Strout Erin - Runners world race everything: how to conquer any race at any distance in any environment and have fun doing it

Also by Bart Yasso:

My Life on the Run

(with Kathleen Parrish)

The Runners World Big Book of Marathon

and Half Marathon Training

(with Amby Burfoot and Jennifer Van Allen)

The Runners World Big Book of Running for Beginners

(with Amby Burfoot and Jennifer Van Allen)

The information in this book is meant to supplement, not replace, proper exercise training. All forms of exercise pose some inherent risks. The editors and publisher advise readers to take full responsibility for their safety and know their limits. Before practicing the exercises in this book, be sure that your equipment is well-maintained, and do not take risks beyond your level of experience, aptitude, training, and fitness. The exercise and dietary programs in this book are not intended as a substitute for any exercise routine or dietary regimen that may have been prescribed by your doctor. As with all exercise and dietary programs, you should get your doctors approval before beginning.

Mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities in this book does not imply endorsement by the author or publisher, nor does mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities imply that they endorse this book, its author, or the publisher. Internet addresses and telephone numbers given in this book were accurate at the time it went to press.

2017 by Rodale Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any other information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

Runners World is a registered trademark of Rodale Inc.

Note: Page numbers listed below refer to the print edition of this book.

Photos credits: AMCM/De Tienda/Mainguy, page 150; Atlanta Track Club/Paul Kim, page 46; Competitor Group, page 26; Crescent City Classic, page 44; Jesse Peters/Sports Backers, page 51; Runners World/Jon Ivins, pages 129 & 130; Runners World/Ryan Hulvat, pages 74, 75 & 76; and all others courtesy of Bart Yasso

Book design by Amy King

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the publisher.

ISBN 978-1-62336-982-8 paperback

ISBN 978-1-62336-983-5 e-book

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To the entire running community, I must thank you for keeping me motivated. Running with some of the kindest people on the planet has fueled me for the past 40 years.

I know I feel more like myself when I run, even if its only a few milesor at least I feel like the self I like best.

Bart

by David Willey

In my 14 years as the editor in chief of Runners World, I dont think I ever went to a race, big or small, where someone didnt ask me about Bart Yasso. Known for decades as the mayor of running, and now Runners Worlds chief running officer, Bart is the kind of guy youre proud to call your friend even if it doesnt make you feel at all unique. Thats because Bart seems to know everyone, and everyone seems to know Bart. In airports, at race expos, at pasta dinners, and in porta-potty lines, they flock to him like long-lost relativesand he usually remembers not only their names, but also their hometowns and marathon PRs.

Many years ago, I was looking at a stack of race photos in a common area of the Runners World offices in Emmaus, Pennsylvania, for a story we were working on. Bart walked by and stopped to look through them with us. He paused on a shot of a pack of runners who had just crossed the starting line. I cant recall what race it was, but I remember that the photo was cropped at the runners waists. Only their legs were visible. Bart pointed to a pair of mens gams and said, I know that guy! The runners name has also vacated my memory all these years later, but Bart said it out loud. He mightve added the guys finishing time, too. I was too flabbergasted to notice, distracted by what I had just witnessed: Bart recognized one of his many running friends after only seeing his legs.

Bart has also been known to form bonds with runners hes never met, pilgrims who know the Legend of Bart even if they dont know the man himself. Joanna Golub, a Runners World contributor who served as our nutrition editor for several years, once went hiking on a remote glacier in Alaska, hundreds of miles from civilization. At some point, she told her guide where she worked. Oh, my God! he exclaimed. Do you know Bart Yasso? Bart couldnt be on the glacier, but Joannawho was just one degree of separation from the mayorwas the next best thing.

Barts renown can be traced back, at least in part, to an unplanned and unintentional PR blitz that began as a slow boil in 1981. Bart, 25 at the time, decided he wanted to qualify for the Boston Marathon. He would need to run a 2:50 marathon17 minutes faster than his PRto do so. So he came up with a training routine to increase his speed. Once a week, in addition to his weekly workouts, he ran 800 meters on a track and then jogged 400 meters, eventually working up to 10 repetitions, or 7 miles of running. It workedhe qualified for Boston by 1 second. So Bart continued to include this track workout in his training for other marathons, recording the results in his running log.

A few years later, he noticed an odd correlation between his marathon finishing times and the times in which he ran those 10 800-meter intervals. If he ran each interval around, say, 2 minutes and 40 seconds, his finishing time for the marathon was right around 2 hours and 40 minutes. If he ran them in 2:50that is, 2 minutes and 50 secondsthat meant he was in shape to run a 2:50 marathon. This held true for 14 out of 15 marathons he ran since adopting this training regimen. Bart thought it was an interesting coincidence, but it wasnt until he casually mentioned it to Amby Burfoot, then the chief editor of Runners World, that what are now known to runners around the world as Yasso 800s became a thing. Amby wrote a story about the workout and, in a surprise to Bart, even named it, explaining that when astronomers discover a new star, they get to name it whatever they want. So why shouldnt Bart get the credit?

If you Google Yasso 800s today, you will get more than 80,000 results. The workout, ideally done a few weeks before your goal race, has become a staple of marathon-training programs for all kinds of runners, from newbies to Olympic qualifiers. But even this cannot fully account for Barts immense popularity. Yasso 800s may have earned him some coaching cred and name recognition, but he is beloved by legions of runners today not because of what he knows. Its because of what hes done and who he is.

Put simply, Bart has done more for runners and had more fun running than anyone I know. He recounted his many adventures and accomplishmentsas well as the personal crises and challenges he has overcome along the wayin his 2008 memoir,