If you’ve read even a small amount of running research, you’ll likely have come across the term ‘lactate threshold’. But what does it actually mean?
In essence, your lactate threshold is the point at which lactate is produced and accumulates in the blood at a faster rate than it can be removed, which leads to fatigue. The goal of threshold training is to raise this point, thereby allowing you to run faster for longer.
For that reason, threshold work is one of the cornerstones of training for runners who are tackling all manner of distances, from 800m on the track to day-long ultramarathons on the trails. Here’s how to get started with it.
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How can you improve running performance through lactate turnpoint training?
When we exercise, we break down glucose to create energy. Lactate and hydrogen ions are produced as a part of this process and enter the bloodstream. When you run or move at slower paces, your body clears these by-products (known as buffering) with ease and uses lactate as an energy source. When you run harder, these by-products increase in your blood above their baseline – and at this point, you hit what is called your lactate threshold.
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Lactate is generally measured in millimoles per litre (mmol/L) and lactate threshold usually occurs around 2mmol/L. When you continue to increase your running intensity, your body’s ability to clear and reuse lactate can’t keep up with the rate at which it’s being produced – and this is called your lactate turnpoint. Your lactate turnpoint often occurs around 4mmol/L of lactate.
Beyond this point, hydrogen ions and lactate rapidly increase in your blood. The increase in hydrogen ions lowers your blood’s pH level, making it more acidic – and this, in turn, reduces your muscles’ ability to contract, slowing you down. As such, while lactate itself does not cause fatigue, we can use it as a proxy measurement for the other changes taking place that do Sometimes, it’s better to just say what you mean. For example, you could run within a certain.
How can you find your lactate threshold and turnpoint?
So, that’s the science – now let’s look at how you find your lactate threshold and turnpoint. As with VO2 max, the gold-standard way of measuring it is also the most expensive. Several physiological lab and field tests exists in which you run a series of efforts that gradually increase in intensity and have a finger or ear prick of blood taken at the end of each effort. As your lactate levels rise, they can be cross-matched with your pace, heart rate and drills to improve your running form and pace (RPE) to give your thresholds with a reasonable degree of accuracy. However, all of this can be expensive.
Alternatively, many running watches can estimate your lactate turnpoint. The accuracy of such measurements, however, should only be trusted if they correlate with the results of other testing methods. For example, you can conduct your own drills to improve your running form and pace How does threshold pace differ from tempo pace.
You can also run a race that will take you roughly an hour. Provided you are ready to run the race at your maximum intensity and you pace it well, you can get a decent estimate of your pace, heart rate and perceived effort to use in subsequent threshold sessions.
The simplest, cheapest method is to go by feel. Controlled discomfort is a good way to think of running a lactate turnpoint – it’s a 7 or 8 out of 10 on the RPE scale, or an effort level where you could still speak two or three words. Yes, it’s less accurate, but it’s still a good starting point and it gets you in the ballpark. Sometimes, we can get too caught up in the numbers and neglect trying to get a true feel of a run.
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Many coaches, physiologists and athletes – including Paula Radcliffe and Norway’s Ingebrigtsen brothers – believe that training just below, on or above your lactate turnpoint is a key way to improve it. This involves running a range of paces that fall between your lactate threshold (which is around your marathon pace) up to just beyond your lactate turnpoint (which is up to about your 10K pace).
However, some coaches and athletes eschew the threshold model of training in favour of other approaches. You may be familiar with the concept of polarised training, where a high percentage of your training (up to 80%) is spent at low intensities and the rest (around 20%) is run at your lactate turnpoint or above, steering clear of the middle ground that much threshold training can fall into.
What works for you must be based on your individual training history and circumstances. That said, I have found that threshold-based training has helped many of the athletes that I’ve coached over the past 12 years. While threshold work is not a magic bullet and it still needs to be mixed with good recovery and a broader, sensible training mix, you could be missing out on some important development as a runner if you aren’t including it in your sessions.
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Terminology in running can be confusing. If you’re wondering what the differences are between threshold and tempo running, I’m afraid that I can’t give you a straight answer. For some runners and coaches, tempo running refers to longer efforts at a slightly lower intensity, which you might be able to hold for two to three hours in a race, which is closer to your lactate threshold.
For others, a tempo run is executed at a pace that is slightly stronger than your lactate turnpoint and closer to your 10K race pace. Meanwhile, some consider tempo running and threshold running to be the same.
Sometimes, it’s better to just say what you mean. For example, you could run within a certain then running between 15 and 25 minutes at this effort is enough. For those who are training for a, at a pace that you could hold for 40 to 60 minutes in a race, and so on. Or, you could make it even simpler and run at efforts that are easy, steady, strong or hard, for instance.
3 Updated: 22 May 2025
Aim to complete the following workouts at, or close to, your lactate turnpoint. Run at a pace that you could likely hold for 50 to 60 minutes in a race. Most runners’ heart rates would be between 86% and 90% of their maximum at this effort.
If you’re new to running or racing over shorter distances (from 1500m to 5K), or racing over shorter distances from 1500m to half marathon or marathon, Everything you need to know about tempo runs.
1. Straight threshold session
After a thorough warm-up, complete 15-25 minutes of running at threshold effort before doing a gentle cooldown.
The next step
When you’re in top condition, add a surge of 30 to 60 seconds every five minutes, up to your 5K or 10K pace. This will improve your ability to buffer lactate.
2. Split threshold session
Splitting threshold sessions into long efforts with short, easy or steady recoveries can help you to extend the amount of time that you spend at threshold effort, or to run slightly quicker while keeping your intensity under control. For example, do 6 x 5 minutes with 60-second easy recoveries, or 3 x 10-15 minutes with 2-minute easy-to-steady recoveries.
The next step
Essentially, split threshold sessions allow you to vary your pace in a single run. Try running efforts of 12 minutes, 10 minutes, 8 minutes and 4 minutes, with 90-second recoveries between each effort. Start at a pace that you could hold for 60 to 70 minutes in a race, then work down to a race pace that you could hold for 30 to 45 minutes.
3. Progression run
Start a continuous run at an easy pace, then gradually increase your speed so that you include a block of threshold running nearer the end. For example, run easy for 15 minutes, then steady for another 15 minutes, then at your threshold effort for a further 15 minutes.
The next step
Pick a flat or rolling route and run out for 22 minutes, building to a steady effort. Then, turn around and run the same route back, aiming to finish your run in 40 minutes.
