Do you want to get faster at running? How much faster do you want to get over 5k or over a marathon?
If you’re reading this post, the answer should be yes, you want to get faster and the only correct answer should be significantly faster.
But how are you going to do that if you don’t have a plan of attack? Can I make a suggestion for you? Start adding in threshold running.
Threshold running can look and feel very different for every person, as you’ll see below, but every runner has a threshold effort that they need to target as one of their priorities every week or two.
What is Threshold Running?
Threshold running is supposed to be a comfortably hard effort that helps improve your fitness. It’s a pace that’s faster than easy running, but considerably slower than a 5k race. A threshold run is not so fast that you can’t do it for an extended period.
If threshold pace was a race, it would be a race that you’d finish in about an hour. For some, that might be a 10k and for other runners, it might be a half marathon.
Threshold 101
Threshold workouts can be done in a variety of ways so that the workouts never feel boring or the same. To really master threshold running, you’ll want to keep the rest relatively short.
That means that for every 5 minutes of running at threshold pace, you should be taking roughly 1 minute of rest. So, if you run repeats that last 2:30, you’ll want to rest (jog) for only 30 seconds. If you need more time to recover from the repeat, chances are, you’ve run it too fast.
That’s the beauty of threshold pace: it’s challenging, but not killer. You don’t need a lot of time to recover before you head off for your next repeat.
How will you know if you’re hitting your threshold effort? If you can talk in short burst, you’re in the right zone. If you can tell a whole story, you’re running too easy and if you can’t talk more than a phrase at a time, you’re running too hard.
If you’re just beginning with threshold, start with short repeats – like 300 or 400 meters. Pick a repeat distance that you can run even-paced for the entire repeat without losing form or feeling like you have to work harder to finish. The effort should stay the same and the pace you run should as well.
As you get stronger and fitter, you can increase the distance of the repeats and then you can increase the amount of time spent at threshold.
The goal of a threshold workout is to keep the effort level comfortably hard while not straining to hit pace or distance targets.
When you finish a rep and when you finish the workout, you should feel as if you could run 2 more repeats at the same intensity level with the same effort level.
Where Should You Run Threshold?
My only stipulation for where you should run your threshold is this: can you do it without getting interrupted by a stoplight, turning car, etc etc?
If the track works for you, great. If you have a road loop, great.
The track is good for those who need to know they are running a set distance. You can check in on your splits (don’t over-check though! Run by feel!) as having consistent distance markers is useful for some runners.
The road is great too because it is your best simulator of what a road race is going to look and feel like. You’ll benefit from having a watch set up with your workout set to take splits for you.
That’s it. It doesn’t truly matter where you run your workout, what matters is you follow the effort guidelines I suggested above. Comfortably hard is roughly 1 hour race pace and it should feel quick, but not fast. You should be able to talk in short sentences, but nothing more and nothing less.
Why is Threshold Important?
Threshold training is the key to training your body to create {running fast} and clear {running efficiently} blood lactate accumulation during training. If you can create and clear an increasing amount of lactate accumulation, you’re
I come from a high-threshold training system so I strongly believe that you can run well off of threshold training. I see it in my own training and in the races of the runners I coach.
Threshold training gets you most of the way to really fit so I tend to overemphasize that type of training. It’s a “safe” and conservative approach to training, at least compared to hard intervals and speed work.
It’s also a major component of most longer distance training programs because it appropriately coincides with the effort level of those longer races.
Threshold Workout Examples
I think most runners would say they run threshold by distance: “I ran 10 x 400 meters”, for example.
But I don’t think we need to be limited by distance. You can also run threshold by time or by feel. Instead of repeats on the track, you can opt for the roads and instead of doing set distances, you can run by time instead. That might look like 10 x 2 minutes or 5 x 5 minutes.
Remember, the more novice you are, the shorter the reps should be. You might want to start out doing 200s or repeats of 1 minute before you advance the time you spend at threshold.
As you get stronger and fitter (after years and years), you might be able to handle 2 x 2 mile at threshold.
There is a HUGE gap between 10 x 2 mins and 2 x 2 miles, so feel free to experiment with different reps, both time and distance.
How Can You Implement Threshold Training
You have all of these examples of threshold workouts and you know how important it is, but here’s how you can actually implement it into your training.
While threshold running might be faster than easy running, it isn’t really fast, per se. That means the amount of rest needed to recover from a rep can be short, especially if you’re running your correct threshold effort.
Typically, you’ll see threshold workouts with 1 minute to 1 minute 15 seconds of rest for every 5 minutes of work. Running for longer? More rest. Running shorter? Less rest.
The goal of threshold pace is to keep your heart rate in that sweet spot for as long as possible. So if you…
- Run too fast and your heart rate jumps.
- Run too slow and it doesn’t hit the right target.
- Rest for too long and your heart rate comes out of the zone.
- Rest for too short and it jumps too high after you start up again.
How Often Should You Run Threshold?
Does this mean every run should be at threshold? HELL NO.
It’s ultimately up to you how often you run threshold workouts. As I said earlier, the majority of races you’ll run require energy systems that mimic threshold, so it makes a lot of sense to have a decent percentage of your workout miles to be at threshold.
Personally, I like to include doses of threshold in most of my workouts, especially when I’m getting in shape.
When I say doses, I mean that some of the workout – as little as 10% or as much as 80% – is threshold efforts while the rest could be hills, 5k paced work, or sprints.
I like starting with threshold paces and then, if the workout calls for it, picking up the intensity level for the remainder of the workout.
You might also be asking how much volume (how many miles) should you be running at threshold per session?
That depends on your weekly mileage. Typically, in most training plans you’ll see 8-10% of your weekly volume should be done at threshold. If you run 100 miles per week, that’s 8-10 miles [per week]. If you run 25 miles per week then it’s roughly 2-2.5 miles worth [per week].
Summary
Threshold training is a pace or effort level that will help you improve your fitness, endurance, and stamina. It requires that you train at a comfortably hard pace which allows you to improve your aerobic capacity.
Whether you need short reps with matching rests or long intervals with equivalent rest, threshold training is versatile and has the ability to adapt to any runner.
Remember, threshold training isn’t about running all-out or seeing how fast you can go, it’s more of a simmer than a white-hot burn.
Whether you are training for a mile race or a marathon, threshold workouts are a staple in training plans that will help improve your fitness.
Do you still have threshold questions? Or maybe you’d like to start a training plan with him? Use this form to connect with Marc. He’ll help you take your training to the next level. He offers personalized training plans that take your running history, availability, goals, and more to make a plan that fits your needs.
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