Episode 160, Tempo Runs.

This is the podcast for the middle-of-the-pack runner who's looking to improve, but who also has a life.

The runner who's chasing endorphin highs and isn't afraid to work up a sweat.

I'm Debbie Boyles, coach at Mojo for Running.

Next up in our speed training series is the traditional tempo run.

I'll start by explaining what it is, the benefits, how often to incorporate it into your workout,

and then I'll provide a few examples.

Simply put, a tempo run is a run that starts easy and then builds to what we generally

referred to as a comfortably

hard pace for several miles or at least for 20 minutes and then, of course, ends with an easy

cooldown. So it differs from an interval workout because the running segment is much longer,

usually at least a mile in length. And the other big difference is that the defining characteristic of a tempo run

is that you maintain the same pace throughout.

Since the segment is longer, they're never as fast.

A tempo run is not as intense as a track workout,

which would have considerably shorter repeats.

However, it is challenging because you're trying to

hold an uncomfortable pace for a long time. A tempo run might have no repeats of the uncomfortably

hard part, as in the example above, but it also could repeat the tempo segment. But of course,

the general term tempo run can vary from that quite a bit. But the key difference

is that the harder part is never super hard, like generally not 95%, because the goal is to run at least

a mile at that steady pace, as I said. You'll hear some coaches explain tempo pace as being

...