Phillips Running

Are you looking to become a better runner in 2018? If so, I believe that my Running Top-10 is a must read! These are my top 10 tips and suggestions designed to help you become a better runner in 2018!

Check out the first six tips below:

Tip #1
Tip #2
Tip #3
Tip #4
Tip #5
Tip #6

Today’s tip is one of the most important workouts that you can do as a long-distance runner…THE LONG RUN.

The long run is by far the best tool at improving your aerobic capabilities as a runner. There is no substitute for a good long run.

But, the long run is tricky. There are different schools of thoughts on how they should be performed, when they should be performed, how often they should be performed, etc. And I think the answer to all of that is…YES.

You should have different types of long runs, different frequencies of long runs, and all of that good stuff.

But for now, let’s just start with including an easy long run into your training regiment for 2018! And long runs just aren’t for marathoners!!! Whether you are training for your first 5km or for a marathon, you need to make sure that you are getting in a long run at least once every two weeks.

When you are not in a racing season, then I believe in getting in the long run every week; but if you have races scheduled, or are very new to running, then I think going every two weeks might be a great starting point.

So, how do we run the long run? For this post, we’re just focused on an easy long run. So, it would be something that is roughly 20-25% of your weekly mileage. And I would encourage you running it the same way you do any of your regular easy running days; start easy and focus on a negative split effort.

Typically the long run is done on the weekend, whether that is Saturday or Sunday is completely up to you, but I encourage not having it fall directly before or after a hard workout day. Think of the long run as a quality day, and so make sure you are giving yourself the opportunity to recover before and after.

To spice up the long run you could run over a hilly course…here you would keep the same mentality of just trying to run easy and relaxed in a negative split manner, just over a hillier course. This is something I routinely assign to my collegiate and sub-elite athletes.

No matter what it is you are training for in 2018, I would highly encourage you to add in a long run to your training regiment. If you do so, you’ll become a better runner!

As usual, if you have any questions please feel free to email me at thedailyrun@gmail.com.