Workout progression.
How should workouts progress from session to session?
The VQD model explained.
Effective training for a race, or series of races, should demonstrate some sort of “progression”. This means that training sessions, and other metrics, should evolve over time, resulting in improved performance of the athlete. This occurs in accordance with the SAID principle (specific adaptation to imposed demand), where, as the athlete adapts to novel and manifold training stimuli, fresh stimuli must be introduced to ensure continued improvements in performance. In other words, you can’t just keep doing the exact same workouts forever and expect to keep getting better. Training sessions must evolve to impose new and more challenging demands on the athlete in order for the desired adaptations to be attained.
So what’s a great way to do this? The VQD model of progression.
The VQD model is a highly effective progression scheme. The letters refer to Volume, Quality, and Density, which are the building blocks of any workout. The basic idea is that, with each subsequent workout, you select at least one of these three qualities to “modulate”. I’ll explain further, but first, let’s define some terms:
Volume: in this model, volume refers to the total or global distance covered in the entirety of the session.
Quality: this can be thought of as “intensity-level”. What determines it as “high” or “low” is how it relates to the goal race pace in terms of velocity, as well as the duration/length of the interval relative to the running velocity. E.g. in a training scheme that focuses on 10,000m development, a workout consisting of 800m repeats at 5k pace would be considered “high” quality, both because the speed of the intervals is faster than goal race pace, and because 800m intervals run at 5k effort are generally high-intensity endeavors.
Density: this refers to the amount of recovery time taken between intervals and/or sets, but remember that it’s also relative to the quality of the intervals being run. E.g. a session consisting of 800m repeats @ 5k pace w/ 60s rest would be viewed as a denser session than 400m repeats @ 5k pace w/ 60s rest. Though they both use 60s rest between intervals, the rest is considered “shorter” relative to the higher-intensity level of the 800m intervals.
How to use the VQD model.
There are two ways you can apply the VQD model of progression:
Binary VQD
and
Variable VQD
Both models share the same goal: to progress workouts toward specificity, and to culminate in a session that closely simulates the demands of a particular race. On that note, it’s good to come up with this “most specific” final workout from the start, and then structure the other workouts so that, over time, they build toward that one.
Binary VQD is the simpler of the two approaches. This in no way implies that it’s inferior or less effective than the Variable approach; only that it has fewer “moving parts”. Binary VQD is a basic-yet-effective linear progression. You’ll select ONE of the three values (volume, quality, or density) that will remain static and unchanging throughout the progression window. Then you’ll modulate either or both of the remaining two components in each sequential session, with each session being more race-specific than the one before. Let’s say you’re training for a 10k. You’ve decided that the component you wish to remain static will be the “density”. The progression would look something like this:
Start: 10 x 600m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
V up: 13 x 600m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
Q up: 10 x 800m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
V up: 12 x 800m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
V down, Q up: 8 x 1000m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest*
V up: 10 x 1000m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
V down, Q up: 5 x 1 mi @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest*
V up: 6 x 1 mi @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
You can see that the density (rest periods) remains at 2 minutes for every session, while the volume and/or quality components modulate from session to session.
When putting together a Binary VQD schedule, it’s good to make small changes, and avoid any massive “jumps” in total demand from one session to the next. In keeping with this, the pace or velocity of the intervals remains the same throughout. Only the volume and quality values are manipulated to “evolve” the demand imposed on the runner.
Here’s a quick reference guide for assembling a Binary VQD program:
Begin by coming up with the final, most race-specific workout.
Make the first session decidedly lower in volume than the final workout, and at a quality level that you’re confident you’ll have no issue in executing. Erring on the “easy” side here is okay.
Over time, make the demands of each workout more and more similar to the final one.
Try to change only one component at a time.
If you’re going to change both components in a session, increase one and decrease the other.
Don’t increase the same component more than two sessions in a row.
Variable VQD is more complex than its Binary cohort, but don’t let that intimidate you. It’s a little more geared toward the advanced runner with many years of quality training experience. While this does not have to be the case, such complexity simply isn’t needed for the less experienced runner to achieve similar, if not superior, adaptations.
In this system, ALL THREE components can and will be manipulated. As with the Binary approach, it’s recommended to construct the final workout from the beginning, and then build each session toward it. One big difference in the Variable method is that the intervals will include multiple paces. In fact, I would recommend that the earlier sessions be entirely composed of paces that are faster than goal race pace. As you progress from workout to workout, you’ll insert more and more work at goal pace, and less and less work at faster paces, but the idea is that you’re including varying stimuli within sessions to attract a more nuanced adaptation.
Here’s an example progression for a 10,000m runner:
Start: 6 x (200m, 200m, 400m) all @ current 5k pace w/ 45s rest after 200s, and 60s rest between sets.
Q up: 12 x 400m @ current 5k pace w/ 60s rest
V up, Q up: 3 x (1 mi @ goal 10k/ 3 min rest/ 800m @ current 5k) 4 min rest between sets
V up, D up: 10 x 800m @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest, then 4 x 400m @ current 5k w/ 60s rest
V down, Q up, D up: 2 x (1600m @ goal 10k/ 2:30 rest/ 1200m @ goal 10k/ 2 min rest/ 800m @ goal 10k/ 90s rest/ 400m @ current 5k) w/ 3 min rest between sets
V up, Q up, D up: 6 x 1 mi @ goal 10k pace w/ 2 min rest
You’ll notice that the final workout is made up entirely of intervals at goal race pace (most race-specific), and that the first workout is entirely run at a pace faster than goal pace. This modulation and mixing of multiple paces is a critical difference between the Variable and Binary methods. It’s also permitted to modulate two or all components from one session to the next, as seen above.
Here’s a quick reference guide for assembling a Variable VQD program:
Begin by coming up with the final, most race-specific workout.
Make the first session decidedly lower in volume than the final workout, and run entirely at a faster pace than the final workout. Set a quality level that you’re confident you’ll have no issue in executing. Erring on the “easy” side here is okay.
Over time, make the demands of each workout more and more similar to the final one.
Make each sequential workout contain less volume of the faster pace, and more volume of the goal pace.
The norm is to elevate two components at a time, but it’s okay to increase all three on occasion. It’s also okay to only elevate one component. There aren’t strict rules here. Do what seems necessary.
Don’t increase the same component more than two sessions in a row.
There are countless ways to employ both of these progression techniques. They are driven by principle, which allows you to be highly creative in the actual contents of the training while still moving toward a shared goal: performance excellence!
Got questions?
Hit me up!
andrew@dredrunning.com
AED
Dreditor-in-chief
