It´s A Running Thing...
By
Woody Green
of
RUNNERS NICHE
It's Swedish for speed play. It's a training method popularized by
Swedish runner Gosta Holmer in the 1930's, but practiced by many
runners years before. It is a term that, when used around non-
runners, raises eyebrows, causes chuckles, and even offends. What is
this mysterious training technique ? Fartlek!
A friend of mine went so far as to have t-shirts printed up that say
"Fartlek" on the front, and "It's a running thing, you wouldn't
understand" on the back. Indeed, it is a running thing, and many
people don't understand. But fartlek is nothing perverted, gross, or
silly, it is simply a very good training method.
As stated before, fartlek literally means "speed play" in Swedish.
Speed play is not a bad definition, either. Traditionally, fartlek
training has been described as an unstructured blend of running
speeds from a slow jog to a hard sprint and every pace in between.
In its purest form, fartlek is an almost randomly paced run, with the
runner changing pace as their spirit leads them. The best place to do
this kind of training is often a remote trail with varying terrain, but
it can be carried out on the roads, too.
Some runners structure their fartlek runs by timing their hard
efforts and rest. This might mean a 2 minute surge followed by a 90
second rest jog, for instance. Others use landmarks as their signals to
pick up the pace or ease off. Telephone poles are often used for this
purpose.
Strictly speaking, this is not true fartlek training. Instead, it is more
of an adaptation of track training used on the roads and trails.
"Real" fartlek is much more random in nature. Surges may be short
or long, hard or easy. A runner might go to a wooded trail, and after
warming up, go hard to the top of the hill, then jog around the turn,
followed by a moderate pace downhill and a switch to a short hard
sprint in the meadow, with a very slow jog to the pond, etc. The
runner will decide as they go, letting inspiration and terrain make
their pace decisions.
What could the advantage be in this sort of random training? It may
not sound very scientific, but proponents of this training method feel
that true fartlek has many advantages.
Fartlek teaches a runner to go at a varied tempo instead of locking
into one pace. This will make a runner stronger over a course with
varying terrain, and can help a runner learn to stay with their
competitors when they throw a surge in the middle of a race.
Physiologically, fartlek is similar to interval training. Runners can
work on their speed, and increase their oxygen uptake.
Since a dirt road or nice trail can be used, the runner can escape the
jarring of pavement or the constant left turns of the track. Also, with
a less structured format, runners can ease off on days they feel bad
without a stopwatch telling them how slow they are going.
Conversely, some runners find they can do a longer, harder workout
when they don't have the pressure of a prescribed number of reps
on a track.
Many runners use fartlek runs as a break from their routine. It can
be refreshing to go out and just play around on a nice trail. This
might provide just the mental break you need in the middle of
weeks of hard training. Go ahead and give yourself permission to
have a little fun!
Fartlek. Now you understand, it's a running thing!
