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If you are a serious runner with some experience, you probably often do interval training to improve your speed. If you are still a novice, you must have heard others talk about how great interval training is and are eager to try it. But do you know why you should do interval training? I'm just a novice with no grand ambitions for achievements. I've heard that interval training can help with fat loss, but it's too difficult for me. What should I do?

Research published over the past decade shows that compared to traditional low-intensity training, high-intensity interval training can better improve an athlete's mitochondrial quality and maximum oxygen uptake. High-intensity running, resting, then running again, and resting again—this pattern obviously has countless possible combinations, allowing you to customize your own interval training. However, a Danish research team claims they have found a specific and efficient interval training method suitable for all types of runners.

Why even novices need interval training

The secret to the effectiveness of interval training lies in its requirement for a high level of effort from the athlete—it requires runners to use both aerobic and anaerobic energy systems simultaneously. The same goes for muscle fibers. Traditional low-intensity training primarily uses type 1 slow-twitch muscle fibers, while interval training also engages type 2 fast-twitch muscle fibers. Training multiple energy systems and using multiple body movement units can significantly improve various endurance parameters at the metabolic level. Besides enhancing athletic performance, interval running is also more effective for fat loss compared to steady-state aerobic exercise.

The ideal interval training

Sports scientists, coaches, and athletes themselves have been constantly searching for the 'perfect' interval training—the most perfect combination of exercise and rest intervals to achieve the maximum training benefits. In a comprehensive analysis in 2013, a team suggested that single intervals lasting 3-5 minutes are optimal. However, a randomized study published two years earlier in the 'Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports' found that 8 minutes of hard effort often yields the best training results.

Increasing the duration of a single training session may indeed yield slightly better results, but the biggest problem is that it is very difficult for the average person to achieve. Not to mention 8 minutes, even 3 or 5 minutes of high-intensity running is not something anyone would 'like.' More importantly, extending the duration of a single session while completing a certain number of sets leads to an increase in the total distance of interval training. In the Nordic study, the total exercise time for the subjects was 40 minutes, excluding warm-up and cool-down.

To enable amateur runners to benefit from interval training, two Danish researchers came up with a simple yet effective interval training method called the '10-20-30 training.' Their initial research results and subsequent studies were published three years later, leaving a deep impression. The '10-20-30 method' not only improves maximum oxygen uptake and 5K performance but also lowers blood pressure and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Their research draft chose amateur runners instead of professional athletes, making their findings more applicable to the general population.

The biggest advantage of the '10-20-30' method is that the entire training process, including warm-up and cool-down, takes only 25-30 minutes. This greatly enhances its feasibility, making interval training seem less daunting and encouraging most runners to stick with it long-term.

Now, let's introduce the specific training method of '10-20-30.' This method is actually performed in the order of '30-20-10.' Its structure is:

• 3 minutes of gradual warm-up;

• 30 seconds of slow running + 20 seconds of medium-speed running (tempo pace) + 10 seconds of full-speed running, repeated 5 times, then rest for 2 minutes. One set takes 7 minutes;

• Repeat 2-3 sets;

• 3 minutes of slow running to cool down, stretch, and finish.

The advantage of this method lies in its relatively short total time, and each stage's speed is determined based on one's own condition, theoretically making it achievable for any healthy person. The highest intensity training adds up to only about 3 minutes, so the overall intensity is not very high, making it suitable for any phase of the training cycle, even before or after a race or the day after a long run. Additionally, since it is time-based, it does not necessarily have to be done on a standard track.

Interval running has many benefits, including improving cardiovascular capacity, enhancing endurance, and burning more calories. However, this does not mean that traditional low-intensity training should be completely abandoned. In fact, a large amount of low-intensity aerobic training should make up the majority of your training content. A scientific training structure should be a mix of low-intensity aerobic runs, tempo runs, interval runs, recovery runs, and long-distance runs. For runners who are not too focused on performance, the frequency of '10-20-30' training can be arranged once every 6 to 10 days, which is very helpful for performance improvement and fat loss.

Have you learned it?

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