How to Progress Tempo for Recovery
The type of tempo I am referring to is that which is done at 60% of your maximum speed or effort over a given distance. In this case, I refer to repetitions of 100 meters. Whatever your current best 100 meter time, you can calculate the 60% rate by multiplying your best 100 meter time by 1.4. When I first began my tempo experience this spring I was doing my tempo between 18 and 19 seconds usually, timed from a standing start. The goal is to be able to finish the final rep as fast as your first rep, though perhaps experiencing some aerobic discomfort and heaviness. You should never feel any kind of lactic burn during a recovery tempo workout. It serves to keep the sprinter's aerobic system fit and keep them lean, in as specific a way as possible. After an intense speed and power day, one should follow it with a tempo recovery workout. It can also serve as a gateway to faster efforts when just beginning a sprint program.
What follows is a smooth gentle progression that anybody who even jogs regularly can hop into.
- 8 x 100m @ 60%, rest 60 seconds between
- 10 x 100m @ 60%, rest 60 seconds between
- 12 x 100m @ 60%, rest 60 seconds between
- 3 x 3 x 100m @ 60%, rest 30 seconds between reps and 90 seconds between sets
- 4 x 3 x 100m @ 60%, rest 30 seconds between reps and 90 seconds between sets
- 3 x 4 x 100m @ 60%, rest 30 seconds between reps and 90 seconds between sets
- 2 x 6 x 100m @ 60%, rest 30 seconds between reps and 90 seconds between sets
- (8 x 100m, rest 30 seconds) rest 90 seconds (4 x 100m, rest 30 seconds)
- 10 x 100m, rest 30 seconds
The progression is so gradual that you can do this workout just about everyday and achieve the goal of 10 x 100m with 30 seconds rest in a matter of weeks. Of course this depends on factors like fitness level, adaptation, injuries and any other training you are doing concurrently. For longer sprints 200-800 meters you will probably want to progress the length of the reps to 200 meters. That is for another blog entry. I hope you find this helpful if you are seeking a path to be a fit tempo sprinter.