Extra Reps

To do twenty 400-metre repeats – yes, 20! – you’ll  need tenacity and proper pacing.

- Alex Hutchinson

Researchers combed through four decades of studies to determine the most effective type of interval training. The sweet spot for aerobic fitness, they found, was repeats lasting 3-5 minutes each. So it was a surprise when the team leader, physiologist and training guru Michael Joyner, recently promoted a very different workout.

Joyner suggested building up to doing 20x400m, with a 200m jog after each repeat. Depending on pace, each repeat might take 1-2 minutes – shorter than ‘optimal’ length. But the benefits are “as much spiritual or philosophical as they are physiological”. The stops and starts demand a hyperfocused state of mind and cultivate a meditative rhythm, the physical challenge leaves you with a sense of mastery. And it’s short enough that you can run pretty fast, but you can recover and do it again and again.

Here’s how to harness the power of repetition in your own training.

01 BUILD GRADUALLY