specific, and power output dependent.
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Q: What ranges of weekly
miles would you recommend for runners focusing on 5k, 10k,
half-marathon, and marathon?
A: See the Accurately Applied
Concept Of Base Building. It provides a specific example of how
the focus of one's training should be on power output. The "weekly
miles" takes care of itself, whether you choose to add them up or not.
The focus is on the individual workouts, since that's where the
stimulus for adaptations exists. Logically, the number of "weekly
miles" one gets is largely determined by the number of rest days
embedded in the weeks in question. The more days of zero miles run,
the fewer the number of "weekly miles". The greater the intensity of
training, the more rest days required.
An example of focusing on the workouts, rather than the training
volume...................
Marathoner training for a marathon. If this person were to have about
5 or 6 training days to focus on and cycle through repeatedly until
he/she reached a specific goal fitness level.............
One of those 5 or 6 training days would be focused on weights and
power bounding. The weights should consist of a focus on recruitment,
and recruitment rate, thus the exercises would be high weight, and a
low weight with high velocity.
That leaves about 4 or 5 running workouts.
One of those workouts would be a marathon goal pace workout. They
begin at whatever portion of the race distance they can run
comfortably without strain followed by a couple days off. As fitness
increases every few weeks, the runner would extend the distance
covered until the fitness level reaches a point where they can run the
entire race distance at goal pace.
This workout takes the place of a traditional "long run" or
traditional "base building".........in a traditional training program.
The other workouts should follow a similar goal pace format. Rather
than arbitrarily inventing distances and paces to run for "tempo runs"
and "speed work" as in a traditional training program..........one
should simply do goal pace workouts for specific race distances, such
as half-marathon,10k, 5k, mile, and/or 800m.....as well as have high
recruitment --recruitment rate days such as 100m and very short, very
high velocity 10m days.
Creating a -----------standardized---------- workload, delivered
through the specific workouts in the training program, is bottom line
objective. Hence the focus on simply using standardized race distances
[marathon, 10k, mile, 800m, etc] in addition to standardized power
outputs [goal pace].
The way to create some degree of controllability in moving one's
fitness level from point A to point B, is to consistently deliver a
standardized workload to the body. This allows you to create a
controllable, step-wise progression in the manner in which you
increase the standardized workload, as the mechanism in the process by
which you move your fitness level from point A, to point B.
If you're dead set on me providing the "weekly miles".........then the
specific examples of the remaining 4 training days; you could chose a
10k goal pace workout, a mile goal pace workout, an 800m goal pace
workout, and a 100m goal pace workout added to some 10m sprints and
max accelerations. There are your 4 remaining days.
If you want the mileage, add up whatever you would get doing these
workouts, with about 1 - 2 days rest in between each. Find out how
many miles you would cover per day, then multiply by 7 to get the
"weekly miles".
Frankly, I think you'd be better off in the long term, looking at the
training adaptations that these workouts would induce, and focusing
any debate solely on that subject matter.
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Q: Do you not see volume as
an important training principle or do you simply define it
differently?
A: Yes I see volume as an
important training principle. If you take a traditional high mileage
training program, strip it of all the traditional "morning runs", 6 -
8 mile "recovery" runs, 4 - 6 mile warm-ups, and 4 - 6 mile cool
downs, what you have left will look somewhat similar to that which
I've posted above. One should simply do goal pace workouts for
specific race distances. There is the volume. Whatever those workouts
add up to.....addresses the training volume principle.
One can "recover" from more training than the body can adapt to. There
is a difference between doing what the body can recover from, and
doing what the body can adapt to. The sole purpose of training is to
induce adaptations that improve your fitness level.
There is no purpose in doing more training than the body can adapt to.
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Q: Do you train at goal pace
for the race distance, for example, train at 10k pace for 10km
distance?
A: The objective is to get
faster. If one can run a full 10k at one’s 10k goal pace, there isn’t
much point of continuing to do that workout [after you've done it
once].
Best to move on to a higher velocity. This is an effective way to
avoid "creating" limitations on improvement where none would otherwise
exist. Make good choices.
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Q: What intervals would you
break the distance into? As long intervals as can be managed at first?
A: Yes! Do whatever you can handle without strain. Intensity is
automatically built into the training program by doing a bunch of
workouts at goal pace. No need to add more intensity by "pushing
hard". That ---will--- end badly.
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Q: Do you increase the goal
pace once you can do the full distance at goal pace?
A: Yes! There must be progressions or there will be
plateaus.............again, avoid "creating" limitations on your
running ability where none would otherwise exist. One's genes cannot
take the blame for the kind of bad choices made by most if not all of
the top runners in our sport, past and present.
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Q: Is there a limit to the
maximum length of a workout?
A: Yes........the length of the race distance. The maximum
length of a 10k goal pace workout should be a 10k. The maximum length
of a mile goal pace workout should be a mile.
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Q: What do you define as
"pushing hard"? If I hit 93-94% of max HR by the 3rd minute of a
5minute interval and hang on at that HR (or higher), is that too hard?
If a workout of 5 x 6mins @ 10k pace is hard from interval 2 onwards,
is that too much intensity?
A: Unless you have a heart
condition.........heart rate is a physiologically ---worthless---
measure of anything and everything related to running.
All of the information I've posted is about 'Power Output". Heart rate
is not a measure of "Power Output". Heart rate has little or nothing
to do with "Power Output". Therefore, Heart rate is a worthless
measure of "Power Output".
Running at goal pace [power output], not running at a certain heart
rate, is the objective. Our sport doesn't hand out medals to the
people who cross the finish line having a certain heart rate.
Your perception of effort is what I meant by "pushing hard".
-----Do whatever you can handle without strain-----.
That doesn't mean you'll feel like you're running easy, and obviously
it doesn't mean you'll feel like you killing yourself. Your perception
of effort, will be ---your--- perception of effort. I can't really
tell you how you should feel, beyond the descriptive words I've
already posted. You may have to use some trial and error. The only
objective you're looking to attain is to just do the workout, and do
it without feeling like you killed yourself to hit the times. Shorten
the intervals if that is what occurs.
Intensity is automatically built into the training program by doing a
bunch of workouts at goal pace. No need to add more intensity by
"pushing hard".
That ---will--- end badly.
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Q: How short can the
intervals be? Does it matter how short you start the intervals
(provided you progress with them)?
A: No…..it doesn’t matter how short you start the intervals. You
have no choice but to begin where your fitness level requires you to
begin. If patience is not a virtue, the only alternative is to set a
more conservative goal time, and start from there with longer
intervals.
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Q: How much rest would you
suggest a person take between intervals?
A: Full recovery…….defined as taking enough rest to be able to
complete the workout without strain [i.e.. without killing oneself].
Rest means rest, just as a “rest day” means rest, rather than an a 6
to 8 mile “recovery” run. Power output is trained during the goal pace
running, rather than during a jog in between intervals.
There is a difference between making a workout more difficult, and
making a workout more effective.
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Q: I have a question about
your Base Building 2 workout. For 1500 - 10,000m runners you
write "start interval workout with first run done at any % of Marathon
race distance" and then you write, " follow same “Progressions”
protocols, etc. as in Main Event." What I'm not sure of is how far you
recommend running on this day. For a 10k runner, for example, are you
suggesting this runner build up to a base building run of 26.2 miles
at marathon pace if this can be accomplished in a max of 5 intervals?
A: "Follow same
“Progressions” protocols, etc. as in Main Event." just means that
after you have a workout where the duration of your longest
repetitions [at least 1 repetition] is at or faster than your goal
pace, increase the durations [at least for the first repetition] in
your next workout by 1/2 mile to 1 mile.
----- "how far you recommend running on this day"
The runner starts with whatever their current fitness level allows.
That may be a cumulative total of 5 miles. It may be a cumulative
total of 26 miles. The total is capped at the race distance.
Yes I'm saying that one may work up to doing 26 miles in a single
workout, and eventually in a single run.
However, its important to remember the premise, which is that all I 'm
doing is using race distances that are common to our sport. If the
longest we ran at the Olympic Games was 18 miles, then the Base
Building 2 workout objective would be 18 miles rather than 26. I'm
just making a training program founded around insuring that the
workout distances and velocities are relevant to events in our sport.
One is certainly free to alter the distances. They aren't
scientifically determined. I'm not prepared to debate that 25.8 miles
is less effective than 26.2, or 21.5, or 26.9, or 20.0.
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Q: On sprint day you
recommend:- 2 x 10m max acceleration- 2 x 5m max velocity- Rest- goal
pace workout. For the 400m - marathon runner you recommend the
goal pace workout of intervals at 100m goal pace. Is there a
particular number of intervals you recommend for the goal pace workout
on sprint day? Is it limited to 3 as on other days
A: The limit is the same for
all days.
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Q: What do you mean when you
talk about high velocity training? What is high velocity
training?
A: Definition Of "High
Velocity" Training ------
High velocity training at goal pace or faster, is the most effective
method of creating the demand for energy that will be needed to
race at goal pace or faster. This training can be done in
interval/fartlek form to facilitate high velocity running. Frequently
training at velocities that exceed VO2max [velocities that exceed what
you can hold for 5 - 10 minutes] is more important than training
volume in producing an increase in energy [ATP]production potential.
What Is --Not-- The Definition Of High Velocity Training ------
High velocity training is -not- about all out sprinting. High velocity
training is -not- about "pushing hard". High velocity training is
-not- about "you don't train hard enough". High velocity training is
-not- about "go hard or go home". High velocity training is - not-
about "no pain, no gain". High velocity training is -not- about "put
the hammer down".
High velocity training is -not- about any of the clichés or
stereo-typical behavior that is code terminology for "running oneself
into the ground". High Velocity Training is about training at
velocities that are fast for "you" for durations that are
"comfortable" to maintain. Training at these "Comfortably
Fast" velocities is what is meant by High Velocity Training.
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Q: You often talk about
"energy producers". What are energy producers and what do they
have to do with running?
A: Energy Producers -----
Mitochondria are the cell organs (organelles) that produce ATP
(chemical form of energy) aerobically by using a fuel (glucose,
glycogen or fat) and oxygen. Increasing the number and/or enzyme
content of the mitochondria increases the amount of ATP that can be
produced.
Increasing The Number Of Energy Producers ----- There are many ways to
increase the number of energy producers [mitochondria]. However, the
focus here is on identifying the method(s) that lead to the largest
scale increases in energy producers, which in turn lead to the largest
scale increases in energy production which in turn leads to the
largest scale increase in running performance. The higher the demand
for energy production [ATP] during workouts, the greater will be the
number of energy producers [mitochondria] once the body adapts to the
training. It takes a low level of energy demand to run a low
velocities, and a higher level of energy demand to run at higher
velocities.
Training at low velocities creates a low demand for energy production.
Training at high velocities creates a high demand for energy
production.
The higher the training velocity, the greater the demand for energy
production [ATP]. The greater the demand for energy production, the
greater will be the body's response of increasing the number of energy
producers [mitochondria].
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Q: Can you sum it all up for
us Marshall?
A: Implement the use of a
velocity oriented training program. It is wise to do nearly all, or
---all--- of your training at the velocities you want to run in your
races.
In the design of your training program;
--- Move away from a focus on mileage and heart rate
--- Move toward a focus on training velocity
Traditional ways of training in our sport are dying a slow but certain
death.
Nothing can or will change that situation. Its a new century in sport.
The "information age". As we continue to acquire and apply more
information, we continue to expand the area of what is possible for us
to achieve.
Training The Way The Body Works --------------
“Nature…..to be commanded, must be obeyed” [Francis Bacon]. The common
denominator in running is human cellular function. Humans compete in
running, human cell function determines the level of performance. All
cells work in accordance with the physical laws of nature that govern
their function. The laws of nature are the underlying mechanisms of
how everything works. The function of brain cells, blood cells, muscle
cells, immune cells…all cells, are governed by these laws. Science
identifies and describes the laws of nature. Purposely training in a
manner that is consistent with the laws of nature makes improvement
faster, easier, and certain. Human performance in sport requires
knowledge of how human cells can be trained to function optimally,
whether the subject is brain cells, blood cells, or muscle cells.
There Are No Secrets…only the Laws Of Nature -------
There are no secrets. There exists only the laws of nature that govern
human cellular function. The challenge is in developing the ability to
acquire knowledge of them, and the ability to apply that knowledge.
The trainability of the human brain, nerve, and immune systems is
enormous. Once one accepts this, all doors of human performance will
be open.
Athletes Deserve The Best From Their Coaches -------
Athletes deserve to have access to the best training they can get,
without excuses from coaches who generally, as a rule, tend to be
afraid of science, or apply it in piece-meal form. The amount of
information that coaches, athletic trainers, and doctors currently
have, even those who function at the highest levels of elite sport, is
shamefully low.
People have deluded themselves into thinking that what they are doing
is "high tech", or they are at the other extreme and truly believe
that sport science is a waste of time. "Success" in sport is a
relative term, since one only has to out perform everyone else….. who
train just as blindly.
One cannot train in a manner that is inconsistent with human cellular
function and expect optimal results. One cannot watch the top runners
in the world experience repeated illness and injury due to training,
and conclude that they are training optimally, or that decreases in
performance is due to their age. One cannot watch them set world
records after being injured, and conclude that they have optimized
performance.
What you don't know about the human body can limit;
--- your thinking
--- your reasoning
--- the design of your training program
This in turn, can limit your rate and magnitude of improvement.
As we continue to acquire and apply more information, we continue to
expand the area of what is possible for us to achieve.
“….what people are seeking is not the answers to problems, but the
reassurance that no answers are possible. A friend of mine once said
today’s attitude, paraphrasing the Bible, is:
“Forgive me, Father, for I know not what I’m doing----and please don’t
tell me”” [Ayn Rand]