The Simple Guide To Types of Runs: Tempo, Threshold, and More

Purpose and feel: heal, reduce soreness; very conversational, like you could go "all day;" RPE 1-2.

This is the easiest possible jog or walk/jog you can do, with ZERO stress about pace or distance. An overhead piece of wisdom is that a recovery run should feel like a massage: just moving your circulation in a gentle way.

Avoid going so slowly that your form becomes unnatural - always practice good distance running form. Once a week, we recommend leaving your watch at home (or flipping it inside out) and developing your ability to go on FEEL.

Purpose and feel: maintain fitness; conversational, steady; RPE 2-4

These are just your routine "nothing fancy" runs. Done each week, they keep your consistent momentum going. You're building a fitness "wall" over years and decades, and maintenance runs are opportunities to put one more brick in that wall.

Purpose and feel: stay loose, ease anxiety; quite relaxed; RPE 1-3

Done the day before a race, this is a short and very easy run just to move the circulation and help get rid of (ha, good luck!) some nerves.

Purpose and feel: practice faster paces, improve aerobic ability and your threshold; steady, consistent, controlled; RPE 5-8

"Tempo" might be the most confusing word in all of running. It's used different ways by everyone for a broad range of paces. In it's truest sense, a tempo run holds a steady tempo pace for a big part of the run.

This pace is easier than 5K or 10K "race pace" and it's held for a block of time (like 15-40 minutes) or a block of miles (like a 2-4 mile stretch). You might do a tempo block, then recover easy for a mile, before another tempo block.

Many runners ask "How do I pace a tempo run?" For experienced runners, "hard tempo" might be 20-30 seconds slower than 5K pace and 10-20 seconds slower than 10K pace. Our friendlier definition of "easy tempo" might be roughly 40-75 seconds slower than 5K pace. Mainly, tempo runs should feel comfortably challenging. The goal is to stay below your anaerobic threshold (see below) instead of exhausting yourself.

In general, you could hold tempo effort for about an hour if you had to. Speeding up your tempo runs beyond the recommended pace can lessen the benefit and increase your injury risk. Only increase your tempo pace when your race pace has become faster. One tempo run a week is plenty.

Purpose and feel: increase your lactate processing and your capacity for "hard" work; challenging but repeatable; RPE 5-8

If not tempo, then threshold is the other most confusing term. There are two thresholds: the easier "aerobic threshold" (Lactate Threshold 1, or LT1) and the harder "anaerobic threshold" LT2. At these efforts, cells anaerobically make more lactate, an important energy source. This is often thought of as the muscle burning feeling of "lactic acid," which isn't the same as lactate and is a bit of a misconception.

LT1 is where your blood lactate level gently starts to increase over your resting rate, and you can process it without that burning feeling. LT2 is where blood lactate level rapidly rises beyond your ability to clear it, quickly leading to burning fatigue. In the 5-Zone model, LT1 is like the upper limit of Heart Rate Zone 2, and LT2 is like the upper limit of Zone 4.

When we hear "threshold," we tend to think of LT2. That's the next step harder than tempo. Classic threshold workouts for experienced runners are 5-6 reps of 1600m (~1 mile), or 8-10 reps of 1000m (1K). Less experienced runners should cut those reps in half. The key is to go hard in a way that's repeatable for all reps, not so hard on the first rep that you're cooked and can't complete the other reps.

Purpose and feel: get more volume of work in a day, learn to run on tired legs; easy to challenging, but repeatable; RPE 1-6

A double is any day that you do a combo of two runs or cardio cross-training activities, usually one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

This can be an "easy double" (low intensity for one of the runs, or both), or it can be harder like "Norwegian double thresholds" (two threshold workouts on the same day). Even Norwegian doubles are done easier than you think, closer to LT1 (see above).

Purpose and feel: learn to be on your feet for a longer time; build stamina; RPE 1-8

One of the KEY run types. Bring hydration and nutrition with you on long runs, especially if they're longer than an hour. They can be easy, moderate, or hard, but most long runs are done at mostly easy paces, even if they have some quality workout parts with faster paces (that's what "quality long run" means).

For experienced runners, your "weekend long run" might be 20-30% of your total weekly mileage. For less experienced runners, your long run focus can be moving on your feet for a few minutes longer, or maybe a mile longer each week, as you build patiently. If you're training for your first full marathon, your longest run doesn't have to be more than about 20 miles, give or take a mile or two. For a first half-marathon, about 9 or 10 miles. Enjoy!

Purpose and feel: develop aerobic endurance; a light workout that's easy to recover from; RPE 5-6.

An old-school long-ish run at a moderate pace, between maintenance and tempo. So, around LT1, not LT2 (see Threshold run above). It starts easy, develops rhythm in the middle, and finishes strong over the final part. Many runners neglect to train this pace: just fast enough to engage your attention, while easy enough to be ready to run the next day.

For experienced runners, it can be 15% of your total weekly volume, with the last 30-40 minutes done at about 80% effort of (20% slower than) your current 5K race effort. Do it the day before or after your track interval day. If your long run is Sunday and intervals are Tuesday, we like this midweek long run on Wednesday. Newer runners should skip this and focus on just one long run a week.

Also known as: midweek long run

Purpose and feel: develop control, "turn the screw" as you ratchet up effort, finish strong, improve resistance to fatigue; RPE 4-8

A progression is any run that starts easy and gets progressively a little faster (maybe even just 10-15 seconds per mile) each mile. A "negative split" is any run where the second half of the run's mileage takes less time than the first half, even if just by a few seconds. "Fast-finish" is just that: the final part (a mile or two at most) is done faster than the rest of the run.

Purpose and feel: practice random bits of playful speed; unstructured segments of pace pickups sprinkled into an easier run; RPE 4-7

Saving the funniest for last, "fartlek" is Swedish for "speed play." Think of them like schoolyard spontaneity: "let's low-key race to that tree" or "let's push a little for a minute on this hill."

Start a fartlek run easy and mix easy recovery between faster segments of variable length, time, and pace. Have fun for 15 minutes or an hour - whatever your heart wants.

A classic example for a team on a track is to run steady in a line in the same lane. Periodically, the runner at the back speeds up to get to the front, then eases off to lead at steady pace. Then the next runner in back runs to the front, and everyone takes turns cycling through.

Purpose and feel: improve your form, power, and efficiency; NOT all-out sprints, RPE 8-9.

Wait, is THIS the most confusing term? "Strides" are typically 4-6 short reps of high-intensity efforts. They should be about 20-40 seconds each (60 seconds max), with full recovery (letting your heart rate come back down for two minutes) in between.

Strides are best done up a gentle slope (like 5% gradient or less, not a steep hill). This is NOT to make them harder, but to decrease injury risk. Do them about twice a week at the end of an easy/moderate run (or before a track workout), after you're warmed up. They're also common at race start lines, as racers stride out, jog or walk back, and stride out again. They prime your body for fast paces without draining you.

If you're too tired to do strides with good distance-running form, then don't do more. For each rep, build in (and ease off) gradually over a few seconds, avoiding harsh stops and starts. After a few months of consistent strides, you should feel lighter, springier, and stronger. If you only do easy aerobic base plus a few sets of strides each week, you'll be in great shape.

Purpose and feel: learn to relax at fast paces, improve anaerobic ability, develop a mid-race surge and closing kick; hard but repeatable, RPE 8-10.

Intervals are a fast way to build fitness and increase strength. They're bursts of speed with walking or jogging rests in between. They differ from strides or fartleks because short intervals can be done at a repeatable sprint for a set distance (commonly 100-400m). Long intervals like 800m, 1K, or 1 mile reps can be near your 5K race pace, give or take.

They're best done on the track (to know your exact distance and time), but can be done anywhere you've accurately measured the distances. Tailor your reps to your ability and goals. Short intervals (200-400m) with short recoveries are best for 5K and 10K training. Longer (800m to 1 mile) intervals with longer rests are best for half-marathon or marathon training. A short recovery could mean walking or jogging 1 minute or 100-200m. A long recovery is jogging 2-3 minutes or a full 400m lap.

If you want to do these, we recommend a session only once a week, to allow good recovery. How quickly you run them depends on your fitness, experience, and goal race time. Don't overstride (stretching your hamstrings too far in front of you), and try to relax.

Purpose and feel: to estimate a number for your current fitness level; RPE 9-10.

This isn't really a common run, but VO₂ max is a common term when measuring fitness, so we wanted to mention it here. Your VO₂ max is a measure of the maximum amount of oxygen you can process.

It's measured in a lab on a treadmill that gets progressively harder, but many smartwatches have an option for a "VO₂ max test run" for an estimate. Your "VO₂ max effort" is the hardest endurance running effort you can sustain for about 10 minutes, between threshold and all-out sprinting. Be careful.

We recommend mainly focusing on easy runs, some strides, one long run, and one workout session (like tempo, or threshold, or intervals) per week. A classic formula is a few easy days, with a midweek faster workout, and a long run on the weekend (or when you have the most time). A more advanced plan keeps all that, but might add a midweek long run, or doubles, or a second workout.

For variety and enjoyment, and to train both the aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways. Whether you're trying to get faster or just having fun, it helps keep you well-rounded and healthier if you play with different paces.

We love max cushion daily trainers, premium daily trainers, and long run performance trainers for easy days and long runs. For tempo, threshold, and track intervals, we love energetic daily trainers, speed performance trainers, and super shoes. For racing, we're going super shoes too, but many runners choose their comfort over performance.

Very roughly, you might take your 5K race time (in seconds) and divide by 12.5 to find the time per 400m (1/4 mile) track lap. For example, a 27-minute 5K is 1,620 seconds, divided by 12.5 is 130 seconds per 400m lap. For 400m rep intervals, target 20% faster than 5K pace. Make 800m rep pace 15% faster than 5K, 1600m as 10% faster than 5K, then 10K pace as 5% slower than 5K, half-marathon tempo as 10% slower than 5K, and full marathon pace as 15% slower than 5K pace.

These are TOUGH targets. It's critical that you adjust these realistically for yourself based on what feels right and safe for you. You've got this!