Forget about your Vo2max number. Running economy is the name of the game!
Yep, we said it. Today, Coach Sage Canaday is going to explain why your running economy is the biggest difference maker in your ability to improve as a runner. Let’s dig in to today’s newsletter:
Today’s topic is running economy. When we discuss running economy, we’re focusing on efficiency (not investments or stock markets ) in distance running.
Defining Running Economy
It’s like considering your car’s mileage fuel efficiency. Are you a monster truck or a Prius? This analogy has been used by coaches for decades because it’s a great indicator. Just like fuel efficiency in a car—miles per gallon or kilometers per liter—it varies based on our build, running form, and internal systems like cardiovascular efficiency, lung capacity, and muscle density.
Running economy measures how much oxygen you use to cover a kilometer or milliliters of oxygen per kilogram of body weight per minute of exercise. I had my running economy tested alongside my VO2max a few years ago at different paces, from a 6-minute mile to a 5-minute mile. Interestingly, running economy doesn’t always decline as you run faster. It’s about how efficiently you use oxygen to cover that distance, reflecting your running form, biomechanics, muscle efficiency, and oxygen processing by your heart, lungs, and blood vessels.
VO2 Max & Running Economy
Running economy is also crucial for long-term improvement because, truthfully, your VO2 max, your maximum oxygen consumption, tends to peak in your early 20s. It decreases with age, but you can still enhance your running performances because your running economy and efficiency improve as you age. This improvement can take decades, especially evident in longer distances like the 10K and beyond, where we see people achieving personal bests in their 40s and 50s, depending on when they started running. You might have a high VO2 max like a Mustang with high horsepower, great for short races, but for sustained efforts like a marathon, efficiency matters more, akin to a Toyota Prius or a Tesla.
Improving running economy involves enhancing efficiency at specific race paces. For marathoners, this means being efficient at marathon pace and slightly faster or slower. Speed work, like kilometer or mile repeats and faster tempo runs, builds efficiency by stimulating neuromuscular coordination, muscle turnover, and force generation. This adaptation takes time and strength development.
Weight Training As It Relates to Running Economy
There’s ongoing debate about weight training’s role in improving running economy. While it can help, so can drills, strides, and increasing mileage. However, the approach varies depending on the runner’s goals and specialization. Sprinters, for instance, focus on different aspects to enhance their running economy for short, powerful bursts.
Sprinters tend to focus more on weightlifting, while longer-distance runners, from 5k to ultramarathoners use the gym to address imbalances, strengthen core stability, and refine running form to boost running economy and reduce injury risk. Consistency is key in training, and avoiding injuries is crucial for long-term progress.
Furthermore, balancing different types of workouts is essential. Too much speed work might improve your 10k time but could compromise marathon performance if not balanced with sufficient long runs. It’s also worth mentioning that genetic differences also play a role, with some individuals naturally inclined towards sprinting while others excel in longer distances.
Variable running economy is another aspect influenced by factors like terrain (hills vs. flats), surface conditions (road, mud, sand), and individual preferences or strengths. It’s a dynamic process that requires careful training adjustments and understanding your body’s responses to different stimuli.
Improving running economy is a holistic process that involves various factors. It’s not just about hitting specific paces like 5k or 10k race speeds or VO2 max velocities but also about refining neuromuscular connections, optimizing running form, choosing suitable footwear and surfaces, and enhancing cardiovascular efficiency. Higher mileage training, coupled with proper nutrition and recovery, fosters positive adaptations at the cellular level, making oxygen processing and muscle performance more efficient.
Building an aerobic base is CRUCIAL when trying to boost endurance and achieve peak performance as a runner!
If you’ve been following us for a while, you’ve probably heard us talk about the importance of “building an aerobic base.” For today’s newsletter, Coach Sandi Nypaver explains the science behind what exactly happens to your body when you’re building an aerobic base. Through this, we hope you understand why every runner needs to devote a training block to building theirs!
Let’s get started:
For my runners without a race in the near future, now may be a great time to do an aerobic base phase. During an aerobic base phase, most of your runs will be easy, but you’ll still be making important adaptations.
Adaptation 🥇:
One is the increase in the number and the size of mitochondria you have in your muscle fibers. Mitochondria converts the food we eat. This means they are responsible for turning carbs, fat, and protein into actual, usable energy. The more mitochondria you have, the more energy you can utilize as you run. Mitochondria also help to clear lactate mainly in slow twitch muscle fibers.
Adaptation 🥈:
Another adaptation your body will make during the aerobic base phase is an increase in capillaries. Capillaries are tiny blood vessels that transport blood nutrients and oxygen to cells in your organs and body systems. Increasing the capillaries surrounding your muscle fibers means you can more quickly deliver oxygen and nutrients into your muscles. In other words, your body becomes better or faster at fueling your muscles so they can keep working how you want them to as you run.
Adaptation 🥉:
The third benefit of aerobic based training is an increase in myoglobin, which is a protein that stores oxygen. If oxygen becomes restricted during exercise, myoglobin releases the oxygen to the mitochondria to produce more energy. Another way of putting it is that your myoglobin can serve as your oxygen backup to be used during your race. Easier aerobic running can also strengthen your heart, improve your time to fatigue, and help you better utilize fat as you run.
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During an aerobic base phase, the aim is to improve your aerobic system as much as possible before adding in more intense training. If you’re racing anything over a mile, you’re mostly using your aerobic system, which is why aerobic training is so important.
Let’s use a cake as an example. The cake’s icing is your anaerobic system, and the cake itself, so the part made from flour, is your aerobic system. You need both for a good cake, but obviously the cake itself, the aerobic training, makes up most of the cake. The icing, or the anaerobic training, really is the icing on the cake for developing speed.
You still want to add in speed during the aerobic base phase to work on your running economy. I’ll save talking about running economy for another day, but basically adding in things like strides or light fartleks will keep your legs used to running fast during this phase.
In combination with easier running, over time you may see your paces get a little faster while staying at the same effort or heart rate. The short bouts of speed will also help prepare your muscles and tendons for the speed work later on in your training. You can do something like 4-8 x 20 seconds strides every two to three days. Another option is something like strides on Monday and Friday and then have a light fartlek on Wednesday doing 6 x 2 minutes (or something like that).
In conclusion, building an aerobic base isn’t just about improving endurance; it’s about fine-tuning your body for optimal performance. From increasing mitochondria and capillaries to enhancing myoglobin levels, each adaptation works together to make your running more efficient and powerful. So, whether you’re preparing for a race or focusing on long-term fitness, dedicating time to build your aerobic base lays the foundation for success.
Today, Coach Sage Canaday is going to discuss the concept of “running tall,” and why this could make a huge difference in your running form. In short, it will align your whole body position to be able to run efficiently!
The idea with running tall is that we want to avoid the dreaded heel strike. This is when you land in front of your center of mass. When I see runner’s heel strike, it’s often accompanied by “wingy” elbows and their hips are really low to the ground, almost as if they are trying to perform a squat.
Instead, you want to focus on running tall. That’s the cue for straightening your spine, your whole upper body position, and bouncing off your feet and ankles. One drill that I do to help me with this motion is perform a “running man dance” type of exercise. You can get an idea of that below:
This motion is very exaggerated, but it’s showing the kind of ankle action and propulsion you get when you’re landing under your center of mass off the midfoot or the middle part of your foot (or, at least your whole foot hitting the ground as long as it’s not a heel strike out in front of your body). It’s just better physics; you’re getting more propulsion, more powerful push-off force, utilizing your calf muscles in the back of your legs to your glutes, and springing off the ground.
Another drill to practice is springing up and down, like the exercise you see below. The important thing to note is that I’m straightening the spine while realizing that the forward lean in running comes from the ankles and the feet hitting the ground, and the rest of your body is in line.
Other things to be cognizant of when doing this exercise is you want to be straightening your back and lifting your stomach and rib cage. It opens up your diaphragm so you can breathe better and be more efficient when you run.
So, what’s the point in doing all of these drills and paying close attention to our form?
It’s all about efficiency in running—efficiency to make you run faster but also to minimize the risk of injury from impact force and repetitive strain. There’s a lot of force coming down with each foot strike, two to three times your body weight. If it’s a braking heel strike in front of your body and your hips are too low and you’re running short, like even I kind of do sometimes, then it’s going to put a lot of strain. It could also strain your hip flexors and lower back, causing a lot of pain.
In conclusion, think “run tall” when you’re out running; try to be as tall as possible! It doesn’t mean you’re trying to spring up as much as possible. You still want to avoid too much vertical bounce or oscillation but keep your chest upright, maintain a straight line, and keep your hips under you and up high so you can open up your legs better.
I hope these running form tips and exercises help you a little bit in your running this week. Thanks for your support and happy running!
Sometimes, finding just one good thing can help give us the strength to keep moving forward.
Train your mind to focus on good things.
Coach Sandi Nypaver gives you some of her top tips for when a run gets challenging or a day her going your way. Ultimately, it’s important to ask: Where will you choose to put your focus?
Training your mind to focus on good things can sometimes make the bad days a little easier or help you know when it’s time to start moving on from a bad experience.
Change your perspective.
On bad days we tend to focus on everything that doesn’t make us happy, but finding just on good thing to focus on can start changing our perspectives.
What good things can you focus on when everything seems to suck on the surface?
When it’s raining or snowing, you can appreciate that water is a necessary ingredient for growth. Focus on the important (prevent fires, important to life on earth) of water. Focus on something like how pretty the trees are on your run. Be grateful for the fact that you have a body strong enough to run.
Meditation can be a wonderful tool.
Mediation can be a wonderful tool that can help you stay in the present moment making it easier to focus on all the good things in your life. Meditation is meant to be simple.
Focus on your breathing.
All you do is focus on your breath., feeling the inhale and exhale, and quiet your mind. When thoughts come in (which is expected!), all your do is gently remind yourself to go back to focusing on your breathing. You can do this for a couple minutes or over 20 minutes.
For today’s newsletter, Coach Sandi Nypaver is going to walk you through some of the lessons she’s learned over the years for why it can be helpful to use a race as a training run leading up to your “A” race.
Lesson 1: Mental Toughness 🧠
Racing isn’t just about physical exertion—it’s a mental game, too. By approaching a race as a training run, you’re giving yourself the opportunity to strengthen your mental fortitude. No matter how hard we train when we’re by ourselves, there’s nothing can compare to the mental toughness needed to push your limits during a real race. Embrace the challenge, stay positive, and practice mindfulness both on and off the trails. You’ll be amazed at how this mindset shift can enhance your performance on race day.
Lesson 2: Race-Day Routine Refinement 🏁
Using a race as a training run allows you to fine-tune your race-day routine. From pre-race fueling to post-race recovery, pay attention to what works for your body. Experiment with different nutrition strategies, pacing techniques, and mental preparation rituals. Now is the time to make mistakes and try things out! You do not want to be experimenting with any equipment or nutrition the morning of your race. By the time your goal race rolls around, you’ll have a tried-and-true plan in place for success.
Lesson 3: Physical Limit Exploration 😮💨
Pushing your limits in a race setting can reveal valuable insights about your current fitness level. Racing as a training run gives you the freedom to test your boundaries without the pressure of achieving a specific time or placement. Pay attention to how your body responds to different terrains, distances, and pacing strategies. Use this information to adjust your training plan and set realistic goals for future races.
Lesson 4: Recovery 😴
One of the most important lessons from using a race as a training run is learning to prioritize recovery. Listen to your body and give it the rest and nourishment it needs to bounce back stronger. Whether it’s taking a rest day, incorporating active recovery activities, or simply getting extra sleep, honor your body’s signals and take care of yourself. Remember, recovery is just as crucial as training when it comes to achieving your running goals.
Lesson 5: Perspective and Gratitude 🙏
Finally, racing as a training run reminds us to appreciate the journey as much as the destination. Embrace the opportunity to run alongside fellow athletes, soak in the beauty of the trails or roads, and celebrate every milestone, big or small. Running is about more than just crossing the finish line—it’s about the friendships forged, the challenges overcome, and the moments of pure joy along the way.
So, the next time you’ve identified an “A” race for your schedule, consider adding in a race part way through your training block to help dial in your routines for the big day! Embrace the lessons learned, cherish the experiences gained, and keep chasing those goals. Until next time, happy running!
) in distance running.
