Total Body Transformation Training Blog

Tempo Runs and Lactate Thresholds

There are two general goals everyone thinks about in training for a race event -- getting faster, and having more endurance. These two go hand in hand and for distance events are regulated by our lactate threshold". Generally, the best predictor of endurance performance is your lactate threshold -- the speed you are able to run before lactic acid begins to accumulate in the blood.

One time proven way to increase your lactate threshold is with tempo runs. By regularly including tempo runs in your training schedule, you will increase the speed that you can run before lactic acid begins to slow you down. To use a car analogy, tempo runs will allow your engine to rev faster without red-lining. Before tempo training, you may have red-lined at an 8-minute-per-mile pace. After a few months of tempo runs, you won't red-line until you reach a 7:30-per-mile pace.

Typically, a temp run lasts 20-35 minutes and is at a pace that you could maintain for an hour steady. It isn't all out, but it isn't dogging it either. Here are some simple techniques you can use to determine your tempo run pace, and by analogy your lactate threshold:

1. Perceived effort. The idea is to be able to maintain the tempo for an hour but actually only do it for the 20-35 minutes. On a scale of 1-10, a tempo pace is a 6-7. You could speak to someone, but not carry on a long conversation. Comfortable but with effort.

2. Heart rate. Although heart rate at lactate threshold varies from person to person, it usually falls between 85 to 95 percent of your maximum (women are often on the higher end). The much used 220 - age calculation of maximum heart rate is not as accurate as the following formula:

205 - half your age - resting heart rate x .85 + resting heart rate

So if I were 40 and had a resting heart rate of 50 (measured first thing in the morning before getting out of bed), then I'd be crunching these numbers: 205 - 20 - 50 = 135 x .85 = 115 + 50, which equals roughly 165 beats per minute.

Once you know your tempo heart-rate range, strap on a heart-rate monitor as you head out the door, and it'll tell you if you're hitting your range. If you don't run with a heart-rate monitor, you'll need to keep track of your heart rate yourself by periodically slowing down to a walk and taking your pulse for 10 seconds. Count the beats and multiple by 6.