I skipped long runs for years and paid for it in every race. Most runs, either skip them like I did, or they run them too hard. Both will keep you stuck! Here’s what I wish I knew 25 years ago when I started distance running.

[00:00:11] I’ll be going over why most runners misuse or skip long runs entirely. The biggest myth that keeps you feeling flat on race day with real science to back that up and many other things.

[00:00:21] Five proven long run formats with pacing tips and purpose. How to train longer without getting slower or burned out, and how to run farther easier. And at the end, a free training plan that lets you test out all five long run styles.

[00:00:35] I’m Daren D Lake Run coach, running science nerd and human Guinea pig. I started out as a sprinter, but when I moved into distance running, I realized long runs. They weren’t optional. They were the secret 1% better sauce, get it not just the juice. They helped me break three hours in the marathon and help me finish an Ironman in 10 hours and they can help you too.

[00:00:55] So if long runs are just game changing as we’re saying, we should probably define [00:01:00] what the HELL we are talking about. Here’s what things get interesting.. A long run. It’s any run that’s longer than your normal daily training. But what long actually means depends entirely on context. From a run science perspective, research is usually defined it as a run that makes up 20 to 30% of your weekly mileage, or it pushes you past the point where your body starts running low on store carbohydrates slash glycogen.

[00:01:23] Your body has to adapt so long runs they trigger mitochondrial growth, which is just more energy, better fat metabolism, which is more fuel and increased capillary density, better blood flow. It’s like upgrading your body’s mile per gallon or liters per 100 kilometers in the metric places. Uh, same engine, better fuel economy. So you can run longer, faster, or farther without getting tired from a real runner’s perspective, so the real world, not just run science.

[00:01:50] A long run is defined as all over the map. In my off season. My long run, quote unquote, might be 45 to 60 minutes, just enough to keep the aerobic engine humming [00:02:00] along without beating myself up and bruising myself and getting tired. And it also keeps me sane in the brain because Sundays for me. Have always been, at least for the last like 10 years, uh, for me to go long and easy usually and enjoy this whole running thing without suffering.

[00:02:16] But during 5K training season, the long run stretches to maybe 75 to 80 minutes, and it’s still usually easy-ish, uh, because I want that aerobic base for shorter and faster races. Still need that aerobic energy system to be running as efficiently as it can. And in marathon prep season, I might touch two and a half to three hours because demands are completely different.

[00:02:38] I might be running zone three in there, sprinkle with some zone four maybe if I’m feeling spicy. But here’s a pro move half and full marathoners often throw a medium long run in midweek into the training schedule to make it even more complex. It’s literally called medium long run. It’s like having two different tools for two different jobs, right tool, right job.

[00:02:58] As far as intensity on your long [00:03:00] runs, that is completely a choose your own adventure. Also, long runs can be easy, moderate, or even hard, depending on the style you’re using and what you’re trying to accomplish. Both easy and hard, long runs. They come with risk, though, so huge asterisk warning. If you go too easy, you might not have enough fitness to run your best time.

[00:03:15] If you go too hard, you could burn yourself out or get injured. So tread. Lightly so hard factual truth. A long run isn’t defined by some present notion that long runs have to be a certain distance or intensity so that you get all the kudos on Strava because everyone loves the long runs, it is defined by context. It’s the run that stretches you a little bit further than usual at the right time for the right season.

[00:03:39] Hold up if this is clicking for you. Do another runner. A quick favor. Stick around until the end. It helps signal to the algorithms that the video’s worth watching, and more importantly, it helps another self-coach runner get 1% better. Cool. Cool. Let’s go deeper.

[00:03:54] Now, here’s a big misconception. Most runners assume a long run must be monotonous slog at [00:04:00] a slow pace. This limiting mindset keeps people stuck. Just go slow and endured as long as possible. The problem with this thinking same pace equals same adaptation. I’ll explain that. Your body is very, very smart. It adapts to whatever you consistently throw at it. If you only ever do long and slow runs, you’ll get really good at running long and slow. But as I said a few minutes ago, when race day comes, you want to run your best time you need to sustain a faster pace for a long duration. Your body has no idea what you’re asking it to do. On the flip side, some runners go completely the other direction and punch out every long run like it’s a weekly time trial. This leaves them chronically tired and injury prone or ready to catch whatever cold and flu is lingering around them, that they would usually be able to fight off both approaches.

[00:04:44] Misty Point entirely. So this one over here, this one over here. Long runs aren’t about surviving. Let’s go in the middle. They’re about adapting and different adaptations require different stimulus. Here’s what a run science goat named Steve Silas. Research really shows us elite athletes do 80% [00:05:00] of their training easy, but that other 20% is where the magic happens. They’re strategic about when and how they apply stress to the systems and the key insight, it’s not that long runs should always be easy.

[00:05:09] It’s that they should be intentional again, right tool for the right job. When I figured that out. Long runs. They stopped being this thing I dreaded and became the most interesting part of my training week because suddenly I had options.

[00:05:21] here’s the five long runs that I use. All year long and these become tools in my running toolbox. So the styles are, or formats, the easy long run cupcake with sprinkles, the big block sandwich over unders and progression long runs.

[00:05:35] So they kind of range from easy-ish, simple to a bit more complex and hard, but they could all be hard in their own right. Maybe except for the first one, the easy long run. Let’s dive into each one more in depth.

[00:05:47] So all easy with a fast finish bonus. Let’s call this level one. This is your bread and butter. 60 to 90 minutes or more depending on where you are in the year, at a pace where you can hold a conversation without gasping. Uh, usually [00:06:00] speak many, many words without taking the breath. Start at zone one and at low to mid Zone two is my rule of thumb, heart rate.

[00:06:06] Even effort, uh, perceived rate of exertion. If you want to go, if you have a five zone perceived rate of exertion system or whatever, the bonus move, add a one to two minute fast finish, or four to six by 10 to 15 second strides. Nothing crazy. Just pick up the pace right at the end to i, I like to call it dust off the cobwebs.

[00:06:24] This wakes up your nervous system and teaches your legs to respond when they’re already tired. I did a whole episode on strides. Go check that out up there or below in the video description or show notes, but what’s happening under the physiological hood during this easy, long run, as I said before, you’re building more mitochondria, the powerhouse of you, you know what I’m about to say?

[00:06:43] Powerhouse of cells. You’re also growing more tiny blood highways called capillaries that deliver oxygen and remove waste products more efficiently to your muscles, mainly obviously your bones. Tendons, ligaments, et cetera. Better delivery systems mean your muscles can produce energy more [00:07:00] effectively.

[00:07:00] Think of it like upgrading your body’s power plant and installing faster internet cables. Everything just runs smoother and more optimal. Perfect for base building phases or recovery weeks when you need the miles without all that stress.

[00:07:12] So what’s the key to making all these long run styles actually work for you? It’s not just about knowing them, it’s about implementing them in the right sequence, at the right time, with the right recovery. So to make this super easy, I’ve created a complete five week free training plan that maps out exactly when to use each long run style ’cause trying to put this all together yourself.

[00:07:32] It’s hard. There’s a lot to remember in this video and you get to like sample each one. Think of it like a tap’s, sample platter, appetizer, platter of sorts. It’s literally the answer to how do I actually do this stuff in real life?

[00:07:43] Get it at the QR code here. Link below in video description or in your podcast show notes. And if you want to help a self-coach runner, please smash that like button.

[00:07:52] No, please don’t do that. Just, just gently tap the like button. Subscribe, share out the link. Or you know what? Just comment below if you do long runs [00:08:00] or not. And if not, why not? Why not? Let me know what your favorite long run is too. Let’s get back into it.

[00:08:05]

[00:08:05] Level two cupcakes with sprinkles. So the purpose of this is to add random bursts of speed into an easy run. It helps you switch gears smoothly and build your ability to handle race day fatigue. How to do it? Start with an easy base. Run the yellow or chocolate cake part of the cupcake, and then the sprinkles and the frosting is the faster efforts throughout so you could do maybe 30 seconds to one minute at your current 5K fitness pace and do that every five to 10 minutes. That’s the frosting, the frosting’s, nice and sweet. And you can even try one K surges every three kilometers or every two miles.

[00:08:39] Uh, so one K is half a mile, so half mile surges every two miles. It’s up to you. And it shouldn’t be perfect. It’s kind of fart lake, but with more structure and way more speed, it’s just waking your body up. Think of it like interval training.

[00:08:51] Disguises the long run. Your body learns to shift gears without freaking out and build the kind of fatigue resistance that matters in real races. And the beauty is the [00:09:00] unpredictability. Your body never really settles into one rhythm. So it gets better at adapting on the fly, just like racing probably best early in the season to do, or even the off season progression runs.

[00:09:10] I’d like to call this level three progression runs. So the purpose, learn to finish strong when you’re already tired. How to do it start easy, then gradually ramp up the pace until you’re running at Threshold or even your current 5K fitness pace for the final 20 to 30%.

[00:09:24] personally like these because when you slowly. Get faster. Your body has a much easier time of understanding and doing that because it’s like, oh, I can go a little bit faster, I can go the end. It like warms up and it warm, it keeps warming into it. But back in 2018, this clicked for me. I was training for a half marathon and did a progression run where the last three miles, five kilometers felt controlled but strong.

[00:09:46] I did not think I could run that fast, but I got up to my 5K pace for the last two miles and I was like. Whoa. Felt great. Endorphins were rushing. Race day came, and for the first time ever, I actually got faster in the second half of that half [00:10:00] marathon instead of hanging on for dear life and blowing up halfway through the half marathon.

[00:10:04] Here’s a pro level variation, the reverse progression. So once you understand progression runs and do these. Late in the race season, I wouldn’t do them early. And you need to be a bit more advanced of a runner. So intermediate runner have at least six to 12 months under your belt of running or more start at a comfortably hard pace after proper 15 minute warmup.

[00:10:26] I’d say you wanna start like close to your current 5K Fitness and do that for as long as you need to because the progression runs depend ’cause you’re kind of tapering up, so you’re getting slower and then faster and then. The reverse progression is you’re going fast and then going slow. So maybe run that for like 10 minutes and then you slow down as a fatigue sets in.

[00:10:45] So you go 10 K pace for like 10 minutes. Then you go half marathon pace for like 10 minutes, and then over 40 minutes of this progression run you get down to your marathon pace so what progression runs in general teach your body to access higher gears even when you’re tired and your brain learns. I [00:11:00] have more left than I think.

[00:11:02] level four, the big block sandwich.

[00:11:04] Purpose is to build sustained pace, endurance, and mental toughness. How to do it? One large, steady state effort in the middle of the long run, 20 to 40 minutes or longer if you’re training for marathons. This is the intensity, the effort, usually high zone two or low zone three, heart rate, a K, a marathon pace, or slightly slower.

[00:11:25] Again, you’re sandwiching that in between the beginning part, which is easy, and the end part, which is easy, unlike progression, which gets faster or over unders, which has multiple pace changes that I’ll talk about next. This is about holding one comfortable pace for an extended time. Just like a race, it teaches your brain and your body, the whole physiological system.

[00:11:44] I can maintain steady discomfort for a long time without breaking, and it builds the specific endurance and mental fortitude for longer races where you need to suffer at one pace. So this is probably the closest thing to. Race pace marathon efforts. Like I [00:12:00] prescribe them and I give these to my runners.

[00:12:02] Probably going four to six weeks out, we start making the block the big block longer and longer because that’s the race. Like you can’t take breaks, you’re not progressing. You, you are gonna progress and maybe negative split a bit in the race, but you’re not gonna start at, , slower than half marathon base and get to 5K pace like in a race.

[00:12:16] At least that’s not the way I want my runners to do it. Each style trains something different. You rotate them based on your goals and when you are in your training cycle and miraculously automagically long runs, stop being something, you survive and become your secret weapon and you might start liking them. I love them.

[00:12:33] All right, and last one, I’ll call it level five.

[00:12:35] Over unders the purpose. You build pace control and learn to recover while still running hard. This is a interesting one. I do like them. At first I didn’t like them and now I like them. So how do you do this? You alternate between two paces throughout your long run, 10 to 20 seconds per kilometer, or a mile slightly faster than your goal pace.

[00:12:53] So that’s the over, and then you follow that immediately by 10 to 20 seconds. Per kilometer slash mile, [00:13:00] slightly slower than your race pacing. That’s the under. Repeat this pattern for 30 to 60 minutes in the middle of your long run. here’s an example of how it would actually look.

[00:13:07] If your goal marathon pace is six minutes per mile or even kilometer, whatever, it doesn’t matter. Run 10 minutes at 5 45 minutes per mile or kilometer. And then when that over is done, you want to go under. So 10 minutes at six, 15 minutes per kilometer or mile pace and then keep cycling through that.

[00:13:25] So you probably, if you wanna start at, let’s say 30 minutes, you want to divide that by four. So you do. One over, one under, one Over. One under. So that’s two. Two. I would then do eight minutes if you wanna do 40 minutes and you can do 10. 10. 10. 10. What? It teaches how to surge and recover during races without completely falling apart.

[00:13:41] Your body learns to clear lactate while still running hard, and your brain gets comfortable with pace changes under fatigue. And a little bit of a fun fact, if you ever do these, that slight slowdown, when you go to the under part on paper, it looks like nothing.

[00:13:53] You’re like, oh, it’s just, 30 seconds slow or 20 seconds slower than what I was just doing. But you’ll welcome this every single cycle, I promise [00:14:00] you.

[00:14:00] Look, Every long run is a chance to upgrade your future racing self, but only if you show up with purpose. Instead of just logging miles. Run with intention, rotate your tools and always finish with something left in the tank. If you want to try these out for yourself, I put together that free long run sampler platter, five week training plan.

[00:14:17] It maps out exactly when a style. Get it at the QR code again here. Link below in the show notes of your podcast player. If you’re listening, plus, you’ll also magically get signed up for my weekly newsletter where I drop into your inbox, the latest running and mental fitness science that actually matters to get 1% better.

[00:14:34] , some links that I find on the internet that can help you run better and a bit of fun ’cause running is fun. The long run isn’t just about going far though. It’s about getting smarter, and the smartest thing you can do is add strides at the end of your long runs that can act almost like a turbo boost or a supercharger so to find out how to do strides, check out the episode below or link in video description. Peace.