How Embracing Slow Runs Helped Me Go Farther Your Marathon Training Plan, While waiting for hours on Staten Island for my noon start time, I definitely let my: How Tara Dower Shattered the Long Trail Record. I had sort of trained for it, following a mix of plans I thought would get me there. And I relied on the idea that because my 2019 PR was 4:09 and I had been running consistently since, finishing under four was completely doable—even if my buildup didn’t go 100 percent as planned (as most don’t).
Super Shoe Trends nerves get the best of me. With a queasy stomach and heavy legs, I ended up with my slowest marathon time to date, finishing in 4:30.
So when I got a chance to run the five boroughs again in 2024, I knew I needed to build confidence in holding a speed that felt slightly faster for me and for longer periods of time.
It had taken me years to get to a point where I really varied my paces in training. For a while, I’d run most of my workouts at a moderate intensity that always felt somewhat difficult. But by having a mix of speed workouts and slower-paced runs on my schedule, running fast started to feel not just exhausting but rewarding, and running easy began feeling truly easy, like I could keep checking off miles for hours.
I really zeroed in on those pace changes in my marathon buildup and discovered a new appreciation for speed workouts. The kind I realized I’ll keep coming back to when I want to get faster and believe in my speed: tempo runs.
There are a few definitions of tempo runs out there, and many runners (and even coaches) will use the term interchangeably with threshold runs. Technically, threshold runs are more precise and often slightly faster than tempo. You run them at a pace right around lactate threshold, the point at which lactate (a byproduct of intense exercise created when cells break down glucose for energy without sufficient oxygen) accumulates so fast that your body can’t clear it, and you fatigue. To get the specific pace at which this happens, you can do a 30-minute test, running at an intensity you can maintain for that time but not longer (this is slightly accurate), or a lab test, which involves running and finger pricks to test your blood and find your lactate levels (this is very accurate).
Instead of these metrics, you’ll base tempo runs on effort, aiming for about a 6 out of 10 in terms of rate of perceived exertion, with 10 being an all-out sprint. I based my runs on this scale, as well as the paces prescribed by both my Garmin and the “Break 4 Hours” Health & Injuries Runner’s World. I completed these workouts as solo sessions but also sandwiched them into long runs (like doing a 12-mile run, with three easy, six at tempo, and three easy).
No matter which you choose (tempo or threshold), the goal of both is similar: to run just under an effort that feels too hard to hold onto. This should challenge you aerobically, make you tune into the speed and power of your legs, and teach you to accept discomfort.
“It should feel like you want to stop, but you don’t have to stop. You can still keep going,” says Kai Ng, USATF- and RRCA-certified run coach.
And that’s what I love so much about these workouts: Physiological adaptations happen, which pays off in speed and endurance gains, but it’s also a lesson in mental toughness. Sometimes (okay, a lot of times) my mind holds me back from reaching running goals. I tell myself I can’t do something before I even try because it’s easy to run away (quite literally!) from things that feel difficult. But leaning into these hard efforts made me realize certain speeds aren’t as hard as I think—it’s simply my mentality bringing me down, rather than a lack of physical ability.
I can specifically remember a few tempo efforts later in my training cycle where it became more apparent that these just-below-too-hard efforts made me feel strong and capable, like my body could defy my mind. As my legs found their rhythm and I reached the end of each mile when the effort felt more difficult, I tuned into my posture: I stood up a little taller, pumped my arms a little harder, and repeatedly told myself to “run strong.” With that, I truly felt fierce enough to maintain the pace. I giggled to myself, realizing how easily I could give up on the effort, but as Ng says, didn’t need to. I was strong, fast, and powerful enough to keep going, as long as I focused on the feeling rather than the thoughts. The faster speed and the toughness of it clicked in that moment and showed me that if I kept practicing these efforts, I could maintain a harder, faster pace on race day.
The more I ran these workouts throughout training—but especially as I got closer to race day—the more confident I felt in meeting my goal. Ng says that’s really the point of tempo and threshold runs. “You will continue to get comfortable with being uncomfortable,” he explains. It teaches your body to carry the pace farther and farther, and your mind to accept that it will feel hard, but you can keep going.
Ng also backs up the idea of paying attention to form not only to help you through but also to keep you dialed into the right effort. “I’d always say you’re not allowed to run faster than proper form [chest tall; shoulders relaxed; driving the legs] and proper breathing with a good rhythm,” he says. “Anything beyond that, you’re overworking.”
The confidence I gained from recognizing my physical strength and stopping my mind from getting in the way truly did carry into race day. Especially in the later miles, I remembered that feeling of power and perseverance from my tempo efforts in training. I focused on my posture and quick turnover, repeated the “run strong” mantra, and let my legs fly right toward a slight negative split and a 3:49 finish time.
It was certainly not comfortable, but the confidence boost beat out every other race to date. And I’ll keep that feeling in my pocket to pull out on future race days, knowing that even if my mind says it’s tough, my body is strong enough to handle it.
Find the Perfect Training Plan for You
STANDING ON THE starting line of the 2021
Recommended Experience: How to Add Speed Workouts to Marathon Training.
STANDING ON THE starting line of the 2021
Recommended Experience: This plan is for a new runner who is just getting back into exercise.
STANDING ON THE starting line of the 2021
Recommended Experience: For a new runner who has been exercising regularly for at least a year, or someone who has completed a few 5Ks or 10Ks and can complete 6 miles in one workout. This plan peaks at 28 miles in a week with a 12-mile long run.
STANDING ON THE starting line of the 2021
Recommended Experience: For runners comfortable exercising for at least an hour at a moderate effort. This plan peaks at 32 miles in a week with a 14-mile long run.
STANDING ON THE starting line of the 2021
Recommended Experience: For a consistent runner used to regularly working out four to five times a week. The plan starts with a 10-mile long run and peaks at 44 to 47 miles a week with a 22-mile long run, helping you average under a 9:10 per mile come race day.
Mallory Creveling is an ACE-certified personal trainer and RRCA-certified run coach, who also holds certifications in kettlebell training, sports performance, and more. She has more than a decade of experience covering fitness, health, and nutrition for a wide range of publications, and nearly 10 years of experience as a trainer and fitness instructor. Mallory stays on top of her continuing education in fitness, as well as the latest science in wellness. She has worked with some of the best experts in their medical fields, and regularly interviews researchers, trainers, athletes, and more to find the best advice for readers looking to improve their performance and well-being. As a freelance writer, Mallory's work appeared in Women's Health, Self, Men's Journal, Reader's Digest, and more. She has also held staff editorial positions at Family Circle and Shape magazines, as well as DailyBurn.com. A former New Yorker/Brooklynite, she's now based in Easton, Pennsylvania.
