Training v Race Paces: The context behind your paces

My comfortable pace is around 5:20-5:40. My marathon pace is also around 5:30. My easy runs in Femmi are 6:20-6:40, which feels impossible to run that slow. Must I really go that slow or should I be aiming to push harder in the next marathon?! I feel like I’m tripping over my feet if I’m anything over 6:10

Easy running can be hard to grapple with because the pace can feel like a real jog and your mind starts to wonder - ‘is this actually doing anything for me?’, ‘how can running this slow be beneficial?’. But running easy on your easy days is so important so you can maximize your other runs, like your speed runs, long runs and steady runs. It should feel really easy, it should feel slow for you, your marathon pace should be faster than your easy pace, if it is not you are running your easy runs too fast. You’re potentially sacrificing gains in your hard runs which will impact your race outcome. If we think about our energy systems like a pyramid the higher the roof from the bottom the more capacity you have to make improvements. If there isn’t much variety between your easy runs and race pace, you need to slow down. If you are running four or five times a week, and these runs include your speed run, your steady run and strides and your long run - your other one or two runs a week should exist to work on your aerobic base and help your body recover from the intensity.

Wtf is steady pace?

With Femmi training plans the majority of long runs (if you’re not a beginner runner) are actually at what we call steady pace, you might be thinking wtf is a steady pace? Fair enough, it is quite a foreign idea for some who either are working really hard or really easy but rarely in between. To be honest, even the running world, coaches, clinicians all have slightly different theories as to why steady runs are beneficial but the main thing is that they are beneficial! Firstly let’s look into what a steady run and pace is and then we can explain the benefits. Steady pace will lie somewhere between marathon and easy pace. So essentially it is that sweet spot that isn’t quite race pace but isn’t a jog. If we think about it in energy systems - running at half marathon pace should be at about your lactate threshold, which is essentially the threshold where your body can just maintain clearing the by-product known as lactic acid that your body produces when your cells break down carbohydrates for energy alongside a lack in oxygen (puffing much). Lactic acid is a runner's bread and butter - let’s be real, we are all benign masochists because we don’t shy away from that burning, painful feeling we experience when we push ourselves hard in running. When you reach beyond your lactate threshold your body struggles to continue to buffer that lactate. Then we have your aerobic threshold which lays below your lactate threshold - up until the point where your body switches from entirely using oxygen to break down fatty acids as fuel to primarily relying on carbohydrates. A steady run sits somewhere in between those two - the aerobic threshold and your lactate threshold.

Now let's understand the benefit and risk associated with steady runs.

Steady runs are a powerful tool in your running arsenal, you badass you, because they push your body in a zone that isn’t rarely pushed to - not quite lactate threshold but not below your aerobic threshold meaning your ability to withstand a mildly uncomfy pace for a long time improves. This not only builds endurance, it also improves blood circulation, muscle endurance and greater fatigue resistance. These runs are not easy, they require concentration to run a bit quicker than easy pace the entire run. Many women who have been training with Femmi speak to the confidence a steady run gives them when it comes to race day, you’re essentially running an extended period of time not too far off marathon pace which aids in believing you are capable of the real thing on race day. Steady runs are a fair bit harder on the body and cardiovascular system, to recover from that we need to run easy. If you are constantly pushing to a steady pace (close to your marathon pace) you will be continually running in between zones which can put you at greater risk of injury and burnout.

Your pace chart

To give you a clear idea of how each pace is related to each other, and how the differing paces should look when it comes to your overall training schedule, see the chart below. As you would imagine, your easy run pace should always be your slowest training pace. We then look at your other training paces, including your steady pace (which may be similar to your long run pace). From there you will only get faster, moving into your marathon pace, half marathon pace, 10km, 5km and 3km race paces. These paces will only ever be scheduled on your speed session days and shouldn’t be a common occurrence. Why? Because of the high intensity nature of these paces, we want to make sure we are not over doing the speed work as recovery times will impact all future training. Remember queens, it is about constancy across the board, not winning one good workout.

So, in saying all of this your easy run should be easy. 

They should feel slow, they should be cruisey and they should help you recover so you can push yourself in your intense runs. When we look at some great female athletes they have up to a 90 seconds per KM difference between their marathon pace and their easy pace, that gives you an idea that the further we can push that gap the more potential we can foster.