[hlnx1]

Fartlek, Swedish for “speed play”, mixes faster and easier running within one continuous run. Its strength is flexibility, but that freedom can also make it vague.

• Unstructured fartlek: surge to a landmark, recover until you feel ready, repeat; good for variety and for learning to change pace
• Structured fartlek: fixed blocks, for example 10×1 minute faster with 1 minute steady, or a pyramid of 1-2-3-2-1 minutes
• The “easy” sections are usually steady running, not walking, so the overall session is moderately hard
• It suits base periods, trail running and runners who dislike the track

Context: periodisation in endurance training.

Do you run fartlek with a plan or decide on the go?

[hlnx1]

A good starter fartlek: 15 minutes easy, then 8×1 minute at roughly 10K effort with 1 minute easy running, then 10 minutes easy. It fits on any route and does not need a watch with pace alerts.

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