One Workout
Post-Injury Fartlek Plan
The fart lek is a classic running workout that can be the perfect return to intensity, post-injury. Fart lek comes from Swedish origins and means “speed play.” The idea is you are doing some fast running interspersed with easy running.
The fartlek is typically effortbased, which means you shouldn’t compare your pace to pre-injury workouts. It can be challenging not to compare when coming back from injury, but try to be kind to yourself and appreciate being able to put in some hard work. Ease into any of these fartlek routines gradually.
1 Fartlek Workout
• 2–3K warm-up
• 20–30min of 1 min hard effort, 1 min easy effort
• 2–3K cool down
Progression
• 2–3K warm-up
• 20–30 min of 2 min hard, 1 min easy
• 2–3K cool down
When coming back from injury, it is important to slowly increase intensity. Because the fartlek is effort-based, you won’t get caught trying to force paces you previously ran, so you avoid putting yourself in a vulnerable position for re-injury.
Running tech can also help with your fartleks. Load pace targets into your device, and it will beep or buzz if you are too fast or too slow.
2 Fartlek Workout
• 2–3K warm-up
• 10 min hard, 2 min easy, 8 min hard, 2 min easy, 6 min hard, 2 min easy, 4 min hard, 1 min easy, 2 min hard
• 2–3K cool down
Run progressively faster each one, think starting at half-marathon effort and ending at 5K effort or faster.
The fartlek also works well for marathon training to try out new paces. This should be done in the second half of your marathon build. It will help make your marathon race pace feel easier.
3 Fartlek Workout
• 2–3K warm-up
• 6–8K done as 2 min at goal marathon pace, 2 min at MP minus 10 s
• 2–3K cool down
If you want to keep it low tech, you can literally keep the fartlek as simple as using landmarks. Grab some friends and take turns choosing landmarks for hard and easy sections.
Bonus
You can take the fartlek anywhere. If you can run, you can do a fartlek. This is the no-excuse workout and can be adapted to almost any running goal.
Dr. Brittany Moran is a chiropractor at the Runner’s Academy in Toronto and a certified strength and conditioning specialist.