YASSO 800s

8 TO 10 X 800m WITH EQUAL RECOVERY JOG

I’m a fan of Yasso 800s. This workout not only provides a great stimulus to get fitter, but is also a good predictor of your marathon potential.

Benefits of Yasso 800s

There are many benefits of running Yasso 800s. They are a form of speed workout that will improve your endurance, running efficiency, speed, and race pace. Running 800-meter intervals for 10 repeats is no easy task, and Yasso 800s will definitely help improve your marathon pace and race pace for other distances. Yasso 800s also train your body to perform well even when you are fatigued, boosting your stamina for long-distance races.

How to Run the Yasso 800s

Run the 800s at the minutes and seconds of your goal marathon time and take an equal time for a recovery jog between each. For example, if you want to run 3 hours, 25 minutes for the marathon, then run your 800s in 3 minutes, 25 seconds, taking a 3:25 jog between each rep.

Start with at least eight repetitions and work up to 10. A common mistake is running the first few repeats too fast, fatiguing before eight repetitions can be completed to get a better “predictor” from the workout.

Try to hit your goal and leave it at that. You may feel the recovery is too long at first, but those precious seconds are necessary to complete the workout properly. (Repeat this workout later in your training plan to see if you’re on track for your goal time.)