Summary: Run stronger and race faster by slowing down during a majority of your training. You can get better by making the majority of your running easier. This isn't a link bait headline that graces the 'big running magazines' but in fact a training methodology that is proven to elicit your best performance and remains the choice of elite runners over many decades and still today. Matt Fitzgerald continues to be the voice of reason by providing scientifically backed running books that explore not hand picked research to advance an agenda but instead get at what the summation of research is telling us. Whether it involves busting the myths of Diet Cults that falsely advance an idea of one true way to eat for best performance to examining how the best in the sport train, he continues to solidify himself as a thought leader in the growing and often conflicting source of running information available to you. Many new training methodologies are emerging with big marketing pushes behind them telling you what you want to hear: "Run Less, Run Faster." Eliminate "junk miles." If you have questioned these claims, your instincts are leading you to the truth. There are no shortcuts to success in running. Through committing to the principles of 80/20 Running in your training you will first find running more enjoyable, then you will start to crush your high intensity workouts and as a result your PRs will fall in lockstep. In this training myth busting episode of the podcast, you'll discover: If you are in the majority of recreational runners that are currently training too hard Why training at a slower pace can be more challenging than a hard pace The hidden benefits of low intensity training Why training at your default "medium" pace is a black hole in your training and sapping your progress How to appropriately pace your easy, low intensity training Why more is not better when training at high intensity Running slow and running fast are not mutually exclusive - and how they compliment each other The problems with training programs that encourage "less is more" and "quality over quantity" Why the term "junk miles" is an oxymoron Why VO2 Max alone is not what you should strive to improve through your training How you can run faster while your VO2 Max stays the same or even declines Focusing on actual performance instead of a proxy metric for it How running slower can mentally train you to run faster, longer Specific, actionable strategies to slow down your training The timeframe to expect results from applying this approach to your own running Quick Tip How to appropriately pace your hard workouts to train effectively for your time goals. Links Mentioned in the Show 80/20 Running: Run Stronger and Race Faster by Training Slower - Get the Book Importance of Easy Running Crush My PR
