
It is also interesting to compare these training plans to the literature on running injuries. And it also helps you to be well-rested for your less frequent high-intensity workouts, which help you make your engine bigger and more powerful. Simply put, running high volumes at slower speed makes your body more efficient during running, even at high speed. This will allow you to push a tad faster, while using the same amount of gas as your competitors. Thus, it is important to have a big engine to win a race, but also to spend as little gas as possible at faster speed.

Here’s an analogy: VO 2 max is the size of your engine, and running economy is how much gas you’re using at a given speed.

seem to think that in order to perform at an elite level, one’s aerobic capacity needs to be very high to account for the battle in the last few kilometers but also for optimizing one’s running economy. In Kipchoge's case, he accumulates a weekly total of 200-220 km: Altitude training and tapering are done very close to competition.These factors include day to day changes, tissue adaptations that influence subsequent workouts, and interactions between intensity and duration/distance of running. While physiological measures such as heart rate, lactate, running pace, or perceived exertion are used, no single measure works due to a variety of factors. There is no consensus on how to monitor and measure intensity.This 80-20% mix is called polarized training.

Mid to high intensity training (zone 3-5) such as intervals, and hill repeats represent no more than 20% of their training. Weekly long runs are just a bit slower than marathon pace.

In 2022 a running research group from Norway published a review that blended the latest running research and training logs provided by 59 Olympic and world-class runners and 16 coaches. Ever Wonder How Eliud Kipchoge Trains? Here's How He Does It!
