Tempo Run

A tempo run is a shorter run at or near your lactate Threshold, i.e. 80-90% of your maximum heart rate. Tempo runs are typically 20-30 mins of non-stop running at close to race pace. For marathon training these runs can stretch up to 10 miles or 16km. Tempo runs make a 10 mins warm-up and 10 mins cool-down jog mandatory to avoid injuries.

The tempo run is run at a fast pace, talking is no longer possible. You employ a different set of muscles, the so called fast twitch muscles that produce much more power from using mostly carbo-hydrats during this un-aerobic exercise although at the expense of a byproduct called lactose that accumulates in your muscles. The presence of lactose makes you feel tired and too much of it inevitably will make you stop. The tempo run teaches your body to get used to the presence of lactate and to reduce the amount of lactate present.

What pace should you run a tempo run?

A lactate test will tell you the exact pace for a tempo run. In the absence of an accurate lab result you should aim for 5-10% faster than your race pace - the average including warm-up and cool down will be roughly your race pace.

Example paces from the MacMillan Running Calculator:

Tempo Run Intensities
goal timerace pacetempo race
 in h  in min/km  in min/km 
 5:00  7:07  6:28-6:45 
 4:45  6:46  6:09-6:25 
 4:30  6:25  5:49-6:05 
 4:15  6:03  5:30-5:44 
 4:00  5:42  5:11-5:24 
 3:45  5:20  4:51-5:04 
 3:30  4:59  4:32-4:44 
 3:15  4:38  4:12-4:23 
 3:00  4:16  3:53-4:03 


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