On this page you can read the first chapter of the book Easy Interval Method. It is the Foreword, written by by Russ Mullen, Sussex, UK.

"For most runners, the thrill and satisfaction of the simple act of running holds our attention for only so long. It is quickly consumed by the desire not only to run but to run faster! Whether you are a novice just trying to run an entire 5km or an elite dreaming of breaking 30 minutes for 10km, the goal is the same: it must be faster.

Running is one of the few sports where success and failure can be so black and white. Most people will never win a race against others. But you will never stop racing against yourself. If you complete the same course 10 seconds quicker than you ever have before, then you have undeniable evidence that you have improved. You’ve beaten yourself; you win. Conversely, the damning and bleak reality of failure is equally harsh. You didn’t win. But you will be back. All runners, no matter what their level, share these common feelings of success and failure and the single-minded determination that you will, one day, be faster than you were before.

I had been running competitively for nearly 10 years and managed to run times ranging from 9:35 (3km), 16:15 (5km), 33:29 (10km) and 1:15:11 (half marathon). I ran these in 2014 at 28 years old and had stagnated since then; actually, if brutally honest, regressed. I would constantly feel sluggish and slow and never ran a race I was happy with for three years. This all changed thanks to a completely different way of training: the Easy Interval Training Method.

I first came across the Easy Interval Method in December 2016 and was immediately intrigued. Within six months of training this way I have since run 3km in 8:59, 5km in 15:44 and 10km in 32:51. I have been truly amazed by these improvements as I’ve not only got back to my previous best but I have surpassed it at every distance I’ve run. I feel stronger, healthier and happier about all aspects of my running. You can read more about my story in chapter 2.2.

In this book you will read everything about this unique way of training. It is written by a man who has trained and competed at a level that most can only dream of. Klaas Lok won a staggering 24 Dutch titles from 1975 to 1985, and achieved times that, even today, would still rank him in the upper echelons of the world’s elite distance runners.

In the following pages Klaas shares his first-hand knowledge and experience of competing and training at a world-class level with a goal that all runners, no matter how fast or slow, can share: the goal to be faster than you were before. His insights provide thoughtful and unique ideas into the approach he personally used under the tutelage of his coach, Herman Verheul, and while there are no guarantees that following these ideas will turn you into a national champion, I do believe they will provide a thought-provoking insight into a unique and intuitive way of training that will lead to improved performance, health and enjoyment in your running, whatever your level."

Dutchman Adri Hartveld finished 5th in the Dutch Cross Country Championships in 1984 (photo below) and won the Dutch marathon title in 1986. He has worked as a physiotherapist in the UK since 1982 and, during that time, has assessed hundreds of runners with overuse injuries. As part of the assessment, Adri looked at both the athletes’ biomechanics and their training history. He also researched various training ideas and methodologies, including easy interval training.
 
Please scroll down below the photo to read a lecture that he gave at the University of Staffordshire in 2017.

From this lecture we learn that recovery can take about a week after a heavy effort (note: after an extreme effort (marathon) or several heavy workouts shortly after each other it can take longer!). We also learn that the best super-compensation takes place when after the heavy effort a light training session is completed once every two days.