What does it look like?

So since starting this blog I have had a few requests to show what its like to train in a true Lydiard style.

I find it a bit strange to do a blog like this as all the training I am doing is already documented in all of the Lydiard books. Barry has always said that it is not Barry's training philosophy its Arthur's philosophy and hes just passing it down. So with that said here's what my training has looked like since starting true marathon training.

Generally the aim has been on building base and therefore aerobic capacity. This has meant a lot of miles and a lot of quality work. This has meant that the general look of my week has been the same week in week out.

Monday AM: 60 Min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km
Monday PM: 15min Warm up / 60min @ tempo pace (Hilly Course)  / 10min warm down

Tuesday AM: 60min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km
Tuesday PM: 1:30 - 1:45 easy run over hills

Wednesday AM: 60 Min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km
Wednesday PM: 75min Hilly Fartlek.

Thursday AM: 60 Min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km
Thursday PM: 2hrs Moderate run

Friday AM: 60 Min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km
Friday PM: 15min Warm up / 60min @ tempo pace (Flat) / 10min warm down

Saturday AM: 1:30 Easy pace
Saturday PM: 60 Min Easy Jog ~ 4:30-5min/Km

Sunday AM: 2:30 Moderate effort
Sunday PM: REST

So this is what my weeks have looked like for the 6 weeks leading up to the Legend.
Obviously this is a large amount of running however it also contained a lot of quality with the 3 workout days a week. One of the keys to a conditioning like this is to never go into an anaerobic state as it begins to destroy the aerobic base which you are trying to create. Even during the Workout days it was important to stay completely in control of your effort and never really go into the well.  One of the Keys to a great conditioning block is the amount of time spent on your feet and the cumulative effect of weeks of high mileage running. During the first 6 weeks of my conditioning I averaged 221kms a week. This is so clear as you can see the pace of my tempo runs come down as I got progressively fitter. The first tempo of the conditioning was 60min at a pace of 3:34/km, whereas my most recent tempo was at 3:25/km. A HUGE difference!

During this time I unfortunately haven't had the luxury of avoiding  racing during this period as there were 2 championships that i needed to navigate on the way. The First that I came up against was the Auckland Championships. While this did hold some importance as any chamiopnship does, It was obviously not the most important as my aim was simply to make the team for nationals which meant a top 6 finish would likely be enough. However racing with the goal of only finishing a certain place is a dangerous idea. So of course I knew that I must run for the best place i could.

One of the secrets to Lydiard training is the ability to race at any time and race well. This comes simply from being so strong after having weeks of conditioning in your legs. People often talk about racing through, this is what I have been doing in the build up to the Legend. A race like the Auckland champs clearly evidences how strong Lydiard conditioning makes you. In the week leading up to the championships I followed the above schedule with the exception of Friday and Saturday. On Friday I swapped my tempo for 60min Easy + 5x200m strides and a 30min easy Jog on Saturday. This meant that prior to the race even beginning I had run 202km!

For most athletes this sort of mileage would leave them exhausted and certainly not able to race, but a Lydiard trained athlete has the strength to be able to produce a solid race. The one kicker to this is that your speed is dulled slightly after such a big week. So to counter this I needed to change my racing strategy slightly. Jono and I came up with a strategy where we could work together to get the best possible result for the both of us. We decided that we would sit in and just go with whatever the pace was. It turned out to be quite slow which worked in our favor. WE knew that to make the most of our strength it was important to try and make it a long stretch of high speed. With 4.5km to go, on an uphill section we put the hammer down and together manged to break away from the rest of the pack. This was the perfect strategy as we finished up going 1-2. The speed at which the second half of the race was run was highlighted by the 45 second negative split.

The week of nationals and the Legend followed much the same strategy with both races coming off huge mileage weeks.

With this sort of blog I do feel an obligation to have a disclaimer. While anyone can do Lydiard training it is important to not think that anyone can do this without proper training. I have only been able to build up to putting in this sort of mileage over the last 3 years. It is not like one day I woke up and decided to run this sort of mileage. Conditioning is not just about building an aerobic base but also building up your muscles, ligaments, tendons and bones to be able to hand such a heavy load without breaking down.