Ways to use this list
- Running club night: the coach spins the session live, so nobody can complain that the leader always picks hills.
- Beginner week: press Beginners and spin three sessions, leaving a rest day between each one.
- Treadmill boredom: press Speed, spin, and set the intervals on the machine before you start.
- Training for a 5K or 10K: keep the long run fixed each week and spin one speed session for the other hard day.
- School cross-country club: spin a session and pair runners of similar pace for fartlek or lamp post sprints.
Press Spin the wheel, tap the game or press the Space bar. Change the list in the box as you
like: add your own, delete what doesn't suit you, or write *2 after an entry to give it double the
chance. The game buttons switch the same list to a duck race, hat, claw machine and more.
The full list (25 entries)
- Easy run – 20 to 40 minutes at a pace where you could chat
- Long run – your longest run of the week, slow and steady
- Recovery jog – short and very gentle, the day after a hard session
- Run-walk – run 1 minute, walk 1 to 2 minutes, repeat 8 to 10 times
- Steady run – a little quicker than easy, still relaxed
- Tempo run – 15 to 20 minutes comfortably hard, between an easy warm-up and cool-down
- Threshold intervals – 3 to 5 rounds of 5 minutes at tempo effort, 1 minute easy between
- Fartlek – unplanned bursts: speed up to the next tree, then ease off
- Hill repeats – 30 to 60 seconds hard uphill, walk or jog back down, repeat 6 to 8 times
- Hill sprints – 8 to 10 seconds flat out up a steep hill, full rest between
- Strides – 4 to 6 relaxed, fast runs of about 20 seconds after an easy run
- Track 200s – 200 m quick, 200 m jog, repeat 6 to 10 times
- 400 m repeats – one lap fast, 1 to 2 minutes easy, repeat 6 to 8 times
- 800 m repeats – two laps at a strong pace, 2 to 3 minutes easy between
- Mile repeats – 3 or 4 miles at a hard, even pace with a few minutes' jog between
- 3-minute intervals – 4 to 6 rounds of 3 minutes hard with 3 minutes easy jogging
- Pyramid intervals – 1, 2, 3, 2, 1 minutes hard, each followed by the same time easy
- Ladder intervals – 200, 400, 600 and 800 m quick with a short jog after each
- Minute on, minute off – 10 rounds of 1 minute hard and 1 minute easy
- Lamp post sprints – sprint to one lamp post, jog to the next, repeat
- Progression run – start easy and run each third of the run a little faster
- Negative split run – run the second half faster than the first
- Out-and-back – run out for half the time, then try to get home quicker
- Trail run – easy effort on paths, grass or woodland tracks
- Time trial – a timed mile or 5K to see how you are progressing
📖 Related guide: How to make fair random teams
Questions people ask
What running workouts are good for beginners?
Start with run-walk sessions, easy runs at a pace where you can still talk, and a few relaxed strides. Most beginners improve by running regularly and slowly, adding speed work only after a few weeks.
What is a fartlek run?
Fartlek is Swedish for "speed play". During an easy run you add unplanned bursts, for example faster to the next lamp post or up a short hill, then ease off until you feel ready for the next one.
Which running workouts help you get faster?
Intervals, hill repeats, tempo runs and strides all train speed in different ways. Many runners do one or two harder sessions a week and keep the rest easy; press Speed to spin only the faster sessions.
What is a tempo run?
A steady run at a "comfortably hard" effort, usually 15 to 30 minutes after an easy warm-up. You can speak a few words, but not hold a full conversation.