The tempo run is not about beating you up, it is about building you up. It is about callousing. In racing, we get to a point where we begin to fall apart. In tempo runs, we hold that collapse off a bit. We build endurance, we build mid race strength. If we build that mid race strength, we callous ourselves to the challenges of the race.
Emil Zatopek, Alain Mimoun, Herbert Schade, 5000m, 1952, photo by Getty Images / IAAF
Tuesday: 30 minute run, 20 minute tempo run, pace is 30 seconds per mile above current 5k race pace, 20 minute cooldown
Week 18, Fall XC Training week 18, a time to really race
Monday: 55 – 60 minute park run
Tuesday: 30 minute run, 20 minute tempo run, pace is 30 seconds per mile above current 5k race pace, 20 minute cooldown
Wednesday: 30-45 minute run, relaxed
Thursday: 20 minute warm up, 6 times 100m hill, jog down, 10 minute jog, 30 minute fartlek, 10 times 2 minute, 5k pace, 1 minute easy, 20 minute cooldown
Friday: 30-45 minute minute park run, relaxed
Saturday: warm up, 5k race, similar to league or conference race, jog ten minutes, then 8 x 150m strideouts, cooldown
Sunday: 85-90 minute long run