“Your body is made to move so move it.” ― Toni Sorenson
Running is good for your health, and it’s an excellent way to get and stay fit. It’s a great form of cardiovascular exercise, and it’s beneficial to every part of your body. Apart from improving your general health, running can help you lose weight, alleviate anxiety and stress, and elevate your mood when you’re down.
There are different types of running workouts you should know. Whether you are a beginner or an avid runner, you’ll need to learn these workouts if you want to get the most out of your exercise.
Types of Running Workouts
These running exercises vary from your everyday runs, interval training to long runs ― which can help you become a more robust and active runner. Let’s take a look at the various running workouts you can add to your exercise routine.
Base Run
Base runs are short to moderate-length runs done at your own pace. They contribute to your aerobic fitness and can be done frequently. Base runs are not challenging, and they help in building up your endurance and running economy. They can make up the majority of your training distance every week.
Progression Run
You begin a progression run at your natural pace, and then you can gradually step up the pace along the way while ending it with a faster run. It’s a great way to ease into running at a quicker speed without getting tired. This type of run can help you build up your mental strength and stamina. They are more challenging and more complicated than base runs.
Recovery Run
Recovery runs are similar to base runs but much more effortless. They are short-length runs at an effortless pace. You can do a recovery run after a hard workout in the gym. It helps your body recover from strenuous training by keeping your legs moving and your heart rate low.
Long Run
Long runs are long-length runs or longer base runs. It helps in building your endurance, strengthening your leg muscles, and improving your cardiovascular health. Long runs can also help in boosting your confidence while developing your mental toughness. Most runners do long runs at the end of their training weeks.
READ ALSO: The Best Running Tips For Beginners (+ A 4-Week Running Plan)
Fartlek
A Fartlek workout is a base run that blends the intervals of various durations and distances. The word ‘Fartlek’ is Swedish for ‘speed play. The Fartlek runs have less structure and intensity, and it’s about running fast and having fun, alternating the fast reps with slow recovery jogs. It’s an excellent way to develop efficiency and fatigue resistance at a faster speed in the early phases of your running workout.
Hill Repeats
This type of running workout is repeated short fragments of uphill running at a much higher intensity. An ideal hill features a steady, moderate gradient of 4 to 6 percent, and you have to repeat this 3 to 4 times. You can start the run with a warmup jog, run up the hill fast, jog down the hill slowly, and then end your running workout with a cool-down jog.
Tempo Run
Tempo runs, also known as threshold runs, are done at a faster space, roughly the speed you can sustain for an hour. However, your tempo runs won’t be that long; it will be like 20 40 minutes run. This running workout helps build up lactic acid within the muscles, increasing your lactic threshold and allowing you to run faster without getting tired quickly. A high lactate threshold will enable you to hold a faster pace for long-distance runs such as marathon races.
Intervals
Intervals runs are like repeated running sequences – you run fast and rest or jog – then repeat for a set number of times. This type of running workout is a weekly routine for most runners. It enables them to run faster in a single training. Intervals help runners to improve their running technique and speed endurance.
Adding running workouts to your daily exercise is good for your overall health. They also help you build stamina and mental strength. When you include these running workouts in your exercise routine, you also will become more energetic and less injury-prone, even if you are not a professional athlete.
Hey Joyfreshers, which of these running workouts are your favorites? What are your ideal running workouts? Let’s discuss below!
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