Friday Fartlek Run – Goater’s Killer Session

Julian Goater used this session as a key sharpening workout in the final lead-up to major events. He would conduct the session 10 days out from the race. He used it prior to setting his 1,500m PB of 3:42 in 1982 and also winning the AAA 10,000m championship the same year. This session is great for runners from 5km to half and full marathon, as well as triathletes.

Each week I will be posting the Friday Fartlek Run Sessions that you can do to enhance your running. Fartlek is a Swedish term that is often used by runners and it means speed-play. See a previous post about training intensity (levels) to know how hard to work.

This workout has come from an article in Athletics Weekly about sessions Julian Goater conducted back in the 80s. You can read the article here.

Goater’s Killer Session

• 10min WU Level II;
• 6 sets of:
  • 2x 300m, 20sec RI (3min RI between sets);
• 10min CD Level II;
• 10min Stretching

Start the workout with a Warm Up (WU) for a minimum of ten minutes of easy jogging at Level II.

The main set is made up of six sets.

Each set is made up of two, 300m reps done on the road. Find a segment that is a slight downhill.

The first rep is run downhill on a slight gradient. Run the first rep fast and relaxed. Take a twenty-second Rest Interval (RI) between reps. The second rep is to run back uphill, and aim to run the return journey at the same time as the first rep (this is extremely difficult to do). Take a three-minute Rest Interval (RI) between sets before the next set.

The Cool Down (CD) is at a low intensity, jogging (Level II) for a minimum of ten minutes. See the chart below for recommended warm-up durations for various total durations.

Finish with 10 minutes of stretching to assist with the recovery.

I am the Head Coach & Director of Qwik Kiwi – Endurance Sports Consultant.

I specialise in assisting first-timers and recreational athletes to achieve their sporting goals. I can be contacted at coachray@coachray.nz and 021 348 729.

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Download the Garmin (.FIT) and Zwift (.ZWO) files for this workout for FREE

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