Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Chapter 2 page 164 - TR 62 30 seconds

Frequent readers know the 3 Musketeers use the Jeff Galloway's run-walk-run method for both training and racing. "L" and I started out using 2:2 and LOVED it (that was back before we knew that intervals were a "real" thing). We used that interval for over a year. When "C" joined our training sessions, we slowly worked our way up to 3:1 and then backed down to 2:1 and have found that intervals of 2:10/1 - 2:30/1 suit us best for now.

A couple of weeks ago, "C" and I read an article that said Jeff Galloway had paced a group of marathoners using a 30 second running & 30 second walking interval through the full 26.2 miles. They finished in 5 hours. "C" and I wondered how it would feel to do such short intervals. The 3 of us tried it out tonight during a 4 miler. Here's what I thought of it:

PROS:
- it's quick
- the transition is easier (there aren't the few steps needed to work out the "kinks" that we usually have with longer intervals)
- it's definitely less taxing on the cardiovascular system

CONS:

- the timer beeps very frequently (I would need a timer that only beeps once per interval rather than the 5 seconds I have it set to beep for currently)
- it's a mental thing to have to do 7-8 interval cycles rather than the 2-3 that we are used to doing with the longer intervals; it just felt as if it took forever to get to the next 1/2 mile marker
- it was harder to get into a rhythm/pace than when we do longer intervals
- I found myself looking at my watch often to see how much longer we had to walk or run; I've worked hard to wean myself off of constantly looking at my watch during the longer intervals (that was REALLY hard for me to do)

2 comments:

  1. The change in intervals is interesting. It would definitely mix it up. Will you do it again?

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  2. interesting... sounds like it would be fun mixing it up every 30 seconds... do you think you'll switch to using the 30 second intervals or keep your 2:1?

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