Eliud Kipchoge – Fartlek
The boys didn’t seem at all perturbed by this, and it was business as usual. They started their jog on the main road, easing into a gentle 5:00min/km pace to warm up before the fartlek intervals began. Fartlek is a type of workout that alternates between periods of intense effort and easier running as a recovery. It is commonly integrated into the regime of distance runners, as it builds both speed and fitness simultaneously. When done at a high intensity, these workouts can be physically and mentally punishing.
As they casually stretched after around ten minutes jogging, the rain became more intense. However, once they started the first of four ten-minute intervals (each one separated by a two-minute recovery jog) Eliud comfortably managed 3:00min/km, covering 3.35km and leaving a long line of runners behind him. The group behind Kipchoge were slightly rushed during the recovery jog, to ensure they were with him for the start of the next interval.
The pace of the remaining intervals remained steady, slightly fluctuating according to the gradient of the tarmac, which was rarely flat. Eliud was alone in the lead for much of the session, but the group condensed following the final interval, finishing the workout with a light fifteen-minute jog.
The lack of rigidity in the training that took place was something that we would become much more familiar with over the coming weeks. On this day, rather than the scheduled session over the dirt roads, the intervals took place on the main road towards Eldoret, with the runners contending with a barrage of wind and rain, as well as the friendly honks of drivers who were all too aware that the group they were passing contained Kipchoge. None of this appeared to bother the runners in the slightest.
Saturdays are when all of the training groups in the area, most containing large numbers of world-class marathoners, complete their interval sessions. We passed multiple other packs of runners during this workout. With the rain forcing all of the athletes onto the single sealed road linking the town to Eldoret, the concentration of running talent in Kaptagat was really highlighted. Watching these large groups of runners traveling at such a ferocious pace, despite the difficult conditions, was exceptionally impressive.
