How a STEADY run might help you RACE faster | The secret

Summary

In this video, the host emphasizes the importance of steady running in a training regimen, explaining its benefits for building fitness and improving race performance. They discuss how to execute a steady run, the correct intensity, and the gradual progression to avoid injury. The host also shares insights from elite athletes and provides tips on recovery, hydration, and nutrition to support steady running.

Takeaways

• 😎 Steady running is an intensity, not a speed; it's a pace between slow jogging and marathon tempo.
• 🏃‍♂️ Activation exercises are crucial before a steady run to prevent injury and prepare the body.
• 🛑 Gradually build up steady running in your training to avoid overtraining or injury.
• 🌟 Steady running helps build mental concentration and fitness, making your running more effective.
• 🔍 It's important to find the right intensity for steady running that suits your fitness level.
• 🍽 Post-run nutrition and hydration are vital for recovery after steady running sessions.
• 📈 Steady running can improve your biomechanics, bringing them closer to race pace.
• 🏆 Many successful runners incorporate steady running into their training routines.
• 🔄 A steady run should be a balanced part of a training cycle, not a daily occurrence.
• 💪 The mental toughness gained from steady running can be beneficial for race day performance.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the video?

The main focus of the video is on steady running, its importance, how to execute it, and how to incorporate it into a training routine.

Why is steady running considered beneficial for runners?

Steady running is beneficial because it builds mental concentration, improves biomechanics, enhances fitness with higher heart and work rates, and helps in developing better aerobic development.

What is the difference between steady running and easy running?

Steady running is an intensity level between slow jogging and marathon tempo running, whereas easy running is a slow jog without much intensity.

How does the presenter prepare for a steady run?

The presenter prepares for a steady run by doing some activation exercises to warm up the body, followed by a 2K easy run to build up to the steady run.

What is the recommended way to start steady running in a training routine?

The recommended way to start steady running is to gradually build it into the routine over time, starting with small portions and increasing the volume slowly to avoid injury.

Why is it important to not rush into steady running?

Rushing into steady running can lead to over-tiring or injury. It's important to build up the volume gradually and ensure proper recovery, hydration, and nutrition.

What is the role of mental concentration during a steady run?

Mental concentration during a steady run helps in pushing harder for longer, building psychological improvement, and teaching oneself to be mentally composed even when tired.

How does steady running affect biomechanics?

Steady running helps in teaching better biomechanics that are closer to race pace, as opposed to slow jogging which can teach bad biomechanics.

What is the presenter's opinion on the relationship between easy and steady running days?

The presenter believes that while easy days are important for recovery, steady running days are necessary to push the body and build fitness, making the days count.

What advice does the presenter give regarding the frequency of steady running in a training cycle?

The presenter suggests including one or two steady running days in a 10 to 12-day cycle, ensuring not to overdo it and to maintain a balance between intensity and recovery.

How does the presenter emphasize the importance of recovery after a steady run?

The presenter emphasizes the importance of recovery by mentioning the need for hydration, nutrition, and self-massage to prevent injury and aid in the recovery process.

Outlines

00:00

🏃‍♂️ Introduction to Steady Running

The speaker begins by setting the scene for a video on steady running, acknowledging that it's a challenging day for running. They explain the importance of steady running and how it differs from easy running days. The video will cover why steady running is beneficial and how to incorporate it into a training routine. The speaker also discusses a conversation with a physiologist about the importance of steady running and the need for daily effort in training. They emphasize the need for a mental approach to running, suggesting that one should aim to run faster on steady days to build fitness and avoid injury.

05:03

🚴‍♂️ Steady Running: Building and Executing

This paragraph delves into the practical aspects of steady running. The speaker outlines a typical steady running session, starting with activation exercises to prepare the body. They describe a session structure that includes an easy warm-up, a steady run, and a cool-down. The speaker stresses the importance of steady running as an intensity, not a specific speed, and advises on how to gradually incorporate it into one's training. They also discuss the caution needed to avoid injury and the importance of recovery, nutrition, and hydration.

10:06

💪 Benefits of Steady Running

The speaker outlines the benefits of steady running, including improved mental concentration, better biomechanics, and increased overall fitness. They explain how steady running can help runners develop a stronger mental approach to their training and how it prepares the body for race day by teaching better running form. Additionally, they discuss how steady running can enhance aerobic development, making the most of weekly running volume.

15:08

🌟 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

In the final paragraph, the speaker summarizes the importance of steady running and provides advice on how to balance training intensity. They emphasize the need for recovery and the importance of steady running in the training regimens of successful athletes. The speaker also encourages viewers to improve the quality of their training and to be mindful of their limits. They end with a personal touch, urging viewers to be kind to themselves and to take pride in their running achievements.

Keywords

💡Steady Running

Steady running refers to maintaining a consistent effort level during a run that is faster than an easy jog but not as intense as a tempo run. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of steady running for building fitness and improving race performance. It's described as an intensity, not a specific speed, and is meant to be challenging yet sustainable over a longer period.

💡Activation

Activation in the context of the video refers to the warm-up exercises or routines performed to prepare the body for a run and prevent injuries. The speaker mentions doing some activation stuff before starting the steady run to ensure the body is warmed up and ready for the workout, highlighting the importance of not starting a run unprepared.

💡Intensity

Intensity in running is the level of effort exerted during a workout. The video discusses steady running as an intensity level that is more demanding than an easy run but less than a hard or tempo run. It's about finding the right balance of effort to stimulate physiological improvements without causing excessive fatigue or injury.

💡Recovery

Recovery in the video script refers to the process of allowing the body to rest and repair itself after a workout. The speaker talks about the importance of easy days for recovery and how steady running can also be a form of active recovery, helping to improve fitness while still allowing the body to recuperate from more intense workouts.

💡Biomechanics

Biomechanics relates to the efficiency of body movements, particularly how the body moves while running. The video mentions that running at a steadier pace helps improve biomechanics, teaching the body better running form that is closer to race pace, which is crucial for preventing injuries and enhancing performance.

💡Mental Concentration

Mental concentration is the focus and determination required to maintain a steady running pace. The video script highlights that steady running requires more mental effort than easy jogging, which can lead to improved mental toughness and the ability to push harder during races.

💡Hydration and Nutrition

Hydration and nutrition are essential for runners to perform at their best and recover properly. The speaker in the video stresses the importance of staying hydrated and getting proper nutrition, especially after a steady run, to aid in recovery and maintain overall health.

💡Easy Days

Easy days are periods of lighter training intended for recovery and preventing overtraining. The video discusses the balance between hard and easy days, emphasizing that while easy days are necessary, incorporating steady running can make those days more beneficial for building fitness.

💡Training Zones

Training zones are specific heart rate or effort levels targeted during workouts to achieve certain training objectives. The video explains that steady running falls between easy jogging and tempo running in terms of intensity, helping runners to develop their aerobic capacity without overexerting themselves.

💡Aerobic Development

Aerobic development refers to the improvement of the body's ability to use oxygen during exercise. The video mentions that steady running helps build aerobic fitness by maintaining a higher heart rate and work rate than easy running, contributing to overall fitness and performance enhancement.

💡Injury Prevention

Injury prevention is the practice of taking measures to avoid physical harm during exercise. The video script advises caution when incorporating steady running into a training routine to prevent injuries, emphasizing the importance of gradual progression, proper warm-up, and recovery practices.

Highlights

Introduction to steady running and its benefits

Importance of activation exercises before steady running

Steady running is about intensity, not speed

How to execute a steady run and its role in training

The mental and physical preparation required for steady running

Building up to steady running gradually to avoid injury

Incorporating steady running into a training schedule

The caution needed while performing steady running

Importance of nutrition and hydration during steady running

Mental benefits of steady running and building concentration

Biomechanics and how steady running improves running form

Fitness gains from steady running and its impact on aerobic development

The balance between steady running and recovery

How steady running can improve race performance

The psychological aspect of steady running and self-motivation

Advice on not overdoing steady running to prevent injury

The importance of consistency in steady running

How elite athletes incorporate steady running into their training

Final thoughts on steady running and its impact on overall running performance

Transcripts

okay guys welcome to the channel today's

video is all about steady running I wish

today was an easy day but it's not I

have to run a little bit steadier which

is a little bit harder but that's what

builds brilliant results

I'm gonna have to get some sunglasses on

but while I talk about today's session

you can watch me do some activation

stuff which is what gets the body ready

prior to doing the steady run so that

you're not starting at a I'm not ready

to go I'm not warmed up my body's not

ready for this let's not get injured

during a steady day so I'm gonna go

through some activation stuff you can

watch that but I'll also talk about the

steady run and that'll be the

introduction to today's video but let me

get some sunglasses

all right that's better these are like

my drive and sunglasses I hate wearing

sunglasses but I don't want to sit and

look at the camera squinting so today's

a steady run I'm gonna talk you through

why you would do a steady run how

they're helpful how to execute a steady

run and then why and how why you could

start building it in your training and

how you could start building it into

your train and that seems a good way to

sort of breach the topic of steady run

and it can be seen as a you should do

your hard days hard and run your easy

days easy so it's not a

it's not a controversial topic but it's

one of those topics that not everybody

agrees that steady running is useful I

did a video not long ago on steady

running that was a steady run in Hawaii

the physiologist that helped work on the

Nike sub 2 The Brick and two documentary

and the project itself he messaged me on

Twitter we had been exchanging messages

and he said it's key

I love that not everyone's going to

agree with it Paula Radcliffe once told

one of my good friends Andrew Butchart

that you need to make the days count you

need to almost sweat on a daily basis

and that's a hypothetical this morning I

wake up

I wanted to do a YouTube video on

recovery days and easy days I wish I

could just go run easy I then remembered

that because I trained Thursday which is

two days ago hard better Tempo Friday

was an easy day very slow very easy

super important but now today is back to

steady day it's a

there has to be some layer of intent you

have to wake up and say

I don't need an easy day today so I'm

gonna push a little bit you don't turn

it in the tempo you don't turn it into a

hard day but it must count it's a day

that you need to put an emphasis on I'm

gonna run a bit faster today there's a

mental benefit there's a mental

concentration that comes with it it can

be tiring at first

but it can be key to moving your

physiology forward we're going to start

with some activation work before we go

on the steady run because we want to

give our muscles a chance to get a

little bit warmed up how it's going to

work is a little bit of activation

routine and then I do about 2k easy to

steady so I don't jump straight into

steady I build over that first 2K to

steady and then I'll do about 10K steady

and then maybe like 1K easy at the end

to kind of shut things down

okay

that's some activation stuff done

now I do a little bit of stretching on

perhaps areas of my body that felt a bit

tight I'm dying for a pee so I'm gonna

go go for a pee stretch a few bits put

on my running shoes do that 2K easy and

then get stuck into the steady

keep watching and I'll talk you through

it while I do this steady

why you might want to include it in your

training

what it might be useful for how it can

help and how to do it

in a way that benefits your run and you

don't get injured but this is like

tearing me out this position so I gotta

go pee

something that's very important is that

steady running is an intensity and not a

speed you might learn that over time it

becomes a speed I.E it becomes

consistent and you realize that the

intensity that you get the benefits of

steady running is around Abode a certain

piece but for now you have to remember

that steady running is an intensity it

is not a speed don't go out on a windy

day or on a tough course a hilly place

for example and try to run at a certain

speed

try to figure out their effort level

like I said it's between slow running

that easy Jog and Marathon type Tempo

it's an intensity in between those two

training zones don't confuse steady

running with a speed but as you get more

experience with it you might learn that

one speed in particular becomes your

kind of steady running range

you have to build into your steady

running gradually don't get injured

trying to add steady running into your

training that means that build it up

over time and make sure you progress the

volume of your steady days at a slow

enough rate that you don't get over

tired or you don't get injured how that

might look on paper is for example if

Wednesday and Thursday are easy days for

you you might find you do your easy day

Wednesday then on your Thursday easy day

you add in perhaps something small like

their five mile run you make one or two

mile of that run steadier that's all

then in a week's time if you're still

healthy etc etc nothing's wrong make

sure then to add a little bit more but

always have that week where you test the

theory did it work did I stay healthy

did I not get over tired cetera always

test before you add something new to

your training okay so how you might want

to go about adding this steady training

into your running program is by doing

one of your specific days which could be

intervals Hills Marathon Tempo Etc Let's

Pretend that's on the Monday you could

follow that up with a easy recovery day

where maybe you cross train or you just

jog easy and make sure that the body's

recovering then the next day that can be

your steady day so you've done your

harder day you've took your easy

recovery then you can do steady that's

how my program works and I usually

include one or two steady days into a 10

to 12 Day cycle I make sure that I'm

laying that foundation for which I can

build my specific Fitness on top of

okay I think it's really important to

address the fact that this is not super

safe training and so with everything

there's a layer of caution the layer of

caution is why I've told you to figure

out your intensity why I've told you to

do the pre-steady activation stuff why

I'm also going to tell you to focus on

your nutrition your hydration all the

important stuff because running that

little bit harder is exactly what it

says it's a bit harder what we're not

looking to do as Runners is get injured

and so don't blame steady run in for why

you got injured if you didn't pay

attention to adding little bits of

volume of steady to your week over time

or if you didn't do the pre-steady

activation or if you don't do anything

for your recovery hydration nutrition

foam roll and self massage

Etc these are all very important so be

careful with steady that's the layer of

caution it is harder and it does break

the body down so be sensible and don't

go crazy with your first couple of

steady runs

number one

oh it's not easy

so

running

if you hadn't already

figured it out yet it's not easy

at all and so

steady runs require

a bit more mental concentration you

don't get to just

jog along

and so obviously

that builds a layer of Fitness which is

great

but it also builds this

psychological

almost like

Improvement that you're

able to

push harder for longer because on these

steady days

you got the brilliant

used to being focused used to being

switched on and used to working

that's reason number one okay reason

number two is biomechanics

from uh running

technique perspective

your biomechanics are much

closer to

race pace

when you're running a little bit

steadier if you

just jog

you run really slow

I'm running up a hill it teaches the

body

bad

biomechanics which are a million miles

away

from your biomechanics on race day

and so

teaching the body

better biomechanics

means they come race day you're

much closer to that race day stride race

day kids and you're not teaching the

body always to be good at your organ the

number three is very simple

Fitness

with a

higher heart rate and a higher work rate

you're building a little bit more

Fitness and aerobic development on a day

of the week

that otherwise might not have counted

you're making

more of your running volume per week

[ __ ]

which means

if you watch my video on Zone training

you're working that

entire curve

the only

problem with

either run an easy or hard as you don't

work the entire Fitness curve

steady day allows you to work

another area of that Fitness curve which

leads the improved Fitness in that area

wish for a law is better growth better

Fitness in the areas above it and below

it okay

ah

I'm sweaty I'm tired

51 minutes 13 and a half K like I said

it's it's harder it's not easy

I woke up this morning and I would love

to just go jog I promise you

I don't love steady running

but I love that it makes me better

the final piece of advice is the

everybody's doing it but nobody's doing

it which contradicts itself but

everybody that I know

that is winning medals and is very good

dick Whiteman 1500 meter world champion

does steady running Eloise go look at

his train and type it in Eloise train

and Berlin Marathon build up look at the

Monday run it's fast and it's not a

session day

the runs that I did and font remote

before I ran 209 for the marathon before

I ran 61 away for the half every day

counted

strike a balance between

don't get injured don't get over tired

know your limits add some steady running

in as the year goes on as you get

further into your running career you can

add more steady running this is not a

overnight fix look to improve the

quality of your training not always

quantity

if you just run slow you get good at

running slow it's kind of simple that's

a simple science this run slower to get

faster kind of pisses me off I

any Camp I've been on with very good

athletes that go on to race really fast

they don't run slow

do you need to run slow somedays yes oh

my God yes to recover there is days that

recovery is really important

can you still actively recover when

you're doing steady running yes don't

turn it into a Tempo don't turn it into

threshold Marathon that kind of effort

keep it at steady appears between slow

Jog and maybe marathony type Temple keep

it in that middle ground and you're

actively recovering while running a bit

faster

I love the mental concentration I love

the mental decision that I'm gonna push

a bit and not just take it really easy

I think it makes you stronger I also

believe that during the steady run as

you start to get tired you teach

yourself the mentally compose yourself

on the Run

sure this is a bit hard sure I'm not

loving this but take a deep breath calm

things down it's all good you teach

yourself that on the Run

that's all I've got for you and steady

running I hope you enjoyed that if you

liked it comment below like share do all

those lovely things if you want more

tips on training recovery nutrition

that's a very important thing post

steady run and very important to get

hydrated very important to get your

nutrition right away let the body start

recovering instantly but get that

hydration going to more tips on

hydration nutrition psychology running

room.com my masterclass or Marathon

plans 10K plans Etc you can go check

that out if there's lots of free stuff

that activation routine you watched this

morning there's a fool and more thorough

guide on the website cm is warming up

for harder sessions Etc go check it out

can't recommend it enoughjogram.com hope

you enjoyed today's video take care

happy running be kind to yourself

running's really difficult please take a

moment to just be kind to yourself do

what I do sorry do what I did once that

I wish I do a lot more go look yourself

in the mirror tell yourself you're proud

of yourself it is so difficult quite

emotional but really really worth dude