Interactive 2,000m programme
The interactive 2,000m training programme gives everybody, from complete beginners to experienced athletes, a fitness routine that works for them. With a few basic pieces of information it builds a plan to help you reach your health and fitness goals, and maybe a personal best in your next 2,000m race.
To build your programme you'll need:
- your athlete level, chosen using the key below
- the number of sessions a week you can train
- the number of weeks until race day, where 16 weeks or more is the recommended starting point (if you're already training and want something more formal towards the end, you can choose a programme from 8 weeks out)
- your current 2,000m time, which only needs to be an estimate, so the programme can work out the pace for each piece
- your resting heart rate
- your maximum heart rate on the rowing machine, although if you don't know it the programme uses 220 minus your age
Athlete level key
| Level | Description | Sessions a week |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 | Sedentary. Not exercised regularly during the past 12 months. | 3 |
| Level 2 | Moderately fit. Informal regular exercise throughout the past 12 months. | 3 or 4 |
| Level 3 | Fit. Exercised at least three sessions a week for the past 12 months. | 4 or 5 |
| Level 4 | Trained. Followed a formal training programme of five sessions a week for at least two years. | 4 to 6 |
| Level 5 | Athlete. Trained regularly, six to eight sessions a week, for at least three years. | 6 to 8 |
Leave max heart rate blank and the programme uses 220 minus your age.
-week programme
Athlete level , sessions a week
| Week | |
|---|---|
Your training zones
From a 2,000m time of , a resting heart rate of and an estimated max heart rate of .
| Zone | Heart rate | HRR % | Pace /500m | % of 2k power |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Enter a 2,000m time, a resting heart rate and an age or max heart rate to see your zones.
Recovery between intervals
Your warm-up heart rate is twice your resting rate. Start the next interval once you're back down to:
- 100% recovery
- bpm
- 90% recovery
- bpm
- 80% recovery
- bpm
Reading the programme
Each session gives a length or a number of pieces and a training zone, and the zone table above shows your heart rate and pace for each zone.
- 30'UT2 means row for 30 minutes in your UT2 range.
- 2x15'UT1 means row two 15-minute pieces in your UT1 range, with a short rest of five or six minutes between them.
- 8x1'AN means row eight one-minute intervals in your AN range, with a minute's rest between each one.
- 6+5'AT means a six-minute piece followed by a five-minute piece in your AT range, with six minutes' rest between them.
- 3x3'TR means row three pieces of three minutes in your TR range.
- TEST means row 2,000 metres as fast as you can, to benchmark your progress. Put your new time in above to get a fresh set of paces.
HRR% is the percentage of your heart rate reserve (HRR), which is the difference between your maximum and resting heart rates. The heart rate for each zone is worked out as (HRR × percentage) + resting heart rate.
Warming up and cooling down
The warm-up a session needs depends on the type of work involved: the lower the intensity, the less time it takes to warm up, and the same applies to the cool-down.
| Type of session | Warm-up | Cool-down |
|---|---|---|
| UT2 | 5 to 8 minutes | 5 to 8 minutes |
| UT1 | 8 to 10 minutes | 8 to 10 minutes |
| AT | 10 to 12 minutes | 10 to 12 minutes |
| TR | 12 to 15 minutes | 12 to 15 minutes |
| AN | 15 to 20 minutes | 15 to 20 minutes |
Recovery between intervals
Recovery between intervals is complete when your heart rate has fallen to warm-up level, which is twice your resting rate. You can make interval training more intense by going again at 90% or even 80% of full recovery.
The closer the recovery is to 100%, the more the training tends to improve power, while the closer it is to 80%, the more it tends to improve lactate tolerance.
Shorter recovery works best at the start of an intensive block of interval training, when intensity matters more than quality. Close to a competition, quality matters more than intensity, so take full recovery.
Race day
If you feel unwell on race day, or you've recently had a virus, we recommend that you don't race. Indoor racing takes maximum effort, so if you have any doubts, get medical advice before you race.