Sprints Without a Track page

[MissJecka]

I want to start doing sprints but I do not have a track available to me. I do have a Garmin GPS watch that measures distance, but it is a bit delayed and I don't know if it measures finely enough to get to-the-meter distances.

Do any of you do sprints on a road or paved surface that has no distance measurements? If so, how?

(And, yes, I know I can do it by time rather than distance, but I have a feeling that I will either over- or under-exert myself by doing it this way.)

[iniQuity]

I run really fast and then I slow down and walk back to my starting point. Are you training for a very specific purpose that requires you to keep track of the distance? if not, and just looking for the toughest workout of your life, just find a hill and sprint up it a few times.

[Graycat]

I'm almost embarrassed to say - I use my treadmill.

[zilog]

+1, hill sprints are great.
If you really must run for a specific distance, just use one of the many online mapping/routing services and measure the distance.
As an alternative, Fartlek sessions are fun and less regimented than normal interval sprints.

[MissJecka]

Thanks, everyone, for the quick comments. I'm talking about distance because everything I see on the forums and on Mark's articles about recommended intermediate/beginner sprinting says things like "6x50"... doing 50 meter sprints 6 times, resting between each.

So when you guys say you just sprint, then slow down, do you not count time or distance?

[wolfman]

Pick a spot and run to it

[Goldsmith]

I just sprint in a park near my house in the grass. I'll walk off approximately whatever distance I plan on running, just counting my strides and multiplying by three.

Just guesstimate... I would not stress out about having exact measurements.

[iniQuity]

Thanks, everyone, for the quick comments. I'm talking about distance because everything I see on the forums and on Mark's articles about recommended intermediate/beginner sprinting says things like "6x50"... doing 50 meter sprints 6 times, resting between each.

So when you guys say you just sprint, then slow down, do you not count time or distance?

I eye-ball the distance, and I sprint uphill 90% of the time so I may not be doing 50 m sprints (more like 50-70 Amerikkkan yards) because uphill sprints are more demanding (yet safer, win-win) I'm not really concerned with time spent sprinting, or total distance, I just care that I can't breathe when I'm done, so I know I did what I had to do.

Mark's 6x50 is just a guideline that you can modify if you need, so use a service like mapmyrun.com or something similar to gauge the distance you would be covering (again, if you really need to sprint exactly 50 meters, or just to get an idea of what that distance looks like) and repeat that distance 6 times.

[Dirlot]

Tabita sprints (20s on 10s rest) 8 sets.
Sprinting between telephone poles - sprint 2 walk 1 etc
Tree to tree
Lots of options. You could also use your garmin to walk a distance so it can cope with the delay mark out 100m sprint that, rest, repeat.

[skorpion317]

I run on the football field at my town's high school. If it's being used, several parks in my town have soccer fields I can run on. The football fields make it easy because of the yard markers.