Fartlek Training
Taken from the Swedish work for ‘Speed Play,’ Fartlek training is a combination of continuous training and interval training. This engages anaerobic and aerobic pathways in the body and can be a highly effective, all-round method of exercise. This makes it ideal for runners or athletes that would benefit from similar training.
The training can be deployed across a range of environments, but the most common types of exercise include-
Watson Fartlek: Ideal for cross-country exercise, this exercise involves 10 minutes of warm up followed by four minutes of hard striding covered with a one-minute jog recovery. This should be repeated eight times then followed with a ten-minute cooldown.
Gerschler Fartlek: This supports an intensive exercise regimen. This begins with a 10 minute warm up then a repeated pattern of hard striding for 30 seconds then 90 seconds of jogging, with the jog decreasing by 15 seconds with every repetition.
Hill Fartlek: This is useful for developing endurance. This involves a ten minute warm up then running a two mile hilly course with hard running up each hill twice before moving to the next and ending on a ten minute cooldown.
