How to do it: Natalie was doing two high-intensity interval (HIIT) workouts per week—one running, one cross-training—on back-to-back days, and she'd go into her long runs feeling drained. I changed her schedule to include only one HIIT workout per week (running), added strength workouts instead of more cardio, and plugged in one easy run during the week and one long run, plus a yoga class and a full recovery day. If you're exhausted, you need to change the flow of your workouts. Natalie's body was able to improve with this recipe because she was able to recover, which allowed her body to adapt to the workload and push harder as she improved.
Run by effort rather than pace. The final step was in teaching Natalie how to train by effort rather than pace. It took a few weeks for her to learn to let her pace be the outcome of her workout, rather than her guide, and once she did, she was able to fully embrace the purpose of every workout. In doing so, her body was training in the optimal zone consistently and able to progress through the season.
How to do it: I broke the effort goals into three simple zones (see below). Her easy and long runs were at a conversational Yellow Zone. This is the zone where you can talk in full sentences. Tempo runs were done in the Orange Zone, an effort level where you can hear your breathing, but only talk in one to two word responses—it feels like it's just outside your comfort zone. And the intervals were done in the Red Zone, a hard effort where you are running fast but in control, and your breathing is labored. There's no talking in the Red Zone.
Yellow Zone
This is the easiest effort level. When you're in the yellow zone, you can talk about the movie you saw last night without pausing to catch your breath.
Orange Zone
The orange zone indicates a moderately challenging effort level. You're not running all out, but you are outside of your comfort zone. You could chat about the film, but you would be reduced to choppy statements while reaching for air every few words.
Red Zone
Red means very challenging. You know you're in the red zone when you can't even think about the movie because you're too busy concentrating on when the workout will end.
This article originally appeared on RunnersWorld.com
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