Tempo Thursday

Today was the 2nd real training run and my first introduction to a tempo run.  Some information about a tempo run…

•  A tempo run, that faster-paced workout also known as a lactate-threshold, LT, or threshold run. 
• Many running experts believe that tempo runs are the single most important workout you can do to improve your speed for any race distance.
• Tempo running is crucial to racing success because it trains your body to sustain speed over distances.
• Everyone who does tempo runs diligently improves.
• Tempo running improves a crucial physiological variable for running success: our metabolic fitness. “Most runners have trained their cardiovascular system to deliver oxygen to the muscles,” says exercise scientist Bill Pierce, chair of the health and exercise science department at Furman University in South Carolina, “but they haven’t trained their bodies to use that oxygen once it arrives. Tempo runs do just that by teaching the body to use oxygen for metabolism more efficiently.” 
• Aim for tempo runs of two to three miles if your goal is general fitness or a 5-K. Runners tackling longer distances should do longer tempo runs during their peak training weeks: four to six miles for the 10-K, six to eight for the half-marathon, and eight to 10 for 26.2.
• Tempo pace should feel “comfortably hard, you know you’re working, but you’re not racing. At the same time, you’d be happy if you could slow down.”

I am a beginner at Tempo running so my workout looked like this: 1.25mi warmup (13:31); 1.5mi tempo (15:46); 1mi cool down (12:59).  My tempo pace was 10:30 min/miles.  I am not so sure I can say this was confortably hard because of the weather.  It was HOT and HUMID.  I cant wait for cooler weather! 

My half marathon plan only gets me up to 4 mile tempo runs so for my marathon I plan to get up to 8 miles.