I had a build long run on my schedule today and I was so glad that the roads had been cleared at North Park, so I could do it there. What exactly is a build run, and why does it help with race preparation?

A build run is simply a run where the pace builds, from slow to fast, as the run progresses.  My two hour run today was broken down into four, thirty minute sections.  My instructions were to run each thirty minute block, faster than the previous one.  The key to successfully executing this type of run, is to not start out too fast.

These runs are excellent race preparation because they mimic the ideal way to race.  It is well known that people’s fastest race run times, come when they negative split the run.  That is, they run the second half of the run, faster than the first half.  The build run, simulates a negative split run, but slightly exaggerates the size of the negative split.  It is a really good way of demonstrating that even when starting off really slowly, you can still achieve a fast overall time.

The build long run that I did today was especially useful, because I did it with tired legs.  That is likely how my legs will feel in Oceanside, after the bike.  My run also went really well.  I got much faster by the end of the run.  Taking the first few miles quite easy, seems to have really helped.  The big question is… will I be that patient during my race?