Canada. A wonderful country where for eight months the temperature is freezing and the trails are covered in five feet of snow.
Not the most idea situation for runners.
Winter is usually the time of year that has the least amount of races – the perfect time to build speed. Unfortunately, few individuals are willing to sprint on icy roads, inhaling frigid air. Not to mention the extra 10 pounds added by the ridiculous amount of layers required to stay somewhat warm.
So how does one maintain speed during the winter?
Find an indoor track!
For Red Deer residents, the best option is most likely the Penhold Multiplex. They have a 200m track above the rink. The temperature is cool but not freezing, perfect for not overheating while doing sprints.
So what kind of speed workouts should you be doing? It’s best to start with shorter intervals.
I like to go as fast as possible but hit the same time for every interval. I walk in between intervals to get as much recovery as possible. As the weeks progress, I try to keep the same time for every interval, despite the increase in numbers. Once I am able to maintain this speed for a large amount of intervals, I up the distance.
Sample Two-Month Speed Plan:
Week 1: 4x400m with 200m walk in between
Week 2: 8x400m with 200m walk in between
Week 3: 6x400m with 200m walk in between
Week 4: 12x400m with 200m walk in between
Week 5: 2x800m with 400m walk in between
Week 6: 4x800m with 400m walk in between
Week 7: 12x400m with 200m walk in between
Week 8: 6x800m with 400m walk in between
One speed workout a week is enough in the winter months to not only maintain speed, but also gain some.
***
Thanks for the tips Catherine! I like running outside year long but if Mother Nature keeps dropping snow on us, I may head inside!
Thanks for the awesome tips. I don't live close to any tracks (indoor or out), do you think this would be something I could do on the treadmill? If so what speeds would you recommend for someone who is averaging 7:15min/km. I recently took up running and have dropped my pace time by almost 3 minutes/km but would like to take it down even more.
Absolutely! I'm not a professional coach… but with anything I would start with a good warm up.
Can you set the distance to intervals on the treadmill? (I haven't been on a treadmill for a long time)
Otherwise you could amp up the speed slightly faster than you're used to and build on the time.
For example: run the xxx pace for 30 seconds, 1 minute or longer to recover at your regular pace, run for 30 seconds at xxxx pace, run your pace, Repeat x10.
The next week run longer at the faster pace.
Good luck and let me know how you're doing!
I'm not sure if I am able to set intervals on our treadmill or not. It's a NordicTrack that wasn't cheap so I would think I could. I'm going to have to dig out the manual and take a look.
Hi Anita, a treadmill would work as well. The speed would depend on your goals. Say you wanted to run 5km in 30min. Then you would want to be running your 400m in 2:24 (which would be 10km/hr on the treadmill). I normally don't have a specific target going into the workouts – rather I see what I can do for the first sprint and then try to maintain that. That being said, you want to be running at a pace where you finish the 400m pretty fatigued. Try setting your treadmill to 10km/hr (or 6mi/hr) and then if thats to easy bump up the speed. I walk in between the intervals so that I am able to run at a fairly hard pace and be fully recovered for each one.
Thanks for the reply Catherine, this sounds like a great plan and I have written this down to add to my training schedule. Now I need to figure out meters on my treadmill.:)
That's definitely a better answer than mine, Catherine!