Long Run Pace: Why Slower Is Often Smarter

Many runners push their long runs too hard. They check their pace constantly, feel guilty about "slow" splits, and finish depleted. This approach misses the point of the long run-and often slows overall progress.

The Purpose of Easy Pace

Long runs build your aerobic engine: capillaries that deliver oxygen, mitochondria that produce energy, and fat-burning efficiency that spares glycogen for when you need it. These adaptations happen at easy intensity-not moderate, not "comfortably hard," but genuinely easy.

Running faster doesn't accelerate these adaptations. It just adds fatigue that compromises your recovery and your next workout.

What "Easy" Actually Means

Easy pace varies by runner, terrain, and conditions. But here are some general guidelines:

• By pace: 1-2 minutes per mile slower than marathon pace
• By heart rate: 60-75% of maximum, or zone 2
• By feel: Conversational, could go faster but choosing not to
• By RPE: 3-4 on a 1-10 scale

If any of these metrics suggest you're working too hard, slow down. The slowest guideline wins.

Heart Rate Zones for Long Runs

If you use a heart rate monitor, zone 2 is your target for most long runs. Here's how the zones typically break down:

To estimate your max heart rate, the classic formula is 220 minus your age-but individual variation is huge. A stress test or field test gives more accurate numbers.

Here's what zone 2 looks like for different max heart rates:

• Max HR 200: Zone 2 = 120-140 bpm
• Max HR 190: Zone 2 = 114-133 bpm
• Max HR 180: Zone 2 = 108-126 bpm
• Max HR 170: Zone 2 = 102-119 bpm

If your heart rate creeps into zone 3 during your long run, slow down-even if it means walking hills. The aerobic benefits come from time in zone 2, not from pushing into uncomfortable territory.

Example Paces by Marathon Goal

Here's what easy long run pace looks like for different marathon goals. These assume flat terrain and moderate conditions-adjust slower for heat, hills, or altitude.

Notice the pattern: roughly 1-2 minutes per mile slower than marathon pace. If you're running your long runs at marathon pace or faster, you're doing a workout-not building aerobic base.

Newer runners often need to run even slower relative to their race pace. There's no shame in 3-minute-slower long runs while building your aerobic foundation.

Why Pace Gets Faster as Fitness Improves

Here's the counterintuitive truth: if you run your long runs at the right effort, your pace will naturally get faster over time as fitness improves. You don't need to push pace-pace comes to you.

A runner who averages 10:00/mile at easy effort today might average 9:30/mile at the same effort six months later. The effort stayed constant; the pace improved because the aerobic system developed.

Chasing pace short-circuits this process. You end up tired, not fit.

When Faster Long Runs Make Sense

Not every long run needs to be a pure easy jog. Specific workouts have their place:

• Progression long runs: Start easy, finish at moderate effort. The last 20-30% picks up naturally.
• Marathon pace segments: Include 4-8 miles at goal marathon pace within a longer run. Race-specific practice.
• Fast finish: End with 10-20 minutes at tempo effort. Teaches finishing on tired legs.

These are workouts with specific purposes-not the default. If you're doing fast long runs every week, you're probably not recovering adequately for your other quality sessions.

The "Slow" Runs Elite Runners Do

Elite marathoners-runners who can race at 4:45/mile pace-often do their easy runs at 7:30-8:00/mile or slower. That's nearly 3 minutes slower than race pace.

If professionals with world-class fitness run that easy, recreational runners can certainly allow themselves to slow down. There's no prize for posting fast Strava splits on your recovery runs.

What If Easy Pace Feels Hard?

Sometimes easy pace doesn't feel easy. If this happens consistently, consider:

• Accumulated fatigue: You might need an extra rest day or recovery week
• Inadequate sleep: Even one poor night affects perceived effort
• Underfueling: Running on empty makes everything harder
• Heat and humidity: Slow down further in hot conditions
• Life stress: Work, relationships, and other stressors deplete recovery capacity

If easy pace feels hard, the answer is usually to run easier-not to push through.

Common Long Run Pace Mistakes

After coaching and observing thousands of runners, these patterns emerge repeatedly:

1. Starting Too Fast

The first mile feels easy because you're fresh. You run it 30-60 seconds faster than planned. By mile 8, you're suffering. By mile 12, you're crawling. Start deliberately slow-you can always pick it up later if you truly feel great.

2. Running with Faster Friends

Group runs are great for motivation but dangerous for pacing. Your training partner's easy pace may be your tempo effort. Run your own pace-even if it means running alone or finding a slower group.

3. Ignoring Conditions

Heat, humidity, hills, wind, and altitude all increase effort at any given pace. A 9:00/mile that feels easy in 50°F weather might feel like tempo effort in 80°F humidity. Adjust based on conditions, not just your target pace.

4. Treating Every Long Run as a Workout

Some runners can't resist pushing. Every long run becomes a progression, every finish a negative split. But aerobic development requires easy running. If you can't run easy, you need to address that before adding more hard work.

5. Comparing to Strava/Social Media

Someone else's easy pace is irrelevant to your training. Comparing your zone 2 to someone else's humble-brag "easy" 7:30s is a recipe for injury and burnout. Run your pace, not theirs.

Practical Approach

For most long runs:

1. Start slower than you think you need to
2. Let pace drift naturally-don't force consistency
3. If you're checking your watch anxiously, you're probably going too fast
4. Finish feeling like you could do more, not destroyed

Save the hard efforts for workouts designed to be hard. Let your long run be what it's meant to be: time on your feet at an intensity that builds your base without breaking you down.