• 20-26th April

An early introduction to speed work. I was going to leave it out but I was so impressed with that 10k you did I felt like we could dive straight in. My advice would be just keep it controlled for now as it’s the speed sessions where more of the injuries occur. So just build into them slowly. Another solid week though and 100pts on the table. Any issues let me know.

109 Points Achieved

MONDAY

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Rest Day

0 POINTS

“Rest days are key. Our body adapts and gets stronger when we rest & recovery. Have a good one!”

Sat at my desk today – took the dog for a stroll but other than that a restful day with no swimming either
I think it’s important to respect the rest days. The more rest we can get the better. I’m guilty of walking too much on my rest days.

TUESDAY

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12pts | 40 Mins Run

12 POINTS

The biggest mistake we can make with these recovery runs is running too fast. This will mean when our harder sessions come round we are still fatigued and not able to put enough effort in to make the necessary gains.

12pts | 40 Mins Swim

12 POINTS

40 Mins Swimming @ Easy Pace (RPE: 3)

Swimming is a great alternative to running and probably the best form of cross training. Have fun!

24 Points
Nice easy run in the morning, still struggling with the slower pace so the mile times are a little all over the place but getting there. Swim in the evening was productive, covered 1.6km.
I think once we introduce more speed work you’ll be greater for the slower pace. Glad to hear the swimming is going well. Top work Chris

WEDNESDAY

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2pts | Stretches

2 POINTS

A stretching routine you can do daily to help with your flexibility. 30 seconds for each stretch is plenty.

10pts | Home Full Body

10 POINTS

A good all round workout you can do at home. Simple but really effective. If you repeat this twice a week and slowly add to the weights you are going to make some good gains in the long run.

If you superset the exercises it should save time and hopefully make it achievable in around 60 mins.

13 Points
Full body workout getting quicker – still finding it quite hard work so happy for the rest day on Thursday!
Glad you are finding you get through it quicker. It should always be hard to some degree as the stronger you get the heavier you lift. So if it ever feels “easy” it’s time to add to the difficulty. Great work Chris.

thursday

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Rest Day

0 POINTS

“Rest days are key. Our body adapts and gets stronger when we rest & recovery. Have a good one!”

Proper rest day with no swimming as I can feel the training load increasing with the running and the swimming, so making the most of days off.
Yeah never underestimate the importance of rest days. It’s actually when we rest and recover that the body adapts and we get stronger.

FRIDAY

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20pts | 5-5-3-3-2-1 Mins

20 POINTS

10 Mins WU @ Easy Pace RPE: 3
5 Mins @ 5k Pace RPE: 8 (120 Secs)
5 Mins @ 5k Pace RPE: 8 (120s)
3 Mins @ 3K Pace RPE: 8 (90s)
3 Mins @ 3K Pace RPE: 8 (90s)
2 Mins @ <3K Pace RPE: 9 (90s)
1 Min @ <3K Pace RPE: 9 (90s)
10 Mins CD @ Easy Pace RPE: 3

A good speed session and a chance to increase pace as the reps get shorter. Work hard and enjoy!

29 Points
Been looking forward to this workout all week – swam in the morning and then in the afternoon did the intervals. Felt great actually, was concerned it would feel hard work after the slower miles recently but the inverse was true; felt really good, even after the swim in the morning. Went more on the perceived exertion levels, so the 3 minute reps and 2 minute reps were really quite fast, but was just great to turn the legs over.
Class. Just had a look at the splits and hitting some decent numbers there. You’re clearly a strong runner and if we are smart and build slowly you’ve got a lot to look forward too in terms of progression. Awesome work Chris. Some extra pts in there for the swim as well.

SATURDAY

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10pts | Home Full Body

10 POINTS

A good all round workout you can do at home. Simple but really effective. If you repeat this twice a week and slowly add to the weights you are going to make some good gains in the long run.

If you superset the exercises it should save time and hopefully make it achievable in around 60 mins.

12pts | 40 Mins Swim

12 POINTS

40 Mins Swimming @ Easy Pace (RPE: 3)

Swimming is a great alternative to running and probably the best form of cross training. Have fun!

22 Points
Felt a touch more tired for the full body workout, but getting through it quicker now and in more of a routine with it
Great work Chris. Once you find a good routine it can work well. The best results I’ve seen from runners is those that just rinse and repeat. S&C doesn’t need to be complicated.

SUNDAY

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2pts | Stretches

2 POINTS

A stretching routine you can do daily to help with your flexibility. 30 seconds for each stretch is plenty.

18pts | 60 Mins Run

18 POINTS

Keep that RPE down. You want to be able to run and chat, speaking of which, joining a group can add to the enjoyment here.

21 Points
Nice easy run, bit carried away on the last 10 minutes but generally nice and steady and felt really good
I was listening to a really interesting podcast the other day which was trying to simplify the physiological benefits of easy running. One of the key benefits is the increased production of mitochondria. When we run at an easy pace the signal pathways which lead to this production actually stay open for longer after we have exercised if done at easy pace, so we continue to get those benefits. If how however we run too fast, at too high a heart rate, our body produces less mitochondria and those pathways shut almost straight away. So whilst at the end of an easy run it can feel beneficial to push that bit harder and finish strongly (something I used to always do), in fact we are actually denying ourselves potential gains by doing that. Hope that makes sense? So it’s why you hear all the time “Run slower to get faster”. It is true. Another strong week in the bank though with targets (and more) complete. Well done Chris.