Sunday, January 25, 2015

Running Fast by Running Slow

“Junk miles.” Remember that buzzword from a few years ago? There were lots of books and articles advocating that runners cut out easy miles on the theory that you get more bang for your buck with high intensity running, and it was those extra easy miles that were hurting you and causing injuries. The theory has some intuitive appeal, I suppose. If you cut out easy miles, you reduce your overall mileage and, therefore, take fewer steps, but you still get the benefits of the key workouts.

If you’ve read this blog for very long, you know that Penny and I have personally disproven the anti-junk-mile theory of training. On more than one occasion, we’ve considered changing our blog name to Two Always Injured Runners. But we never get injured when we are in the base-building phases of our training plans, when we are running easy paces and working on increasing our mileage. No, base building always feels great! Our injuries have always occurred when we add speed – too much speed.

A few months ago, I read Matt Fitzgerald’s new book called 80/20 Running. He argues that the most effective training is for runners to spend 80% of their cardio time at easy paces and just 20% at moderate to hard paces.

He supports the 80/20 rule with citation to studies showing that VO2 max and 10K race times in well-trained runners improved the most when they followed the 80/20 rule compared to control groups spending higher percentages of time at moderate to high intensities (70/30, 60/40). And the runners in 80/20 groups also had fewer incidence of injury and reported higher energy levels for day-to-day tasks (like working and all those other non-running obligations that fill up our lives). Anecdotally, Fitzgerald also examined training plans of the most successful elite runners, and they all basically follow the 80/20 rule. I’ll let you pick up the book to read about the details of the proof.

A few comments about the three bolded terms above for implementing the 80/20 rule:

First, “cardio time.” All cardio training, not just running, counts. So if you are doing intense spinning classes, those hard minutes count toward your 20%.

Second, “easy paces.” Easy pace is slower than you think. Basically, you’re running an easy pace for purposes of the 80/20 rule when you are below the ventilatory threshold – i.e., the pace at which you can still easily talk. The book gives a few different ways to calculate this pace. The easiest way is to find the pace at which you can recite the Pledge of Allegiance without straining (for our Aussie readers, that’s about 7 or 8 seconds…1-one thousand, 2-one thousand, 3-one thousand, 4-one thousand, 5-one thousand, 6-one thousand,7-one thousand). For any cardio cross-training (e.g., elliptical, cycling), you use your heart rate at your ventilatory threshold pace minus 10 beats per minute.

Third, “moderate to hard paces.” Any workout time above the ventilatory threshold counts toward your 20%. Fitzgerald says that the most effective way to spend your 20% (e.g. short intense efforts, longer threshold efforts, or a mix) is still being studied. The training plans in the book use a mix of progressions, fartleks, tempos, and speed intervals – just like most training plans do.

Although I’m not as fit as I’ve been in the past, I think about each of my easy runs (which has been virtually all of my runs in the last 4 months) as rebuilding my fitness and beyond – to better than it has ever been before.

Two Little Runners ~ Kristen

10 comments:

  1. I think it's hard to apply "rules" across spectrums of runners, but there was ever one that probably would apply to almost everything, this is it! Good post!

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    1. That's a really good point. The "rule" leaves a lot of room for experimentation around the edges. And that's exactly what I like about Matt Fitzgerald's books. He gives you an easily executable rule of thumb, which tend to be plain common sense backed up by research. I like his nutrition books for this reason. ~Kristen

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  2. I haven't been a committed runner for that long (going on two years, I guess, with a few breaks), but it seems like I can do a higher proportion of hard effort when my mileage is low, but as soon as it goes above roughly 25, I have to focus on easier miles. I haven't read Fitzgerald's book, but does he believe the 80/20 rule applies for all mileage loads?

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    1. Hi Jen, according to the book, the 80/20 rule is the most effective way to train for all levels of runners, indeed all endurance athletes. While there is no doubt you can handle more moderate to high intensity training when you are running lower mileage, the book makes the case that you would improve more by training 80/20 in the short term and have fewer injuries, which will allow you to improve more in the longer term (consistency!). I've presented only the outline to the Cliff Note's version of the book here, so I would encourage you to pick it up to learn more! Kristen

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    2. Thanks, Kristen! Maybe I'll curl up with this post-Feb bar. I purchased the Athlete's Guide to Recovery that you recommended and am really enjoying it so far :)

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  3. Thanks for sharing what you learned! Lately, I've been doing 1-2 hard days and 3-4 easy running days. I think that fits that 80/20 model. I'm building up miles for a marathon.

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    1. Sounds like you are on track, so long as the easy days are actually easy. I realized when reading the book that I've been running my easy runs too fast for many years. I was probably running more like 20/80 ;) Kristen

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  4. Great post! I think I sort of gravitate towards this basic ratio. I learned the hard way that I CANNOT handle speed work more than once a week. I don't know how these 2-3 times per week people stay healthy! And otherwise, I run at a talkable pace - usually no Garmin, easy pace, able to talk in full sentences. That is sometimes a faster pace than other people would think acceptable - people often tell me that, for example, a 7:40 long run pace is too fast considering my race paces - but since I run in very flat, below sea-level areas, that's still easy pace. If I were running in a windy, hilly area on a mountain, it would be a good 90 seconds slower.
    I will have to be mindful of this when I'm finally getting back to running.

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    1. It's really helped me get through this period of all easy all the time, knowing that I am actually doing one of the most effective things I can do - run easy! I have been running my easy paces easily 30 seconds per mile too fast all these years, making most of my runs actually moderate! The "easy" pace I used to run was that pace where I felt I was in the groove with my stride and breathing lining up. When I run easy now, I have to really concentrate and dedicate myself to not letting myself, inadvertently or purposefully, grooving my old "easy" pace. Kristen

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    2. This is old school... Maffetone and Lydiard in new age terms. Most people don't have the patience and discipline for this and want quick fix speed. The old adage you can't shoot a canon from a canoe applies here. I like to say speedwork without base is like putting jet fuel in your Toyota. It might go fast a couple of times but sadly will blow up eventually. It's better to work on building the jet before you use the jet fuel. But no....that takes too long (for most).

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