Learning from the masters - Paul Aufdemberge

While there are a lot of dumb things about the internet, it is a total goldmine for training information. Back in my first life as a runner it was much harder to find out what kind of workouts other people were doing. I pretty much relied on what my coaches told me or read articles in monthly running magazines. Now you can find great stuff on a daily basis! This year I have had a lot of luck with certain workouts that star masters guys have utilized. Earlier this year I mentioned the Monoghetti fartlek workout, named after Aussie masters star Steve Moneghetti, and I have also written about Sean Wade, whose training site (listed on my links) is another great resource. Recently, I read an article about Michigan masters star Paul Aufdemberge, which mentioned a killer workout that I have tried several times over the past few weeks. If you are training for an 8K or 10K, I highly recommend it. It really teaches pacing and helps build mental toughness. After warming up for 2 miles or so, go to the track and run a ladder consisting of a mile, 1200, 800, 400, followed by another mile with jog breaks of only 200 meters. The brief rest breaks really make this workout. If you do the first mile portion too hard (like I did the first time I tried this workout) you'll suffer badly at the end, just like you would if you went out too hard in a race. If in doubt, hold back early on! The last mile is especially hard because the workout starts to feel easier and easier as the length of the reps go down. With upcoming 5 mile and 10K races in the next month and a half, I plan on doing this workout a few more times.