How I Fartlek

fart•lek
–noun
a training technique, used especially among runners, consisting of bursts of intense effort loosely alternating with less strenuous activity.

In my quest to run a strong marathon this summer, I’ve been adding speedwork to my running. The plan that I chose to follow (Hal Higdon’s Intermediate II) includes pace runs the day before the long run, meaning I try to run these miles as close to my planned marathon pace (9 minute miles) as possible. However, I’ve also made one run a week a fartlek run.

Most of the time you’ll find fartlek described as speedplay, encouraging the runner to add in bursts of speed by picking landmarks along their route, running fast to the landmark, slowing down, recovering and starting the process over again. I’ve tried this. It does not work for me because I, too often, am lazy. I need a coach to shout at me through a giant megaphone – “Run Fast NOW!”
Since I don’t have coach, giant megaphone or no, I had given up on fartlek runs. That is, until I came up with another idea.

One of the podcasts I look forward to listening to while out for a run is NPR’s All Songs Considered and on a run a few weeks ago, I decided to run hard each time a song was played and recover as best I could when the hosts were talking. This ended up being just the thing I needed to do fartlek runs.

Sometimes the hosts only do a short introduction between songs and some times they talk longer. Sometimes the songs are four or five minutes long and sometimes they only play parts of songs. I never know going in to the run where I’ll be – up hill, down hill, straight away – when the next song starts. I can’t go easy on myself because I’m not the one calling the shots.

And that is how I fartlek.

Daily Dozen:
7.5 miles run to work – fartlek miles 2-5
Circuit Training @ lunch hour
Swimming, 30 minutes