July: Drill

   Fads sweep through running programs with the loopy frequency we associate with diets, footwear, and how-to-find-a-spouse books. But give yourself a break when you feel a fad tugging at you. We're drawn to them because of hope and innocence.

   Granted, some fads make enduring contributions. Less-is- more training programs, for example, were once regarded with deep suspicion by running coaches and trainers: they were shortcuts, gimmicks that could doom an athlete to injury or failure. Today they inform the workouts of runners ranging from high-school sprinters to Olympic marathoners. This is because you get diminishing returns from longer workouts, whether you measure yours in time or distance. The remedy, according to the less- is-more approach, is to train smarter instead of longer. Heaven knows, if you're going to run a marathon, you have to log many miles a week. Competitive sprinters typically need to be out on the track twice a day. But once you're working at a relatively high level of fitness, drills deliver more for less effort.

   Interval training is the essential drill for any runner, because it raises your lactic threshold, which makes you faster. Long the province of sprinters, interval training is now used by elite distance runners, including marathoners. The types of interval training you do should vary according to your goals. Experimentation will eventually lead you to results, and the Internet teems with training regimens to help. Yet the truth is that all runners need speed. Sometimes this isn't apparent. When you need to maintain your pace while climbing a long hill, for example, speed muscles come into play. The worst mistake recreational runners make is to maintain the same pace in every workout. Intervals are the best way to build muscle over less time and distance.

   Speaking of hills, charges are similar to interval training (as they say, hills are speed work in disguise), with a key difference: hill charges also build the explosive muscles that launch you from step to step. They make your stride more efficient so that you use less energy to cover more ground at faster speeds. As with intervals, this type of drill benefits all runners. The specific kinds of charges you do should reflect your goals. Bear in mind that the down h ill part of the drill, which is good for recovery, also builds your quadriceps (knee muscles), which catch your step on landing. Strong quadriceps prevent injury.

   Many elite runners do other drills to improve their stride efficiency. Bottom kicks, for example, in which your heel taps your derriere as you run, improve your turnover rate and will make you faster. In a high knee drill, you pull your knee up until your thigh is parallel to the ground as you run. This will improve your foot-strike position, so that you're not squandering energy with each step. Even skipping can improve your foot-strike position. Drills may sound like sheer monotony, but in fact, they're fun. They're child's play.