Workout for building vo2Max

"The best way to do this would be to alternate short intervals run at vVO2max with short 'floats' (jogging recoveries) at perhaps half of vVO2max. Keeping the hard intervals short would delay fatigue by preventing acid buildup in the muscles from getting out of hand. Keeping the floats short would prevent oxygen consumption from falling very far before hard work resumed.

The workout format she settled on was highly unorthodox, consisting of 30-second bursts at vVO2max separated by 30-second floats and repeated to failure (that is, until vVO2max can no longer be sustained for 30 seconds). In testing this format Billat found that some runners were able to amass more than 18 total minutes at VO2max, almost one third of it occurring during their jogging recoveries! A group of moderately fit runners increased their VO2max by 10% (that's huge) in just 8-10 weeks when they added twice weekly 30-30 sessions to their training.

The only question is, how do you determine your vVO2max? The only sure way is to perform a graded exercise test in a laboratory environment. But you can get a close approximation simply by running a six-minute time trial on a track. Divide the total distance you run in six minutes by 12 to get the distance covered per 30 seconds. Suppose you run 1,720 meters in your six-minute time trial. 1/12 of this distance is 143 meters. This is roughly how far you should run your hard 30-second intervals in your 30-30 workouts. Here are some other guidelines:

* Warm up with 10 minutes of easy jogging
* Set the countdown timer on your watch for 30 seconds and reset it immediately at the beginning and end of each interval
* Run 30 seconds at your vVO2max (control your pace by trying to cover exactly 1/12 of the distance you covered in your six-minute time trial)
* Jog 30 seconds at roughly half vVO2max
* Repeat this process until you can no longer cover the designated distance at vVO2max (16-24 intervals are the norm)
* Cool down with 10 minutes of easy jogging
* Do this workout once a week for four to six weeks beginning right after you've completed your winter/spring base building. (Expect to see the number of intervals you're able to complete gradually increase from session to session; expect to see your pace increase gradually as well)
* After four to six weeks, switch to a 60-60 format for four to six weeks
* After another four to six weeks, switch to a format of five, three-minute intervals at vVO2max with three-minute jogging recoveries for four to six weeks"

Link

Great article by Matt Fitzgerald. Be sure to check out his book Runner's World Performance Nutrition for Runners (Rodale, 2005).