Getting Zippy with It!

Since I have started running, one of my main goals has been to increase speed. I have no desire to run a marathon; the 5K distance is perfect for me. I have steadily been chipping away at my run times since my first 5K race.

I looked to this month's Women's Running magazine article, "Get Faster!" for tips on improving my speed. I tried the VO2 Max workout on the treadmill today and it was fantastic! I was working hard and sweating! I attempted the workout, but quickly aborted it, yesterday after I felt like I was going to fall off the treadmill - I was pushing myself too hard. Today, I slowed the speed down to a more manageable pace where I was still challenged, but could explore a new workout without reaching the point of complete exhaustion or risking injury.

Women's Running defines VO2 Max as "maximum oxygen uptake ... describes the body' ability to utilize oxygen to create energy during exercise." They suggest running at 90-95% of your perceived effort. Today, I was probably running at 80%, and next time I will push it up a notch. Here's what I did today:

warm-up: 1 mile - 0% incline - 5.0 mph

.25 miles - 3% incline - 8.5 mph
.25 miles - 0% incline - 5.0 mph
(these two sequences were repeated 6 times)

cool down: 1 mile - 0% incline - I started at 5.0 mph and continually increased speed at random intervals until I finished at 6.5 mph.

I ended up running 5 miles in a little less than an hour. The magazine suggests mixing VO2 Max workouts in with basic speed runs as well as runs for lactate threshold. I am going to try out these other plans and we'll see what our next race results show!!