The goal of a true sprint workout for track is to make a sprinter faster in a specific race. The problem is that many so-called “speed workouts” that are prescribed to sprinters are the definition of unproductive.
Most of these workouts put far too much emphasis on high volume sprinting, getting sprinters “tired”, and short recovery periods. This may look good on paper to the uninitiated athlete or stubborn coach, but the truth is that you don’t get faster by running at sub-maximal speeds with short recoveries. You get faster by actually sprinting👀.
Running 10, 200 meter runs at 65-70 percent speed with 2-minute recovery periods does not do anything to increase maximum speed. These tempo runs are excellent for fat loss and general conditioning, but they do absolutely nothing to make you faster. You get faster by sprinting at over 90 percent of your maximum speed and taking full recoveries in between reps. Quality, not quantity is the name of the speed game💯.
Sprint Workout For Track
The speed/special endurance workout that my main man Joe and I did during the pandemic was a continuation of what we did the previous week.
200m and 400m sprinters will benefit the most from this type of workout due to the intensity and the distances of the reps. This workout lends itself extremely well for big gains in race specific speed and conditioning. My rating system for speed is below.
Rating System For Speed/Special Endurance Training:
100 percent = maximum or peak speed
95 percent = very fast
90 percent = fast
85 percent = reasonably fast
80 percent = no longer fast
Note: Speed/special endurance workouts take place in the 85-95 percent range.
The Workout
Rep 1) 1 x 100m
* sprint the first 40 meters at 90-95 percent speed
* sprint the next 60 meters at about 85-90 percent speed
* rest 8-10 minutes
Rep 2) 1 x 120m
* sprint the first 40 meters at 90-95 percent speed
* sprint the next 80 meters at about 85-90 percent speed
* rest 8-10 minutes
Rep 3) 1 x 150m
* sprint the first 40 meters at 90-95 percent speed
* sprint the next 60 meters at about 85-90 percent speed
* finish the final 50 meters at about 85 percent speed
* rest 8-10 minutes
Rep 4) 1 x 200m
* sprint the first 40 meters at 90-95 percent speed
* sprint the next 80 meters at about 85 percent speed
* finish the final 80 meters at about 85 percent speed
* workout over
How To Calculate Your Speed
You can calculate your speed by using this equation: Your current or most recent fastest time (in seconds) divided by the time you ran in the workout (in seconds). I’ll use myself as an example below:
PB 100m 11.57 / 12.60 = 91.8 percent of my maximum speed
PB 150m 17.67 / 19.33 = 91.4 percent of my maximum speed
PB 200m 23.78 / 26.60 = 89.3 percent of my maximum speed
When you are choosing times to base your workout off of, you have to make sure it was something you did sometime recently. All the times I used were from my 2017 summer track season. I chose to not use the times from 2018 or 2019 because I was injured, and those times were lousy. I did not want to cheat myself.
With that being said, it’s very important to choose the correct times to work with. You might have been a 10.8s 100m guy while running track in college at age 21, but there is a high chance you might not be that same 10.8s guy at age 37. If you were a 24.8s 200m gal while running track in college at age 21, you might not be that same 24.8s gal at age 37.
Fatigue and rust played a factor in my 200-meter dropping under the 90 percent threshold. I needed to sprint a 26.42 to hit my goal. You must keep in mind that all of your speeds are relative based on where you are in the workout. Your 95 percent speed on your 1st rep and your 4th rep could be slower by a few tenths or hundredths.
Notes:
• Perform a sprinter warm-up before you begin this workout. Skimping on or skipping your warm-up increases the chances that you will blow out a hamstring. I’m not coming to see you in the ER if you go this route.
• Rest 8-10 minutes between reps. You have to take full recoveries to maximize your sprinting performance.
• If you are a sprinter or a coach who wants to record accurate, unbiased times, you should invest in the Freelap Timing System. If you are unable to invest in Freelap, you can use a stopwatch. But be aware that the times will not be as accurate due to human error.
• If you are out of shape this workout will hurt you real bad. But you must stick with it over time in order to dominate your competition on the track.
• Do not quit because the first workout humbles you. Success requires struggle.
Conclusion
This sprint workout will get you faster on the track.
Remember to do the thing, you’ve got to do the cot dang thing. You don’t get strong by lifting light weights and you don’t get lean by eating a lot of garbage foods.
You also don’t get fast by running slow.
I’ll holla at you next time.
The People’s Trainer,
Fitman
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Thanks that was great
David,
Thanks for reading I appreciate it!