My iPod is presently on holiday in California, getting special battery treatment in Silicon Valley. Thus, my runs of late have been very low-tech: no podcasts economics analysis to get me through those trying last miles. This is fine – I’ve gone through much of life without an iPod – but by Sunday, I was bored.
Enter Megan and Shelby, who kindly let me tag along on their Sunday morning long run (après rocking 5Ks, I should add).
I used to run in Central Park every Sunday, but haven’t done so for more than half a year. This morning made me remember, quite distinctly, why it was so awesome – constant distraction in the form of weird people/fast people/people you went to summer camp with/horse poop to hurdle over, water fountains, soft bridle paths, and, in the case of yesterday morning, awesome company.
Shelby left us around 7 miles, and Megan and I trotted along at an 8:00ish pace until she left too. And because I just can’t make a run easy, I picked it up for miles 11.5-13 at about a 6:45 pace. Because back in the day when I was training for stuff, I made long runs a real workout.
I think that mentality – make my long runs worth it is going to have to make a triumphant return. And I’m going to tell y’all that you should consider amping up your long runs as well.
Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking: “Are you on drugs? I’m freakin’ running for two hours out there while the rest of the world is eating pancakes? And you want me to work harder?”
Yep.
Here’s the thing: your long run counts as a quality workout. It’s not as intense as intervals or a tempo run, but you can’t argue that 12+ miles of aerobic exertion isn’t taxing. But after you get comfortable with the distance, there’s a lot more you can gain from your long runs if you run a little harder (pardon me while I skip the physiological evidence. I swear it exists, but I was an English major. So you really shouldn’t trust anything scientific that comes out of my mouth).
Adding marathon pace miles is pretty standard for marathoners – you get comfortable with race pace over a distance – but those of us who aren’t crazy like that can get a ton of aerobic and mental benefits from running shorter, faster bits within a long run. Is it pleasant? HELL NO. It totally throws a wrench in Sunday morning long run gossip fests. But think of it this way: you’re already awake, sweaty, maybe grouchy, so you might as well make your run work for you.
Some Very Non-Expert Tips for Having a Worthwhile Long Run
Fast finish: This is sort of what I did yesterday – for the last 2-4 miles of your run, pick up the pace to something around your tempo or half-marathon pace. This should feel hard. It is hard. But it will also make you more confident for your half marathons.
Middle tempo: Put that tempo in the middle! When I was training for the Healdsburg half marathon last fall (roughly using the Runner’s World Ultimate Half Marathon Plan), the longest one of these I did was six miles at half marathon pace in the middle of a 17-mile run (also done on a Monday morning before work because I frittered away my Sunday, but whatever). This felt terrible. It was really hard. And when things got hard in the half, I remembered kicking my own ass on a Monday morning, and picked it up. Try this one. It works. Things you can try are three to six miles at tempo, or two sets of 10 minutes at threshold (a bit faster than tempo pace).
Overall uptempo: Some people swear by an easy long run. My college coach didn’t, encouraging us to do our long runs a bit faster than our general aerobic, everyday training runs. Again, this pretty much zaps the enjoyment out of them (to a certain extent), but man, does it make you fit. So if you are me (lucky you!), and you do your normal runs between 7:45-8:15 pace, make that long run at 7:20-7:30 pace. Good times.
Strides: Okay. You told me to go screw myself with all of the above suggestions. FINE. But you reached the end of your long run feeling okay…do some strides. Those 100-meter pickups where you start kind of slow and sprint towards the middle? Yeah, you’re not going to love doing this after 15 miles, but I promise you that your legs – and turnover – will thank you.
As I said, I don’t have any studies in front of me that say that you ought to try these, but I do have anecdotal success. I also share with you the simple yet brilliant assertion Shelby made yesterday during our run: “Running is hard.” When you are uncomfortable, hurting, gasping for air – that’s pretty normal. Don’t be afraid to push yourself – that’s where the fun part starts.
And now for something much more exciting, a huge bruise on my dad’s arm!
Taken right before dinner at Veggie Heaven in Montclair, N.J.
BLEAAARGH! That’s what I will do to you if you keep on dogging it on your long runs! Kidding. I forget the story of how he got this, but I think it involved falling on something.
Be careful out there, folks.
How do you do your long runs? Can you make a funny double entendre out of that question?
haha i don’t think that i’d need much convincing to make my long runs worthwhile. i tend to have to reel them in! i sooo don’t need you here encouraging me to amp it up
I like my long runs to be easy by doing them slow and steady.
Quite opposite of how I like my men.
Bam.
I was wondering about the whole long run thing. The half plan in RW last month said to run them at like 10:30 pace and I was curious as to how that would help me run 9:05 pace in a half. Who knows.
I have no idea. I think those proscribed paces are pretty variable, depending on how you’re feeling.
Slowly and sometimes painfully and with a lot of talking myself into even getting out the door. I have this nasty habit of going out to fast (which for you speedy people your recovery/slow pace) and then around mile 6 I think OMFG what am I doing I still have 10-14 miles left to go and I am going to be walking 4 of them if I don’t slow the fuck down so then I slow down to a glacial pace and make it through. By the time I get to that final 2-3 miles left I have no gas left in the tank to speed up and kick my way home so I shuffle/limp home. The plan calls for them to be ran at pace/pace plus which is anywhere from 45-50 seconds/mile slower than goal pace and then speed up throughout your work out so you finish with your goal pace. Yeah doesn’t happen at all.
I agree 100% with this. Phoning it in with a blah pace on every long run can equal missed opportunities for physical and mental gains. I enjoy ramping up the pace in the last few miles of a long run — why not EARN those pancakes, right?
The mental aspect is really key. Going into a long race knowing you can hold the pace during a long effort is money.
Very timely and thought provoking for those of us idiots with fall marathon plans. I agree and will likely incorporate much of what you suggest going forward. Yesterday, I needed a confidence booster … that I would not bonk during 16. As it turns out the pace was slow. I like the progression component to a long run as it gets the legs, lungs, mind used to pushing it when fatigued. Really good post.
There’s certainly utility to the long steady efforts. I should have added that I don’t do long run workouts every time – that would be exhausting on all counts. I think you can really add a lot to your fitness by ramping up the intensity, though.
When I start long running I’ll let you know
You will be so money. I can feel it.
That was a really interesting post. I have to admit that I never even considered putting a tempo in the middle of a long run before, the thought alone just made me sweat a little. I want to try this next weekend…
Yay! Let me (and the world) know how it goes!
Love this post – great advice! Once you’re comfortable running 10+ miles for long runs, it’s easy to get complacent with speed. However, if the goal is to run a fast (ish) half or full marathon, I really think that treating the long run as a legit workout is key. My goal for marathon training – alternate “supa long runs” (i.e. 18-20 miles) with “fast finish long runs” (12-15 miles).
I’ve done training plans with a tempo in the middle of the LR. Usually I run them about the same pace as an easy run and then push it later if I feel like it.
I do them ALL NIGHT LOOOONG. AW YEAH.
At this point I’m starting over from scratch so my long runs are of the just-trying-to-finish variety. But when I used to be able to run, I’d kinda try to zone out for as long as possible; then wake up and pay attention to my pace for about the next half mile or so before zoning out again. Genius, right? My own brand of specialized race training. Once you master the art of sleeping through an entire workout, the better off you will be.
No but really, I’m so not technical. But this is great advice for when I will someday finally need to kick it up a notch on my 12 mile runs. If I don’t hurt myself again, I just might get there.
I tend to make a distinction between long runs (10+ miles) and really long runs (say, 17+ miles). For long runs, I try to mix up the speed with a little tempo or progression. For the really long runs, I just try to survive.
Great to see you on Sunday!
Pingback: Beets and Borscht | The Runner's Kitchen
great tips! Once I get over 10 miles I tend to just go into survival mode. I need to put more into it.
Great post. I agree that you can become complacent with long runs which is fine if you’re looking to just “do a marathon.” I tend to throw in a couple miles at MP towards the middle/end to really get a feel for how it will feel on race day. This also depends on whether I’m having an “ugh survival day” or I feel alright.
Exactly. I sometimes go in with the best of intentions, only to tell myself, “Oh, yah, totally, this counts as a pickup. Sure.”
Funny you should talk about this, this weekend, I’m planning on doing almost that exact same half marathon pace 17 miler deal. But I’m gonna break it up into two 2-3 miles stretches. I agree with you in general that long runs can be more than just slowly getting through 2 or so hours of running. I like to rotate the sort of long run I do from week to week. One week it’ll be a progressive style effort – say break up a 16 miler into 4 mile chunks and do each some faster than the previous 4. One week I’ll do half marathon pick-ups in the middle (gotta get those legs ready for November!) and one week I’ll take as a “down” week and just do some strides at the end.
Of course, some weeks I putz around until noon and go run when it’s 100 out and then my workout turns into “try not to collapse and die”
Oh, oh, yes. Of late, my long runs have been designed to keep my body from, you know, expiring. That’s a bit easier, mentally. Us crazy runners can’t keep anything simple for too long, though!
I love these tips! I definitely do not consider speed during my long runs, but I’m going to try some of your ideas on my 12-13 miler this week to see how it goes. Seeing as you are speedy mcspeedster, I have comeplete faith that they work.
This post is the reason I put 3 x 1.5 @ tempo into the second half of my long run today. Oh, who am I kidding – I pulled the plug on the last one halfway through it. And then I shuffled the final mile home. It was not fun, but I finished feeling like I’d actually done a workout rather than just jogged along for a couple of hours. So thanks, I guess? Or, alternatively, why oh why did you have to plant such crazy ideas in my head?
Glad to help
Pingback: Phun and a Run in Philly « Meals for Miles
Pingback: I won’t meat you halfway « Washington Ran Here