Episode 24: The 5 Pillars of Better Running – Easy Running

On the surface, easy running sounds almost too simple to need an episode of its own.

You just slow down and keep the effort comfortable.

That should be it.

But I don't think it is quite that simple.

Easy runs have a way of changing once we are out there.

You start with no intention of training hard, the first kilometers feels comfortable, the legs are moving well, and then you glance at the watch and notice that the pace is a little faster than expected.

And that is often where the run begins to shift.

Instead of thinking, that feels good, I'll just keep it easy, another thought can appear, that is a good pace, maybe I can hold that.

You're still calling it an easy run, and it may still feel controlled, but know the run has a target.

And once there is a target, it becomes surprisingly tempting to start protecting the pace instead of protecting the purpose of the run.

I've done that many times myself, and I still do sometimes.

And once there is a target, you can quickly find yourself protecting it.

A small hill comes along and the pace drops a little, so you push just enough to bring it back.

Then the roll flattens out, the legs still feel good, and the piss creeps up again.

Nothing about it feels especially hard while it is happening, but by the end of the run, you have worked quite a bit harder than you originally intended.

I'm not saying it is hard enough to count as a quality session, but it is not really easy enough to give you the recovery you wanted either.

I think a lot of us spend quite a bit of time in that middle ground.

And there is nothing wrong with that in itself.

There is training value there, and there are certain events that belong there.

The problem comes when the easy days keep drifting into the space without us really noticing.

Then the harder days begin to lose some of their contrast.

The easy run does not leave you quite as fresh, and when the interval session comes around, you may not have the same quality available.

The pace can feel harder than it should, the repetitions may not be as strong, and you might simply get less out of the session.

The long run can also begin with more fatigue already in the legs.

Slowly, the whole week starts to feel more similar from one day to the next.