Welcome to GO FOR A RUN, the newsletter that asks you to run (slowly) for as long as you can.

I failed as a runner for decades.

I’d start with a big burst of energy… crushing runs that would leave me a sweaty slobbering mess afterward.

I’d do this for weeks but then one of two things would happen:

I’d get injured…

Or I’d burn out and drop the habit…

You see, I was making the BIG mistake that most runners make.

Running too hard all the time — always trying to “beat yesterday.”

You see it all the time. Everyone’s running looking like they’re in agony. You think you’re meant to push yourself to the point of exhaustion. But if you’re thinking long-term, it’s a terrible idea.

It’s something I learned from my dad who used to crush marathons:

“The slower you run, the farther you’ll go.”

But what the hell does slow even mean?

How do you know if you’re running slow enough?

Here are a few ways to make sure you’re running at the right pace:

1. Can you talk? If you can speak in full sentences you’re good.
2. Can you breathe through your nose? Nasal breathing will keep you slow.
3. What’s your heart rate? A super simple (oversimplified) way to calculate a target heart rate is the MAF 180 Formula which is 180 - your age.

But don't worry about heart rate too much. The first two methods work great. And the real question is:

Why is it important to do so much easy effort running (or other cardio) anyway?

Easy effort cardio (sometimes referred to as zone 2) has been shown to improve your cardiovascular and cerebrovascular (blood flow to the brain) health.

It increases your life span and health span (quality of life).

And it enhances other types of fitness like strengh training and hypertrophy.

Easy effort running will decrease the risk of injury due to less impact on your body.

It leaves you with something left in the tank so you can recover faster and be ready for your next workout.

How much easy running do you need?

80% or more of your running should be slow. For example if you’re running 4 times a week make 3 of them slow (and do a slow warm-up and cool down on your hard day)

To get the full benefits build up to 150-200+ minutes every week.

It can be broken into 1 or more sessions per week. Whatever works best for you.

And it doesn’t have to be just running. Feel free to substitute some of your runs for other forms of cardio you enjoy.

The key is to get plenty of easy-effort cardio.

If you do so, you’ll be sure to become fit as a fiddle, feel better, run farther and crush your running goals.

That’s it for today

Jeremy “likes it slow” Singh

P.S.

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