busy as a dog but still running how to make a weekly training plan

Many people who love running, such as office workers, accountants, and company executives, are usually busy with work and find it hard to spare much time for training. When they finally do find time, they often engage in ineffective training due to a lack of scientific running knowledge, accumulating junk mileage without achieving their initial running goals. For busy runners, having a personalized scientific training plan to greatly improve running efficiency and reduce junk mileage would be fantastic!

1. What training plans are available?

1. Aerobic Adjustment Training

Aerobic adjustment training mainly involves running at a moderate speed (about 55%-75% of maximum oxygen uptake) continuously for 30-120 minutes. This includes everything from warm-up jogs to daily training and most of the weekly comprehensive training. This type of comprehensive recovery run is done at a speed lower than 65%-70% of maximum oxygen uptake (maximum oxygen uptake refers to the amount of oxygen the body can intake during maximum intensity exercise when the body can no longer support the ongoing activity).

2. Mixed Metabolic Training

This type of training involves running at 75%-90% of maximum oxygen uptake for 15-25 minutes. It can be considered speed training or steady-state running, with a pace slightly slower than marathon speed by about 10 km/h. This training mainly improves the ability to sprint in the final stages.

3. Aerobic Capacity Training

This training involves running at 90%-100% of maximum oxygen uptake for 2-8 minutes in repeated intervals. Even high-level long-distance runners can only sustain this intensity for 10-11 minutes before becoming exhausted.This is a classic training content of Fartlek running. However, when athletes perform repeated runs at this specific speed, they need to arrange a recovery walk or slow jog between two all-out runs. The speed during the all-out run is controlled at 5-10 km/h, which is also the fastest speed for aerobic capacity training.

4. Anaerobic Capacity Training

This type of training involves running at 100% of maximum oxygen uptake for 30-120 seconds at the fastest speed. This training is anaerobic and is the fastest speed training. For long-distance runners, the distance for the fastest anaerobic capacity training is about 1.6-3.2 km.

2. What are the five key points of a scientific training plan?

3. How to create your exclusive training plan?

Everyone's pace, mileage, and running goals are different, and so are their training cycles. Generally, we can follow the 'three big, one small' principle to create a training plan, which means three weeks of training followed by one recovery week, forming one training cycle. Let's use a week as an example to learn how to determine your exclusive training plan.

Step 1: Determine your recovery day

Since elite runners or urban white-collar workers are usually busy with work, they need to determine a recovery day. This is a day designed to allow them to rest without feeling guilty about not training. We can also see the recovery day as a day for the brain and body to fully rest. A recovery day helps maintain the health and positivity of the body and brain, which is very beneficial for ensuring training effectiveness.

Step 2: Decide your long run day

Most elite runners do their long run practice on Saturday or Sunday. Whether it's on Saturday or Sunday, there are no specific requirements for time and distance, meaning you should run as far as you can without interruption.

Step 3: Decide your main practice days

Runners perform intensity training on their main practice days, freely combining intensity days according to their plans. For amateur runners, intensity days can generally be set on Monday and Thursday; for seasoned running enthusiasts, it is recommended to choose two consecutive days.

According to your specific race goals, practice in this order, with the fourth intensity day repeating the content of the first intensity day, thus systematically strengthening your energy system again.

Step 4: Design your two consecutive days training plan

Plan the training for two consecutive days into the main intensity of each week, so you can focus more on intensity training days. This includes timed runs of 200 seconds, 300 seconds, and 400 seconds, or various interval runs of 800-2400 meters, or various speed development runs.

Step 5: Use aerobic adjustment runs to relax

The remaining time of the week can be used for various distance runs of 45-90 minutes, which is the foundation of training.

Following the above steps and combining them with your actual situation to create a suitable scientific weekly training plan not only improves the purposefulness, planning, and step-by-step nature of running for elite runners who manage to find precious time, but also helps improve speed through effective training, directly eliminating junk runs and ineffective runs. Running will no longer be a random leg exercise, thus saving your valuable time!

(This article was originally published in Bigger Running Academy and is reprinted with the author's permission.)