Trading Endurance for Speed

Over the course of the past few weeks, I have been thinking a lot about my running and the next few months ahead.  I just hit 600 miles and have been running for close to four months now so it's only natural to reflect a little bit on the past and set some goals for the future. 

In thinking about my running so far, I've come to realize that although the quantity of miles has been high, the quality has been actually pretty low.  As you may remember, for much of January and February I was injured and had to really cut back on my pace.  When March hit, I picked up the pace a little, but not quite as much as I should have.  As a result, my body has become really accustomed to running long, slow miles which has unfortunately turned me into a long, slow distance runner.  If I was simply running for fitness, this wouldn't be a bad thing.  However, I still enjoy the thrill of competition and pride myself on being able to run up there with some of the big dogs (well maybe some of the smaller ones with a loud bark).

So now I'm faced with the challenge of trading in some of my endurance for speed.  This is not an easy task but it's a sure fire way to improve your running.  Firing those muscles at a much higher intensity leads to an increase in fast twitch muscle fibers, strength, and power.  I can most easily liken this process to that of sap production in the spring, which anyone who's ever sugared should be able to appreciate.  Maple trees go into a somewhat dormant period for much of the winter.  They bide their time, siphoning off just enough of their reserves to stay alive (kind of like endurance running).  When the days warm up and the sun rises on the horizon, their roots kick into action and start moving water and nutrients under the layer of bark.  This in turn mixes with simple sugars and creates what we know as sap.  Once that sap starts flowing, the rest of the tree bursts to life and another season of growth begins (here's the speed work). 

Running without speed work is like a tree with no spring.  Sure you can get by, but you'll never see the growth you are looking for.  If you really want to up the ante, you've got to change things up a bit, whether you're a maple tree or a runner.