joe judd on speedwork

In early March, I got an email from Byron Lane, suggesting I do some speed
work. Honestly, I never really thought about it before. I would try to get
faster on my training runs. But, I never went out with the intent of really
pushing my pace for a short time. If you're trying to go 100 miles, speed is
not the main ingredient. Or so I thought. Byron suggested that I should try
some 8:00 - 8:30 minute mile intervals. I thought, "I can't run that fast.
I've never run that fast". Lo and behold, on my first attempt I ran 2
miles at 8:00 and 5 miles at 9:10 pace. I was tired and it was hard. But, I
was amazed!

I've been doing a speed day about once a week. For me, it amounts to mile
repeats. It started out at something like - warm up at 10:00 pace for 2
miles, ramp up for 2-4 miles, then back down for the last one. I don't have
to "push hard" to go fast anymore. But, of course it has gotten much easier
to maintain my quicker pace. Now, after 5 months I've seen some remarkable
improvements. Last weekend I went out for a run on the (gravel, relatively
flat) bike path. I ran 6 miles at 8:00 pace. That is an average, accounting
for my slower start in the first mile. Plus, it felt pretty easy and
relaxed. Overall, my average pace for all of my running miles has decreased
from an average of 10:48/ mile to 9:33/ mile, based on mileage between 40-50
per week. I've gotten my long runs to 20 miles at 10:06 pace.

Will it translate to much more speed, over 100 miles? I don't know how much
yet. But, I was able to break 100 miles in 24 hours at FANS, in June. My
previous best was a 100 mile finish in 26:04 at Heartland. Although, FANS
was definitely an easier course. The big test will happen next month at Lean
Horse.

So, if you're a slow plodder, like I was (and kind of still am), give it a
shot. It feels *so good* to go out and cruise along at a 20% faster pace!
You might just surprise yourself, like I did.

And thanks, Byron!

Joe Judd
Denver & Salida, Co.