It is well established that psychology plays a significant role in running performance[1] and this workout, whilst having VO2 Max enhancement benefits, is mainly aimed at making an athlete comfortable with being uncomfortable. In order to do that we place high demands on the bodies’ aerobic and lactic systems at the beginning of the interval raising the heart rate very quickly by running fast to start with [2]. The remainder of the set, although at a slower pace and thus lower risk of injury, then continues to feel extremely hard.
The set itself is simple; 800m as 200m maximum effort then 600m 5km pace minus 5 seconds per km, then recover fully (2 to 3 minutes).
[1] Lochbaum M, Stoner E, Hefner T, Cooper S, Lane AM, Terry PC (2022) Sport psychology and performance meta-analyses: A systematic review of the literature. PLoS ONE 17(2): e0263408. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0263408
[2] Hunt, K.J., Fankhauser, S.E. & Saengsuwan, J. Identification of heart rate dynamics during moderate-to-vigorous treadmill exercise. BioMed Eng OnLine 14, 117 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12938-015-0112-7
Misery and Torture 
3 thoughts on “800’s With a Hard Start”