Hill workouts are also a popular way to do a speed workout. The best way to do a hill workout is in a circuit. Run up the hill, then jog back to the base, but preferably not straight back down the hill. Instead, circle back down to the base (Gilmore and Lydiard 40). If a circular route is not available to a runner, then the runner can run up the hill and jog straight back down again with some time for recovery at the base. Runners will use several repetitions of one of these two ways for this speed workout.
From speed workouts the runner receives many positive benefits that make it a desirable way to train. One positive element is itincreases your (a runner's) anaerobic capacity to work? (Higdon 47). This element is paramount for the runner. In a race a runner must be able to delve deep into oxygen debt. In the 1,500 a runner only gets 52.5% of the oxygen he needs. In the 800 meter run, the runner only receives 43.3% of the oxygen he needs (Runner's World 6). This means that the athletes must run almost the whole race without enough oxygen. Speed work helps combat this so that during a race the pace and conditions can be better tolerated by the runner (Jordan and Spencer 61). .
Another positive element of speed work is thatit helps you (a runner) run all distances at a higher level of intensity and you?ll gain a sense of pace? (Higdon 47). For a runner, pace is supreme, because it is the most efficient way to cover a distance (Jordan and Spencer 53). Therefore the fastest way to run a race is with a set pace. The only way for a runner to find the best pace for him is to practice with speed work. Through practice the runner hones his muscle memory reflex and he trains his muscles for that specific skill (Dugard 68). Dugard compares speed to a trail,If a trail is ignored, it becomes tangled with vegetation and difficult to navigate? (68).
A third important aspect of speed work is that it teaches a runner to run comfortably and relaxed over a given distance (Jordan and Spencer 7).