The Tempo Run - A piece of cake.

Guest Post by Ben Russell, running coach from https://www.benrussellfitnesscoach.co.uk/
When carefully constructing a training plan you can be forgiven for not knowing where to start.
How many easy miles to add, how long should your long run be and we still haven’t mentioned other terms like reps & intervals, hill sessions and tempo runs.
If you are completely new to running and following a training plan you are also probably trying to understand all of these terms that sit on the page in front of you whilst that big race fast approaches.
Confused? Feeling lost?
Well let’s not waste time that you don’t have.
I'm going to try and help you to understand one of these terms and how important it is by using cake. Yes! You read that right, I said cake.
To make a cake you have to get the ingredients right and cook it for the right amount of time or you could end up with a terrible cake and a soggy bottom (nod to all you bake off fans).
This is a lot like trying to improve your fitness for running. You need the right ingredients and you need to know what to do with them. For most cakes, unless you have dietary requirements you need flour, eggs, butter and sugar.
Now imagine the flour is ‘easy running’, the butter is the ‘long run’, the sugar is ‘intervals or reps’ and the eggs are ‘the tempo runs’.
You will of course add other ingredients depending on the type of cake you are making but it has these four key ingredients most of the time and if any are missing one its not going to go well.
Check out my previous blogs on flour and milk, in the cake ‘easy running’ and ‘the long run’.
But today we are talking about the eggs in our training plans, the tempo run. So, grab yourself a cuppa and some cake if you have any and let’s get serious.
Why do we do tempo runs?
As well as the aerobic capacity benefits we can gain from tempo running, we also do them in order to improve our anaerobic threshold.
Our anaerobic threshold is essentially the highest exercise intensity that we can sustain for a prolonged period without lactate (the byproduct of energy being made from glucose) building up our blood stream.
When too much of this builds up in the blood the body struggles to process such high amounts and we start to experience an array of difficulties. Then, when it all becomes too much we have no choice but to stop.
To improve our anaerobic threshold or our lactate threshold (as it may now want to call it) we have to work around this level for sustained periods to promote the body’s ability to flush out that nasty byproduct.
The old saying comes to mind “what makes you bad, makes you better”. I guess that is why ‘The Bloody Mary’ is so popular after a heavy night out.
The next question then has to be - what is the intensity that we are looking for in a tempo run to promote such a reaction?
There is no straight forward answer. You can’t say to everyone that you must run at a certain pace because everyone has their own anaerobic threshold determined by their training experience and genetics.
Each person will need to train at different intensities for differing amounts of time to achieve the perfect tempo session.
This is why when training for your chosen event it is hard to come by an ‘off the shelf training plan’ from popular magazines and websites that will release the most training effect and potential for us to improve.
Here is why, the individual that wrote the plan doesn’t know you and your training experience (your running age) and you as the reader become confused and naturally settle for what you either think looks good on paper, fits your lifestyle and seems manageable or you say to yourself “the elites do that so why can’t I”.
The latter of which often comes down to the size of ones ego and that is never a good idea as it will lead to overreaching, burnout and injury.
If you do reach for the latest copy of Runners World and select the plan designed on achieving a sub insert hour here marathon plan. You should be prescribed a tempo run regularly and here are some of the most common terms banded around when looking for our threshold paces:
· Comfortably hard
· 7 out of 10 effort
· 80% of your Maximal Heart Rate (MHR)
· Zone 4
· 10k race pace
Now, unless you are a scientist in a lab you will probably have to play around with it a few times and try out each of these guesstimates more than once. Depending on how serious you are about your training there is a more accurate measure to find the magic tempo pace.
I highly recommend Jack Braniff at Box Nutrition who can help you find your accurate training zones by putting you on a treadmill and taking you through your paces. He has a range of services at reasonable prices.
After one visit to Jack last year i managed to accurately find my training zones and took more than two whole minutes off my half marathon time in a well planned 12 week training block.

Me getting my training zones tested by Jack back in early 2021.
However you find your threshold pace, If we can keep our training varied and consistently do tempo runs we can teach our bodies to become better at clearing lactate and improve our anaerobic threshold which in turn during a race will make us become more comfortable at running at faster paces for longer. Speed endurance!
So you should have worked out by now what works for runner A won’t work for runner B and you may need some guidance from a qualified coach and his friends to get it right.
Top tips to consider before attempting tempo
Find your tempo pace as best you can
When completing traditional tempo runs (yes there is more than one type) try and keep your pace as even as possible
Don’t be surprised if your tempo pace changes during a training block as you get fitter. Keep monitoring it
Always warm up before attempting a tempo run with a nice easy pace to start
Don’t get an ego - stick to your prescribed session or planned run for maximum benefit
Example Tempo Session
Beginner - 1M Warm up / 3M Tempo / 1M Cool down
Intermediate - 1M Warm up / 3 x 8 min Tempo (4 mins easy) / 1M Cool Down
Advanced - 1M Warm up / 5M (progression) / 1M cool down
M - Mile
(# mins easy) - is a break between the efforts and should be run at conversational pace
(progression) - Start out at a pace that is around 10-15 seconds slower than your tempo pace and each mile progress the pace by getting slightly quicker per mile finishing just quicker than tempo
Hopefully, by now you have become a little clearer on what tempo running is, how to find your tempo pace and how to construct a tempo session and why it is important in a training plan.
A lot like the cake we spoke about earlier if you leave the eggs out of the cake it will not come out of the oven as desired.
If we apply this to running and our plans for upcoming races we must add tempo runs to our training blocks in order to make sure we are not turning up missing the key ingredient of ‘speed endurance’ that tempo runs provide us with.
Training for a race really does require a variety of runs that all bring a different training emphasis that can bring out the best results but it can be challenging and no doubt it will not happen first time. This is why we keep going back for more race after race, training block after training block with the hopes of improving.
Finally, even if you are training for your first race doing tempo running is essential as it will make the race easier. Do not fall into the trap of “I don't need to do that, I'm not bothered about times i just want to finish”.
Creating a training plan for yourself is hard as you often don't know where to start. You could over estimate or under-estimate your ability and not get the maximum potential out of something you spend so long preparing for. Imagine it now, spending 18 weeks training for a marathon and at the end of it having unanswered questions and what if’s.
You can make it easier for yourself by hiring someone qualified to plan the training blocks for you and to support you when things become tough.
If you would like to book a FREE consultation with me to see how I can help you please do get in touch by completing the form on this page https://www.benrussellfitnesscoach.co.uk/bespoke-training-plans or
emailing me at benrussellfitness@icloud.com
Thanks for reading and if you would like to receive notification of my newly published blogs you can sign up at the top of the page.
DEFINE - ENCOURAGE - ACCOMPLISH
Ben Russell Fitness Coach
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