Interval training has re-invigorated my training.
I purchased a chest strap heart rate monitor and running watch to help dial in my running. These tools are incredibly helpful to accurately gather data in real time.
I have been doing a half hour warm up with a heart rate between 120-130, followed by 6 sets of 3 minute intervals amping up my heart rate to as close to max as possible, which is 165-180. I will cool down by bringing my heart rate back down into the 120 bpm area for a minimum of 10 minutes.
These training sessions have been on my treadmill so far. It is perfect because variables can be controlled.
I was getting a bit bored with just trying to run for a long time, I felt a bit of a plateau. I am reading a book on Ultrarunning by Jason Koop in which he suggests interval training. The hardest training should be done far from race day, and getting more specific towards race day.
There is a wealth of information available – I am glad I have the opportunity to find and use this information.
Happy running.