Strides
Question: Strides 101
Posted by Brian on January 20, 2004:
In an email today, a Crow asked me to explain the "strides" part of the workouts that I've been posting. In case others are wondering, here's an explanation. (Others may have more to add.):
Strides are short and quick repeats, 20-25 seconds long (or about 100 meters) with rests to full recovery between. They're fast, but shouldn't at all be confused for sprints. As training, sprinting them would be a hazardous mistake. The emphasis is entirely on CONTROLLED acceleration and deceleration while concentrating on light, quick turnover and good form rather than blind speed. They're commonly done on grass (esp. if you've got a good soccer field handy), but you can do them on pavement (or even the treadmill --after some practice so you know the right speed).
They're fun because they're over before your body even notices the speed. All the usual feedback of breathing, heart-rate, and muscle fatigue don't have time really to register before you're done. Strides do serve as a good way to raise your heart rate and circulation before a short race and you'll see a lot of faster runners doing them right before a 5K.
In training, they help maintain leg speed during periods of slower running such as base-building and marathon training. Five or six seems to be the customary number for strides. I've never heard of anybody recommending more in a session. I don't think strides have any effect in improving VO2 max or lactate threshold. They just stretch out your muscles a bit and help keep you comfortable with running quickly.
Re: Question: Strides 101
Posted by Clay on June 24, 2004 at 07:17:16:In Reply to: Question: Strides 101 posted by Steve on June 24, 2004 at 06:27:51:
I think the speedwork all depends on the person and where they are at in their running and racing. I enjoy strides after my run on the high school football field down the street or during my run with 4-6x15-20 seconds of 80 to 90 percent effort. I really see a difference in my turn over at shorter races when I have been doing strides for a few weeks. But some people are naturally gifted and don't have to do as much extra work to be fast
