Week 11: Fartlek

Alright, say it out loud, laugh, and get it out of your system. Even if you've never done a fartlek workout before (or don't even know what it is) here's your chance to give it a try! 


Picking up the pace once a week goes a long way toward making you faster. I've covered a lot of speed workouts already, but sometimes racing around a track, keeping your eye on a stop watch, or sprinting up hills can get boring. Another alternative is a fartlek. Interestingly enough, fartlek translates into "speed play" in Swedish, where the concept apparently originated (my team always asked why of all things it could be called a fart-lek).  Fartleks are a free-flowing format in which you run faster for however long or short you want to. Of all the workouts one could possibly choose from, fartleks definitely come in handy.  The aim in completing a fartlek workout can be compared to that of interval training. The purpose of these workouts is to develop speed by running for short distances at a speed significantly higher than the normal strong race pace. Fartleks are similar to interval training in that short fast runs alternate with slow running or jogging recovery intervals. However, with fartleks the running isn't done on a track. In fact, it's done on the road or in a park or some other place you desire. At my high school, we used a loop in a certain neighborhood as a fartlek course, where it was a simple circle with different hill elevations and long and short stretches of distance. The key to doing fartleks are to pace yourself. With each repetition, you really need to be running the same times each time you run. I'll lay out two different fartlek workouts that are both efficient and helpful in your workout. 


Block Party:
In your neighborhood, use blocks as your "track." You can go around the block or do an out-and-back. Start at a slow pace for five to 10 steps, then gradually increase the pace for 20 to 50 steps, then run at race pace (but not all out) for one full block. Start with two or three fartlek segments and build to six. Walk for one or two minutes between each faster section. 


Running Landmark:
Pick a telephone pole, mailbox, stop sign, or anything up ahead and run to it. You can choose one thing (all telephone poles, for example) or multiple landmarks to create varying lengths of speed segments. On each segment, gradually pick up the pace until you're running fast but not all out. For the last 20 steps, hold the pace, but focus on relaxing your body and allowing momentum to take over. Walk or jog for half the distance of your repeat, then spot your next landmark and take off again. Continue for a total of 10 to 15 minutes, before running an easy five to 10 minutes to cool down.


A Fartlek Example!


Enjoy!