My Personal Experience

In the late eighties/early nineties I attended Otago University in Dunedin. At the time I was pretty keen on running and the Hill City Club in Dunedin had a bunch of young guys running for it - some of who were all fairly talented to say the least. A couple had represented New Zealand at junior level, all were provincial representatives and a few went on to represent New Zealand at senior level. What a fantastic opportunity to improve my running - train hard with the top guys and I'd become a legend!

Well, to cut a long story short, it didn't quite work out like that. Training with these guys was, for me, like racing. I would be hanging on the back of the bunch, nearly sucking my fillings out with each breath, and my legs would be aching while these guys were laughing and being idiots while running around the Ross Creek tracks at six minute mile pace! It definitely wasn't the right kind of training for me. My long aerobic runs nearly destroyed me, and on top of this I was left with barely enough energy to do my quality training.

One of the guys owned a heart rate monitor so I borrowed it and started toying around with it. At the time I was studying Physical Education so decided to put a few theories into practice. My long easy runs became solo affairs at a heart rate I could hold a sustained conversation at.

The outcome of the change in training was a huge improvement in performance. I could complete and recover far better from my long runs, and my quality sessions were better as I wasn't so tired before these sessions. The improved training I was doing enabled also enabled me to race better - I managed to win team medals at national level as part of the Otago senior men's cross country team and as part of the Hill City senior road relay team. By not training with my mates I was able to race with them, which was far more rewarding than doing it the other way around.

The Science Behind it

So let's look at the physiology behind the practice. Essentially it was quite basic really, by training alone and using a heart rate monitor I did a far greater percentage of my training aerobically rather than anaerobically.

With the upper limit of aerobic training being at or about 80% of maximum heart rate, it is important to keep your heart rate below this level when doing your long slow distance endurance training (this does not mean you average 80% for your session; it means you never go over it). This is the stuff that Arthur Lydiard made popular years ago, but is still the basis of training for any endurance sport. Done properly, this training will develop your cardiovascular system, develop your fat burning metabolism and improve your efficiency. To train like this takes quite a lot of discipline as when you get to a hill or if you have a head wind it means you have to really slow down, or even maybe even walk. It also means you have to choose carefully who you train with.

Choosing your Training Partners

I give a bit of advice to athletes I coach as to who they should train with. I base it on both my experiences and science. The key thing is to train with someone who has a similar aerobic training speed to you. This is opposed to someone who perhaps has the same race times as you. It works well if you and the person you train with can both train aerobically (under 80% maximum heart rate) whilst running the same speed. If your training partner runs a bit faster than you, dragging you above your 80% aerobic training maximum heart rate, you need to slow them down or you may just need to start looking for someone else to train with.

Look for a training partner who doesn't surge on every hill. If you stay with them you will go over your aerobic limit, which you do not want to do. This situation will work however if they wait for you at the top of the hill. If they don't, and they expect you to catch them up, then once again you are likely to go over your aerobic training level in doing so.

Train with the fast runners when you need to run fast. When you need to do some speed work or other quality training, then hunt out the athletes who are a bit quicker than you. Use them to drag you along a bit quicker than you can manage when you are alone or when you are with your usual training partner(s).

Train with those with the right psychological approach. In cycling there is a term 'half wheeling' - it applies to those who always ride half a wheel in front of the person they are beside. What happens is the person behind tries to move up beside the half wheeler. The half wheeler thinks they need to speed up to keep the status quo and the cycle (excuse the pun) goes on until everyone involved is travelling at ridiculous speeds. In running I refer to this situation as "half shoeing" - no matter how hard you try you can't get level with the person you are running beside. Often the half shoer doesn't know they are doing it until world record pace has been reached. A tug of the running singlet early in the run can sometimes remedy things before they get ugly.

Often training with one other person rather than a group can allow you to run at the level you need to. One other person is a lot easier to control. If two others (or more) are involved, often the strongest will go to the front and the others in the group will get sucked into going at the leaders pace.

Train with the vets. Over the years I've found veterans to be clever enough not to get caught in the trap of overdoing things. Through years of experience they seem to have an in-built pace judgement so they know when exactly they are above or below their aerobic training level. Usually vets are past their ego stage too so they don't charge up hills or surge for no reason. They often have good stories too which helps pass the time.

If you are a man, train with women. For many men, women will run a bit slower than them (but not all!), so they effectively make great training partners. If they are slower than you, just by turning up and training with them you know you are going to train below your maximum aerobic training heart rate. They don't usually have egos as big as men either which usually prevents the `half shoe' and `first to the top scenarios' occurring which is often a welcome relief.

If you are the stronger runner when training with others then be aware of the need to slow down a bit, wait at the top of hills or loop back when you get ahead.

Make sure when everyone in a running group sets off that everyone knows the intensity of the run and that if it is an aerobic run, it essentially has to be done at the pace of the runner who has the slowest aerobic training pace.

Running with others can be enjoyable, the company can help pass the time and enable you to achieve more than you may have been able to by training on your own. However, you need to be aware of your own upper limit of aerobic training and stay below this while maintaining good running etiquette with those you are training with. Get out and build your aerobic fitness effectively and reach your potential, rather than end up a burnt out training hack.

By Coach Mark