Fartlek Training

Fartlek Training

The Swedish have a way with words.

Fartlek training literally means "speed play". You "play" while you are doing something "fast". Now don't think I'm talking about driving a car at high speeds down a highway and playing chess with your companion. Think exercise.

Fartlek training is generally associated with running, but can include any kind of aerobic exercise from bicyling, to hiking, to swimming, to hiking again, to walking. The idea behind a "fartlek" is to vary your effort.

And not just vary your effort consistently, but randomly.

Think about when you were a kid out playing. Did you run around for a set amount of time, then stop and take your pulse to make sure your were not overexerting yourself? Of course not, you just went out and ran around and laughing and giggled until you couldn't do it anymore. Besides, who has time to monitor their heart rate? (Just kidding - that was a joke)

The same with fartlek training - though I wouldn't recommend you giggle that much :) Instead, as you exercise vary the intensity of your efforts. If you are out for a run, throw in a few quick sprints.

Fartleks work even better when you are out running with friends (here comes the fun part). While out for a friendly run with your friends, let everyone have a turn at controlling the running tempo. Let Jack decide how hard your group will run for the next five minutes. Jack might feel like he needs to strut his testosterone (I hope I spelt that right) and decide that everyone needs to go balls to the wall for the full five minutes. Jerry, on the other hand, might just say forget that and set the pace at a leisurely trot that puts you to sleep.

If you have some sicko friends (and I use the word "friends" loosely), let someone decide what tempo your group will run at and let that person decide for how long without telling anyone else. How's that for torture?

Just because someone has control of the tempo doesn't mean they have to keep the same running pace for the alloted time. Maybe Jane decides to run some strides for a minute, jog for a minute, sprint for a minute. Who cares, mix it up.

Whether you are training for the Boston Marathon or just out for your weekly run, you'll be amazed how quickly the time goes when you are on a fartlek training run - and how tired you get.