Ryan

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

Note: This is an article I first wrote at least a decade ago for the articles section of HillRunner.com. As I’m in the process of retiring that section, I’m moving all articles to the blog in their original form. This is the final one. I would likely write this somewhat differently if I were to rewrite it today but I want to keep it in its original form.

Over and over again, I see the debate come up. What is more important? Quality or quantity? Is it that simple, though? Can we really narrow this question down to one or the other? In recent years, it seems like many people would have you believe it is that simple. They refer to quotes such as "if you want to run fast, you have to run fast" and say that race performances are dependant on quality and quantity is not important. They frequently talk about "junk miles" as if anything that isn’t a hard day is useless. Interestingly, it seems as if the "mileage junkies", as some of these people like to term high volume runners, don’t take the same kind of angle. I can’t think of one high volume competitive runner who has done high volume training to the exclusion of quality workouts or one high volume proponent who has stated that quality done at the right time is not an important aspect of training for competition. I can, however, think of many high intensity runners who have done high intensity to the exclusion of aerobic conditioning and also many people who say high volume training is unimportant, some who even say it is detrimental.

If you are interested in maximizing your performance potential, you have to consider all the variables that go into your performance. Just like a race car mechanic. It doesn’t matter how good the tires of the car are if the engine has no power. It doesn’t matter how powerful the engine is if the drive train can’t handle that power. It doesn’t matter how strong the drive train is if the tires can’t hold up at high speeds. For a runner, it doesn’t matter what speed you have if you don’t have the aerobic capacity to run at a high effort level for the duration of the race. It doesn’t matter what your aerobic capacity is if your muscles do not have the strength and stamina to go the distance. It doesn’t matter what strength and stamina you have if you don’t have the speed to turn it into a fast race pace. With any piece of the running puzzle missing, you are not a complete racer and you will not perform up to your highest potential.

So how do you get all the components needed? By mixing the right amounts of both quality and quantity at the right times. This comes back to periodization, which I’ve already discussed in another article, but in terms of this article it means finding the right balance of quality and quantity. In this way, quality and quantity are not opposing forces. As a matter of fact, if you don’t view them as opposing forces, you can bring them together to work as a pair of complimentary forces pushing you to whole new levels of running performance.

The obvious question that comes up next is how to find the right balance of these two powerful forces. Well, if you have been reading popular magazines and websites over the past decade, the first step is to forget everything you have read. Go back to the drawing board and re-learn the basics of training for competitive distance running. The first rule of distance running is that you have to be able to cover a distance or even farther comfortably before you can race the distance. This means base training. Run a lot of miles and become real comfortable with running the distance and longer. This is the basis for everything that comes later and this is where quantity is the focus. After at least a few months of this, you should be comfortable covering your race distance, farther if your goal race is on the shorter end of the spectrum (half marathon or shorter) and maybe a little shorter for the real long races (marathon or longer), and your base should be pretty well established. At this point, you can maintain your base while establishing the speed needed to race the distance. This is where quality becomes the driving factor in your training plan. You are prepared to cover the distance, you can now maintain that by maintaining at least some of your quantity and now focus on building the quality to push yourself to speeds that you had never been capable of reaching before. The final result is being able to run a fast pace thanks to the quality and being able to maintain that fast pace all the way through your race without hitting the wall thanks to the quantity. Obviously, this is simplifying a well thought out training plan quite a bit but it points out how both quantity and quality are needed in order to reach optimal performance.

A lot of people will tell you that doing high volume will detract from your speed workouts, which will hurt your race performances. Don’t buy into this. It may be the case if you’re doing more than your body can handle, likely in terms of running too fast but possibly in terms of running too far, on your recovery days. However, I can tell you from experience and I could find many others who could share similar experiences that my best workouts came during my highest volume periods of training. During 2002, my highest volume period of training ever at that time, I was doing workouts that were blowing my mind. I was running repeats at 10-20 seconds per mile faster than I had ever previously been capable of doing on lower volume training. Why? Because, instead of beating my head against the wall with more and more intensity, I took a step back, found my balance, and gained an incredible amount of fitness by building my base to a level I had never been at before. My high quantity helped fuel the very high quality training I did when the time was right and the combination of the two led to my reaching the highest level of fitness I had ever experienced. If I had excluded either the very high quantity or the very high quality I had been doing, I never would have reached the level of fitness I did through a balance of both powerful forces.

In the end, if you are looking to perform at your best, it’s not about one or the other. You can’t ignore or even short one aspect of training if you want to be the best you can be. You need to hone the powers of all aspects of training and bring them together for ultimate fitness. That means you have to go through periods of high volume training, whatever that means for yourself as an individual, as well as periods of lower volume but higher intensity training. If you leave any of the aspects out or even if you shortchange any of these aspects, you will not perform up to your capabilities.

This article was originally posted by Ryan at the original HillRunner.com Blogs.

Note: This is an article I first wrote around the 2002-2004 timeframe for the articles section of HillRunner.com. As I’m in the process of retiring that section, I’m moving all articles to the blog in their original form. I have one more to move after this. I would likely write this somewhat differently if I were to rewrite it today but I want to keep it in its original form as I know this one, especially, has gained some popularity (and been copied without reference by some other sites).

Note: This article is in no way meant to disrespect Bart Yasso as a runner or as an individual. I have no doubt that this workout works very well for him. However, as with most things running, this isn’t everything for everyone. While this workout may work well for some runners, devoting ten workouts to this training method for a marathoner is not as effective for most marathoners as a predictor or training tool than other options.

Show me a marathoner who hasn’t heard of Yasso 800s and I’ll show you someone who hasn’t been paying much attention recently. The concept sounds great, doesn’t it? Want to run a 3 hour marathon? Train to run 10×800 in 3 minutes. Want to run a 4:00 marathon? Train to do the 800s in 4:00. 2:30 marathon? 2:30 800s. What could be more simple than that? Not much. The best part is, if you read some articles I’ve read on Yassos, you’ll be convinced that Yassos are the key to getting your marathon time goal. Of course, do your long runs but definitely don’t skip the Yassos because they are what will get you to the finish line in your goal time. Unfortunately, no matter how much we would like this to be true, running just isn’t that simple. Especially marathon running.

In some senses, Yassos seem to have some merit. Try some training pace calculators (like this one on Hillrunner.com) and you’ll see that a 3:00 marathoner’s suggested VO2max interval pace would be about 2:58/800. A 4:00 marathoner’s suggested VO2max interval pace would be about 3:56/800. That seems quite close, doesn’t it? Well, theoretically, yes.

There are a number of factors we have to keep in mind when considering whether Yasso 800s are really a good idea. First, remember what energy systems the workout is stressing most and what energy systems the marathon is stressing most. Second, note the differences in those paces. Third, is there a better workout you could be doing?

What energy systems do Yasso 800s stress most? The energy system in question is called the VO2max system. What about the marathon? That would be a primarily aerobic event, run at paces lower than your lactate threshold. So you are trying to determine your performance potential at a very stamina oriented event by doing a much more speed oriented workout. The simple fact is most marathoners these days have not developed their aerobic systems as well as they have developed their speed. You can nearly maximize your speed very quickly. It takes many years to fully develop your aerobic system.

For a good visual of the differences here, just consider the paces. Running 800s in 3:00 means you’re running about 6:00/mile. A 3:00 marathon is a little under 7:00/mile, over 50 seconds per mile slower than the workout. As your times increase, so does the spread. a 4:00 marathoner would be running Yasso 800s over 1:00/mile faster than goal marathon pace. That’s a pretty significant difference in paces when trying to predict what you are capable of in one by doing the other. The difference is very significant when we figure that most runners are more well trained for the shorter events than they are for the longer events. Don’t believe me? How many 18:45 5k runners do you know who can run a 3:00 marathon? How many 25:00 5k runners do you know who can run a 4:00 marathon? Those are equivalent performances if one would be equally well trained for both events. The simple fact is most people are more well trained for the shorter events and hence Yassos than they are for the longer events like the marathon.

But Yassos still make a good workout, right? Yes, they make a good workout. However, are they the best workout that a marathoner can do? No. A marathoner would be more well served by doing longer repeats. Repeats at around the pace of Yassos but of distances more like 1200-1600 meters would be better. Tempo runs and repeats of 1-2 miles with short recoveries are even more important. Aerobic running, of course, can not be overlooked and a significant amount should be done before even considering any other workouts. Doing 800s at times in a training plan is not a bad idea. However, devoting a workout every week for 2 months, give or take, to 800s is taking time and energy away from workouts that can be much more effective in preparing for the demands of a long event like the marathon.

I have heard many stories of people trying to use Yassos to predict their marathon performance. The typical result is that they fall 10-20 minutes short of what the Yassos predicted, sometimes even more. If you are one of these people and you actually go out at the pace that your Yassos predict that you could do the marathon in, you will be going through the half 5-10 minutes faster than you should be. Some people say that, for every minute fast you are at the half, you end up losing at least 2-5 minutes in the second half. That means you could be costing yourself 10-50 minutes in the second half and 5-40 minutes overall. That adds up to two things: a time much worse than you were capable of and a very painful second half.

Do Yasso 800s make a good workout for someone training for a marathon? In moderation, yes. Do Yasso 800s make a good predictor of marathon performance? In the large majority of cases, absolutely not.