Improving your VO2 Max

Sprint Interval Workouts 

 

As I was running my sprint intervals workout, I thought it would be a good idea to share exactly why this type of workout improves other aspects of physical training and why it's important.  While preparing to run a marathon a couple years ago, I read books, articles, and magazines and trolled the Web for various training schedules until I ultimately chose one from Hal Higdon.  However, one thing that most of these programs had in common was sprint interval training for one workout per week.  Sprints were never high on my list of fun things to do, so I always skipped those in favor of a run of comparable or longer distance.  That is until...

a few weeks ago I joined a friend on her running workout.  Her plan for the day? Sprint intervals. Oh boy, I couldn't wait! I was less than excited about running sprints, but I was glad to spend time with her, so I couldn't say no.  We did 4 x 400m sprints with a 400m recovery walk in between.  I hated every second of those sprints....but, I did them again, and again, and again. Why? Because that first week I saw significant improvement in my distance running pace and thought that just maybe it had to do with those sprints.

Not being one to just do the minimum, I amped up the sprint workout to a point that challenged me more.  The following week I did 8 x 400m sprints with a 400m recovery run at a comfortable pace in between.  I've done this for the past 3 weeks, and each week I've completed the workout faster than the week before.  Each week I've improved  my distance pace by 8-10 seconds per mile (it may not sound like a lot, but when you're covering 10+ miles, it does make a difference). 

So, why do short bursts of speed improve my endurance running? Simply put, it increases my VO2 max.  VO2 max is your optimal oxygen intake that can be used during intense exercise and that is linked directly to aerobic endurance.  Elite athletes are often evaluated by their VO2 max - the higher, the better.  Basically, as your exercise intensity increases, your oxygen consumption increases (obviously) but only to a point - your VO2 max.  There comes a point where the body switches from aerobic metabolism to anaerobic - when you reach the point of anaerobic, there's only so long your muscles can hold up before they fatigue, and you have to stop exercising.  By increasing your VO2 max, you're increasing the amount of oxygen that your body can take in and use to propel endurance.  The higher your VO2 max, the better your endurance.

You can increase VO2 max in 2 ways: training at a higher volume or a higher intensity.  My weekly long-distance runs are my high volume training while the sprint works are my high intensity training.  Now that I'm including 2 workouts designed to improve my VO2 max, I'm improving twice as fast as I would otherwise.  Sprinting helps my distance runs while distance runs help my sprinting!

I've never tried it but the Bruce Treadmill test is said to be one of the most commonly used tests to approximate VO2 max.

Next up? A couple weeks of 9 x 400m (7:00/mi) sprints with 400m (8:45/mi) recovery in between.  They're not my favorite workouts, but I'm convinced that the benefits are worth it!