Phases of Training Plan Advice...

shazkea

Looking for advice on the various phases of training.

Currently returing from injury and looking to build a decent plan as I have had more time off from injury than running time this year!

I have heard there are various phases to a running plan such as endurance, strength and speed (not sure if this is correct??)

So my question is, based on a 16 week HM plan, at what point can I start introducing (safely) hills, intervals, PHMP runs etc.

The mileage increase is gradual on the plan I have and I am running 4 days a week (started last week). I have looked at a few HM plans but the novice HH is too basic and other more advanced plans have too much mileage at the moment for a safe return.

Any tips would be appreciated

MaroonTam

shazkea,

In a similar boat myself and just looking to start to develop my own plan for the first time (rather than a generic plan).

Greg McMillian has a very comprehensive article on the phases of training, the key workouts and the structure of a plan. Might not be perfect for you, but a very good place to start
http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/training1.htm

ecoli

shazkea wrote: »

Looking for advice on the various phases of training.

Currently returing from injury and looking to build a decent plan as I have had more time off from injury than running time this year!

I have heard there are various phases to a running plan such as endurance, strength and speed (not sure if this is correct??)

So my question is, based on a 16 week HM plan, at what point can I start introducing (safely) hills, intervals, PHMP runs etc.

The mileage increase is gradual on the plan I have and I am running 4 days a week (started last week). I have looked at a few HM plans but the novice HH is too basic and other more advanced plans have too much mileage at the moment for a safe return.

Any tips would be appreciated

If you are coming back from injury I would say spend a few weeks building back to the mileage you were at previously.

After this you can start to introduce some quality work. Just because you are in base training doesnt mean that you cant have quality work. Tempo running (HM paced roughly) and hills are perfect at this stage

After this you can start to introduce more quality work (intervals etc). For HM training my advice would be stick to 5k-10k paced work here off short recoveries

Another approach which you can do is keep you training progressive in terms of building the amount of HMP work you do.

So after the you build up the mileage try progress your sessions once a week with the likes of this:

Example

4 weeks Base mileage gradual build

Week 1 6 x 800m s @ HMP off 45 seconds recovery
Week 2 5 x 1000ms @ HMP off 1.30 min recovery
Week 3 4 x 1200ms @ HMP off 2 min recovery
Week 4 15 min @ HMP
Week 5 3 x 1600ms @ HMP off 2.30 recovery
Week 6 2 x 2000m @ HMP off 3 min recovery
Week 7 3 x 2000m @ HMP off 3 min recovery
Week 8 3 x 2 mile @ HMP off 3.30 min recovery
Week 9 2 x 3 mile @ HMP off 4 min recovery
Week 10 3 x 3 mile @ HMP off 4 min recovery


This would lead you into a 2 week taper. If you wanted to push to more than 4 days a week I would reccomend an addition session be something like a mixture of hills/tempos/10k pace intervals but have these the core session of the week. Again these are examples of training and the distances are somthing which should match you mileage accordingly (i.e) I was doing some of these sessions in the build up to my Half marathon but was running 60+ miles a week which is why 3x3 miles was a session my body could cope if you cant get your mileage up that far maybe swap it for 3x3000m or something

shazkea

MaroonTam wrote: »

shazkea,

In a similar boat myself and just looking to start to develop my own plan for the first time (rather than a generic plan).

Greg McMillian has a very comprehensive article on the phases of training, the key workouts and the structure of a plan. Might not be perfect for you, but a very good place to start
http://www.mcmillanrunning.com/training1.htm

Thanks for that. I had a good read of the article. Dunno how many times I have looked at the pace chart but never read the theory behind the stages!!

ecoli wrote: »

If you are coming back from injury I would say spend a few weeks building back to the mileage you were at previously.

After this you can start to introduce some quality work. Just because you are in base training doesnt mean that you cant have quality work. Tempo running (HM paced roughly) and hills are perfect at this stage

After this you can start to introduce more quality work (intervals etc). For HM training my advice would be stick to 5k-10k paced work here off short recoveries

Another approach which you can do is keep you training progressive in terms of building the amount of HMP work you do.

So after the you build up the mileage try progress your sessions once a week with the likes of this:

Example

4 weeks Base mileage gradual build

Week 1 6 x 800m s @ HMP off 45 seconds recovery
Week 2 5 x 1000ms @ HMP off 1.30 min recovery
Week 3 4 x 1200ms @ HMP off 2 min recovery
Week 4 15 min @ HMP
Week 5 3 x 1600ms @ HMP off 2.30 recovery
Week 6 2 x 2000m @ HMP off 3 min recovery
Week 7 3 x 2000m @ HMP off 3 min recovery
Week 8 3 x 2 mile @ HMP off 3.30 min recovery
Week 9 2 x 3 mile @ HMP off 4 min recovery
Week 10 3 x 3 mile @ HMP off 4 min recovery


This would lead you into a 2 week taper. If you wanted to push to more than 4 days a week I would reccomend an addition session be something like a mixture of hills/tempos/10k pace intervals but have these the core session of the week. Again these are examples of training and the distances are somthing which should match you mileage accordingly (i.e) I was doing some of these sessions in the build up to my Half marathon but was running 60+ miles a week which is why 3x3 miles was a session my body could cope if you cant get your mileage up that far maybe swap it for 3x3000m or something

Ecoli, that's brilliant - thanks a million for that. Time to build a plan...excel watch out!!

kennyb3

I'd say the key thing is to listen to your body rather than follow any plan too rigidly (as strange as that might sound). Whats right for someone else might not be right for you given your injury history - generic plans dont take account of this.

In general there are 3 main ways to get injured - accidents, biomechanial issues, and overload. Assuming its not bio issues you'd fall into the overload category - which means you dont tend to sit on your a'ss and not train anyway, so you dont need the rigidity of a plan to get you out the door. Its good to have one but given your history listen to your body on a daily basis and assess if the days mileage is suitable given how your feeling.

Once you get 6 weeks base running in, you can slowly introduce other elements all the time gauging how you feel as you go along.

shazkea

Thanks kennyb and yep I know what you mean. I had a good think about it last night and decided to leave the planning for another few weeks. Just going to spend the next few weeks building back up and enjoying running. I will then assess what my goal is. Also not be too rigid in my goals which I have been guilty of in the past.

I like Ecoli's example above so when I decide on a goal, this type of training will be incorporated.

ecoli

kennyb3 wrote: »

I'd say the key thing is to listen to your body rather than follow any plan too rigidly (as strange as that might sound). Whats right for someone else might not be right for you given your injury history - generic plans dont take account of this.

In general there are 3 main ways to get injured - accidents, biomechanial issues, and overload. Assuming its not bio issues you'd fall into the overload category - which means you dont tend to sit on your a'ss and not train anyway, so you dont need the rigidity of a plan to get you out the door. Its good to have one but given your history listen to your body on a daily basis and assess if the days mileage is suitable given how your feeling.

Once you get 6 weeks base running in, you can slowly introduce other elements all the time gauging how you feel as you go along.

I completely agree with you regarding the individuality of training (which is why I am not a huge fan of generic plans)

The ideas I was giving were examples of two approaches which can be taken, the progression of sessions just being an example rather than an exact schedule

Also another tip which is relevant to this point is view your training over 2 week cycles rather than one. Many people get hung up on weekly mileage which does not take into account any unexpected circumstances which crop up. If you view training over two week periods it gives you a chance to view training more objectively in the long run and you dont become as guilty about missing a day etc, also it gives you more freedom to be flexible about doing the sessions and not trying to cram too much in and making up for missed sessions etc

kennyb3

ecoli wrote: »

The ideas I was giving were examples of two approaches which can be taken, the progression of sessions just being an example rather than an exact schedule

Ah yeah i knew what you were saying - the sessions you suggest are ideal (HM pace tempo) and what i ll be using myself (as i comeback). I suppose i was just trying to add to what you'd said based on my experience from being a 'crock' myself.

I like the bit about 2 weekly cycles - never really thought of it like that.

Cleanman

Hi Shaz, being a serial injury offender myself, I've been following your log with interest and I think what ecoli and Kennyb3 are saying is spot on. Having a plan laid out is very important but listening to your body is key. Doing a session just because your excel spreadsheet tells you is a recipe for injury. I've been learning this the hard way myself but I'm getting there!

The two week cycle is a brilliant point from ecoli - expecially coming back from injury like you are.

You look like you're making good gradual progress though. Good luck with it.