Runners have a lot on their training plates. A runner who is trying to improve their performance will consider several tools in their training toolbox. Which tool is most important? Mileage, nutrition, drills, strength training, specific workouts, the list goes on. Every independent article we read can make it sound like each aspect is THE most important tool.
But the thing with running is it all works together! No piece of training is totally independent of another. Sure you can get up earlier to do drills before your easy run, but you just missed 30 extra minutes of precious sleep. Is that okay? Or maybe you got in your strength routine finally and did all the exercises, but your legs now feel dead for your quality session the next day. Is that okay?
A RUNNING PRIORITY LIST
These types of internal struggles are all too common, but they don’t have to be hard to navigate. I’m going to break down the most common training aspects into buckets based on how effective they are at helping us run our fastest.
Running is not immune to the Pareto principle, which says that 80% of the results come from 20% of the work. Let’s put in the work where it matters most!
DISCLAIMER: Of course this is not an exhaustive list. My goodness, that would be long! So I’ve hit the highlights. This list also will vary roughly based on different things like age, gender, goal race distance, etc. Adjusting for those things is the work of a good coach. If you want to go nuts diving into the details, I suggest getting one!
HOW TO INTERPRET THIS
Imagine your fastest possible self. Your entire potential as a runner, whatever that is. That represents 100% in this exercise. The buckets below are theoretically responsible for X% of that 100% fastest YOU.
So take the first bucket for example. 90% of your benefits as a runner are determined by how well you do these things in this bucket! This is not a place for the underlying details – that’s not the point here. Let’s take the 10,000 foot view here. Okay, now that that’s settled, let’s get into it!
90% OF BENEFITS COME FROM…
Consistency. You’ve built up your endurance and had a great cycle of training. But now you give all those benefits back by taking the winter off. You’ll take most of the spring just working back to where you were! If you want to continuously grow, don’t have major patches of inactivity. This can be applied on a weekly basis or on a monthly basis.
Overall Mileage. This is the biggie. Most people vastly underestimate how much they would improve just by increasing their average weekly mileage. I maintain that it’s the fastest and most effective way to improve across almost all levels. I improved my 10k time by 2 minutes (about 20 sec/mile) JUST by going from 30 miles per week to 50 miles per week over the course of about 4 months. NO OTHER CHANGES.
Mentality. If you set big goals for yourself, you have to be resilient enough to accept the grind of seeking it. Disappointing workouts, setbacks, extreme highs and lows. It’s not for the faint of heart. If you can’t keep a level head through it all and remember why you’re doing it, you will fall apart. I’ve seen a negative mindset ruin entire cycles so it’s an easy call to put it in this group.
Recovery. Training Stress + Rest = Growth. We don’t actually get faster when we run. We get faster when we RECOVER from the runs. If you put recovery too far down on your priorities (as many of you do!), you’re sacrificing not just a few percentage points, but a MAJOR chunk of your benefits!
Your biggest recovery tools are sleep and nutrition. It’s no wonder elite athletes sleep a TON. And good balanced nutrition will aid in almost every aspect of the recovery process.
Prehab/Injury Prevention. You can’t run the miles if your body is fighting you every step of the way. You need to do at least what’s necessary here to support the desired mileage. Otherwise, you’ll end up injured very quickly. What do I mean here? Usually a basic strength routine that strengthens the glutes, core, hips, and back – all common areas for running injuries to start.
Also in this group are any necessary baseline form drills to correct bad habits. I’m not talking about an extensive 20-minute routine here (that’s coming!). It could be as simple as a glute activating warm-up routine to get your body moving correctly.
5% OF BENEFITS COME FROM…
A word about percentages. I want to mention quickly that the rest of this article is IMPORTANT. 5%, 3%, 2% may all seem like insignificant amounts, but let me remind you that 5% of a 9:00/mi pace is 27 seconds PER MILE! These small gains add up tremendously and are sometimes the difference maker for those really trying to separate themselves.
Quality Mileage. So you’ve increased your mileage as much as is safe. Now let’s spice up your running routine by adding lactate threshold workouts, interval training, long runs, and any race-specific work! All of these should occupy a certain percentage of your weekly mileage, though it varies based on the race distance. Each has a specific purpose to make you faster.
Executing a Race Plan. Going out too fast early on, not being disciplined in the middle, under/overestimating fitness. Months of awesome training can be undone with poor race execution. Bonking in a marathon can be MUCH worse than 5% too! Having a solid plan and the discipline to stick to it can really help you achieve your goal.
3-4% OF BENEFITS COME FROM…
Plyometrics. Plyometrics is the practice of force development. The faster I can generate the force needed to propel my body forward, the faster I’ll go. And the better by body can absorb the force, the less injured I’ll be. A good plyometric routine – whether it be via strides, jumps, or hops – can really improve your running economy and stride. The great part here is that a little goes a long way in the case of plyometrics.
Form Drills. Form drills in this area is about fine-tuning your stride, NOT about just injury prevention (as above). You may be needing to work on sharpening your cadence or improving your knee drive, for example. Specific drills can be tacked on to easy runs to address these. It can be hard to change stride habits, but if you can stick to a consistent routine, the benefits to running economy are very real.
Enhanced Strength Training. There’s strength training and then there’s STRENGTH TRAINING. While the strength work above was focused on injury prevention, this strength training is focused on generating more fast-twitch muscle fibers that can be conditioned to improve your endurance.
To do this, it generally means lifting heavier weight with lower reps. I’m talking runners’ staples like squats, deadlifts, and other key lower body lifts. Also lumping in hill work, the poor man’s strength training, into this section!
Enhanced Recovery. While we’re on the topic of enhancing earlier benefits, let’s mention recovery! While sleep and nutrition are going to get you most of the way there, a runner can still eek out benefits from the use of recovery tools. I’m referring to foam rollers, massages, and other similar tools out today. Basically anything else that stimulates blood flow to the muscles and stimulates regeneration.
1-2% OF BENEFITS COME FROM…
Shoes. Some could argue there’s even more benefit potential coming from shoes. Weight alone can be a tangible difference, but add in a carbon plate and the difference multiplies! But don’t hang your race hat on your shoes – remember this is still such a small percentage compared to what’s above!
Nutrition hacks. Some of these nutrition hacks are borderline wives’ tales, but they are so minimally invasive, why not try?! I’m referring to things like beet juice, which has been shown to improve oxygenation and respiratory function in endurance athletes. Interesting studies have also been done on the effect of magnesium on endurance athletes.
Optimizing Caffeine. Caffeine has been called the only legal performance-enhancing drug. It has been shown to improve alertness, enhance fat-burning, and even improve recovery. This one should be experimented with a lot to fine-tune your strategy, but it is very possible that this can provide a nice boost on race day!
Race Visualization. Not everyone will benefit from this, but visualizing your race is the icing on the mental training cake. It can be useful especially in the taper portion of the training where you’re intentionally NOT doing many of the things above!
VALUE YOUR TRAINING TIME
Think about this list when you’re planning your training. Do you have some extra time? Maybe some prehab work would help you more than adding a foam rolling session. All loaded up already? Consider experimenting with a 1-2% “hack”!
Whatever the case, hopefully you are prioritizing your training tools appropriately so you can make the best possible decisions. Hopefully these tools, however you mix and match them, lead you to your 100% fastest self!
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