Trending: Shorter Run Walk Run® Segments
For 50 years, I have been teaching my run walk run® method (RWR) and collecting data on which strategies work best—based upon the pace per mile. If you haven’t attended one of my recent clinics, retreats, or Master Classes—in person or online—there have been some changes—based upon the data from over 500,000 runners using my method.
Fifty years ago, when I began teaching the method, only beginners were interested in taking strategic walk breaks from the beginning of a run. And many running experts believe that RWR has brought multitudes into running who wouldn’t have considered running non-stop.
As I followed the progress of new RWR runners compared with non-stop beginners, the RWR group progressed more quickly because they weren’t exhausted or injured. My first surprise was that walk breaks in races helped the RWRers surpass many veteran non-stoppers in races. In several surveys, those who shifted from non-stop running to the right run walk run® strategy improved an average of over 7 minutes in a half marathon and 13+ minutes in a marathon. Competitive runners originally bruised their pride by taking walk breaks—but kept doing it because they could run faster times.
“What’s the best RWR strategy?” is the most common RWR question. The answer depends upon the pace per mile. Four decades ago, I decided to collect data by pace per mile and then track the strategies that worked best. My JG Run Walk Run App helps runners use my “Magic Mile” time trial to find the right pace at various distances—with the RWR strategies that have worked best by pace per mile.
Even I was surprised when the data showed that a 30-second walk resulted in quicker recovery and faster times than a 1-minute walk. For example, when we changed the run walk run® strategy in our Galloway Training programs from 4 min run/1 min walk to 2 min run/30-sec walk, the 9-minute/mile runners improved an average of about 4 minutes in the half marathon. Even those who were running a minute and walking a minute improved about as much when they shifted to 30 seconds/30 seconds.
Analyzing the effects of a 60-second walk in long runs revealed that runners slowed down during the second 30 seconds of a minute walk break. Also, during the second half of races it became more difficult to re-start the run segment. So after reducing the standard Galloway walk segment to 30 seconds, I maintained the same ratio of running to walking by cutting the run segment in half. Recent research reported in Amby Burfoot’s informative newsletter Run Healthy/Run Long, confirmed the benefit of shorter run segments.
In this study, healthy active females and males, aged 18-39. did three (30-minute) treadmill workouts on separate days each week—at a pace that Amby describes as “a hard session, but not a killer.”
One day they ran non-stop, one day they did 5 x 6-minute intervals with a 2-min recovery; and on the 3rd day they did 15 x 2-minute intervals with a 2 min recovery. The researchers studied how each workout type affected the heart’s recovery rate, heart rate variability, blood lactate, and blood pressure during and after the workouts.
“Result: Heart rates recovered faster after the 2-minute intervals, which also produced the lowest blood lactate levels (increase in lactate indicates fatigue is increasing quickly). Also, heart rate variability (a measure of nervous system recovery) was better after the 2-minute intervals.” It is my opinion that a one-minute run would have shown even better recovery.
Conclusion: “Exercise pattern influences the physiologic response to exercise.” Moreover, higher frequency intervals like 15 x 2 minutes can “expedite post-exercise recovery while maintaining total work performed.” Reference: Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.
Tip: To find the RWR strategy that works best for you, I recommend starting with the strategies listed in my App or my book RUN WALK RUN—at the realistic pace predicted by the Magic Mile. Then, experiment during one of your shorter, mid-week runs. Run 4-6 x quarter mile or half mile at goal race pace with a 3 min walk between. Use a slightly different run walk run® strategy on each. If you do this every week, you will find 2-3 RWR strategies that feel better and are more sustainable.
YOU CAN DO IT!
