RUN SMART: 6 Foundational Training Principles
In the hierarchy of training priorities, I believe there are six principles that define what it means to “Run Smart.” These six principles are the foundation of a solid training philosophy that will allow runners to improve quickly but also continue to improve year after year - they are important for beginners and experienced runners alike.
1) Easy Running
It’s important to understand how to actually run easy. Easy running should be determined primarily by perceived effort - definitely not by pace, and not even by Heart Rate (although HR can be a helpful secondary measure provided the HR monitor is giving an accurate reading).
Some ways to be confident you are running easy:
You never finish your run at a slower pace than you started, rather you finish slightly faster than you started without even trying to do so.
You finish feeling like you could easily keep going for several miles or kilometers.
If you’re running with others, you can easily keep up a conversation without getting out of breath.
You can comfortably breathe through your nose for 20-30 seconds while running.
2) Fast Running
Fast running is obviously required to get faster, but even runners who don’t care about speed will benefit from fast running. Faster paces (practiced in short intervals) makes slow running feel more comfortable. Fast running is not a specific pace, it is simply a faster and requires more effort than easy running.
Some ways to start incorporating fast running:
Strides 1-2 times a week
Interval workouts (such as Cycle Run or Ladder Down) 1-2 times per week
3) Fuel Your Lifestyle (Eat & Drink Enough)
We have to fuel our training. Without eating properly or drinking enough, the quality of our runs and workouts will suffer (at best) and (at worst) we’ll soon get injured and/or overtrained due to lack of proper recovery.
Aim to drink half your bodyweight in oz of water per day (other beverages contribute except alcoholic drinks)
Aim to eat a variety of foods, ideally not limiting any found groups.
Eat a meal or snack every few hours to avoid becoming incredibly hungry at any point in the day.
4) Adequate sleep
Sleep is a touchy subject because many people don’t sleep enough and seem to get by just fine. Ultimately we need to sleep enough to support our level of training. If we’re operating on less than ideal sleep, we simply need to train easier/ less than we would while getting enough sleep.
Sleep is so important for recovery. If you are able to increase sleep to your optimal amount (which is different from person to person) your running performance will improve.
Limit alcohol intake (or avoid entirely) in the evenings to avoid reducing your quality of sleep.
5) Work hard (Sometimes)!
Making improvements as a runner requires hard workouts and runs. We need to sometimes challenge ourselves and feel discomfort in training. But it's not possible to train in quality sessions and work on being “comfortable with discomfort” if you're carrying too much fatigue into the workouts (ie- running too fast on the easy days, not getting enough rest, not eating or hydrating properly).
Run fast and at a higher effort 1-2 times per week
You should feel relatively fresh starting these harder training days, and finish feeling quite tired (but not totally spent). Ideally you will finish feeling like you could do 1-2 more intervals of the same quality as the rest of your workout.
6) Consistency
It’s not necessary to hit any home runs in workouts, and it’s not a big deal to miss training occasionally. Smart training over weeks, months and years is the path to progress.
Stay tuned for a blog post on the other 3 levels in the hierarchy of training priorities.
Nicole Sifuentes is a full-time Running Coach for adults of all ages and abilities. She is a former professional runner and 2-time Olympian, and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. Read more about her services, and schedule your free coaching consultation.