If you’ve ever participated in a HYROX, OCR, CrossFit, Deka Fit or ATHX event (to name just a few), you’ll have likely noticed that running during the events can be so much harder than when just running in isolation.
Taking HYROX as an example, there is a big difference between running 1km with completely fresh legs, and running 1km straight after something like 100 meters weighted lunges, a heavy sled push, or 80 meters of burpee broad jumps.
The term given to this is “compromised running”. It is, essentially, any running that you have to do after (or between) any form of tiring exercise that is not running.
Getting good at / comfortable with compromised running is important if you want to perform well in HYROX (or other functional fitness events). Some athletes can find “compromised running” relatively simple and are able to run at a pace close to their uncompromised running speed. For others, however, it is much more difficult. It is certainly something that can catch out even the most experienced of runners.
What Makes Compromised Running So Hard?
There are a few reasons that running “compromised” feels so much more difficult. It is rarely as simple being due to the increased cardiac output from the non-running elements of the workout. It is, in fact, more likely caused by muscular fatigue, circulatory issues, and psychological effects (the feeling of running with fatigue, in pain, etc).
Training for compromised running should, therefore, be designed with this in mind. Just getting fitter aerobically, for example, won’t necessarily help as much as other more targeted approaches. Neither will just working on your strength and aerobic ability (separately). Of course, taking those approaches won’t hurt (and are important in their own right). For example, if you get stronger, and, thus, find the strength / muscular elements of the workout easier, leading to less fatigue, that can only be a good thing. However, if you are specifically looking to work on your compromised running, it is the combination of the muscular fatigue at the same time as putting aerobic requirements on the body that needs to be worked on.
How to Train for Compromised Running
Training for compromised running will help to address the factors that make it so hard in the first place. From a psychological perspective we can get more comfortable with the feeling of running with muscular fatigue and circulatory issues. From physiological perspective our bodies can gradually adapt to the unique stresses we are putting it under.
When to do it?
In terms of which of your running workouts during a typical week to make “compromised” it could, in reality, be any of them. It will very much depend on you as an athlete, what you are preparing for, and how soon any events are that you have coming up. However, for the most bang for your buck, I think it’s normally worth starting with your tempo work (as opposed to your longer, slower runs).
In an interval session, a way to think about it would be to incorporate some kind of muscular work into your “rest” periods. This is so that when you go back into your run you are compromised to some extent. I share some example workouts below.
How Often?
If you are preparing for an event, such as HYROX, ideally you will be practicing your compromised running at least once a week. You may want to ramp that up as you get closer to the event (though obviously bearing in mind the need to taper volume in the days before, so you go into it feeling fresh).
It probably is worth highlighting at this point that I don’t believe it to be optimal to work on compromised running ALL the time. Working on your running, in isolation, has benefits, as does working on the strength and muscular endurance elements of HYROX in isolation. It’s easy to make the mistake of believing that you need to combine these factors in every session. That’s not the case. But regular compromised / combined sessions do have benefits.
Shaking Out the Legs
It’s tempting, during a compromised running training session, to have a short pause / shake the legs out a little when moving from the muscular efforts into the runs (and vice versa). In training sessions, it is best to minimise this pause as much as is safely possible. The purpose of the training session is to practice your compromised running. Any rest will steadily reduce just how compromised you actually are. It should be difficult. Just something to bear in mind when your body is screaming at you for a little break.
Compromised Running Workout Examples
Any training session needs to be looked at in the context of the person, their goals, how soon the event is they are preparing for, etc. That’s why getting a plan built specifically for you can be so valuable (find out more about our coaching plans here).
That all said, to get an idea of what a compromised running workout might look like, here’s some examples (disclaimer – always check with a personal trainer prior to attempting any workout on this site):
Example 1
3 Rounds:
40m Sled Push (at race weight)
500m Run (at faster than race pace)
No Rest.
Be sure to minimise any rest throughout the workout (for example, in the transitions, or during the sled push). You really want to fatigue your legs before going into a reasonably fast run. Note that this doesn’t just test your ability to run under fatigue, but also to push the sled in a compromised state.
Example 2
4 Rounds:
500m Run (at race pace)
30m Walking Lunges (using race weight)
500m Run (at race pace)
100m Farmers Carry (using race weight)
No Rest.
Poorer Example
One thing to be mindful of is having too much “other stuff” between your runs. A workout such as the below isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but the length of time between the runs vastly reduces the compromised nature of it (so won’t have the same effects):
3 Rounds:
1km Run
20 Burpees
750m Ski Erg
20 Press Ups
2 Minutes Rest
There are obviously numerous possibilities with how to train for compromised running but hopefully that helps. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out, and if you want to find more training tips for HYROX, check out this article. You can also check out our personalised coaching plans, and 12 Week HYROX training plan.
