How Slower Runners Train For Longer Distances

We are all runners. But that doesn't mean we train the same way or run at the same speed. So here's some top tips i'd give you if you were aiming for a 3 hour half marathon or 6 hour marathon or just generally run those paces.

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[trevorlangridge]

Thank you thank you so much for considering and passing on advice to slower runners. I am 72 and returned to running 2 years ago after 30 or so years non running. My pb back in the day was 3.09 for the marathon and now it’s 5.20 and am desperately trying for a sub 5 hours which would give me good for age to get into London.
So much youtube content are for sub 4, sub 3 etc and not applicable for me.
Please follow up this topic in future episodes including what speed work could be included and rest days etc for the 4.30-5.30 marathoners and whether to include faster than marathon pace efforts within a long run.
Thank you again and I hope your reach the 100k subscribers also Mary is an inspiration again as her content is very balanced showing her difficult runs as well as the good ones.

[janih]

Great video on a great topic! As a heavier runner, I would like to add my two cents as well.

Keep a log of your training: Now whether it's strava. Garmin, Polar or a notebook, doesn't matter. But having that data to look back on really helps you get perspective on how much you've accomplished so far.

A run is a run: There might be some official rule stating what qualifies for a run, but if you tell yourself you're going out for a run and you actually step outside and put one foot after the other, then it does qualify as a run! whether it's 400m or 42km, or 2:30min/km or 10:00min/km, doesn't matter!

Lampposts for the win: if you want to pick up running but it feels frightening, try going for a walk and just run the distance of two lampposts, or any distance of your choosing. And go back to walking again. Then when you feel recovered, try another one. That's it. You just ran!

Running is hard: regardless of how fast or long you're going, running is hard. And doing hard work makes you winded and sweaty, that's how it works, it's completely fine!

And lastly, one statistic you forgot about marathon times. You know how fast an average person runs a marathon? Average people do NOT run marathons! :D

[BlackJack]

Thank you for making this video. It's a bit harder to find advice for long distance runners in the 5-6hr ranges which can be frustrating! Really appreciate this

[havensole]

As a slow runner this is great to see. Thank you for this! Zone 2 training has been a huge breakthrough for me. As I've grown older I've found a lot more benefit from focusing on S+C than grinding out a ton of miles every week. I basically swapped my S+C and Running sessions during my last block and saw a 30 min. improvement at my last half marathon race.

[jos]

Structured run-walk long runs helped me get back up to marathon distance again, and improve my times. The Galloway method is a great way of building time on feet, as well as endurance

[daniel-wificidr]

Walking is so underrated! So many people expect to go straight off the couch to running a half or a full in a few months. Long hours (3+) on the weekends are possible, but you have to build up to it slowly like everything else and really focus on staying in zone 1. Split sessions are a great suggestion as well! Last year, I committed to strength training each week. This year, my old joints have led me into yoga as well. It takes a lot of extra work (non-running) work to maintain a solid foundation. Great video!

[mattybrews]

Just did a 12-miler for the first time in literally nearly 20 years. I was absolutely adamant about keeping it low and slow, and I did 90% of it breathing thru my nose and keeping HR constrained. STILL took two full days to recover lol. Running is very humbling and the only thing that has worked for me in this phase of running life is removing the ego, being consistent, and extra rest. "It's a marathon, not a foot race."

[luciagarcia]

Looooved this video so much, feels so relatable! As a slow runner I was concerned about how to progress the long run in relationship to distance, this gave me exactly what I needed! Thank you so much for such great content!

[spoons]

Completely agree Ben these technical runs appeal - all trail runnings are my favourite weekly runs - strengthening my ankles (part of my older yearly injuries history) but they strengthen me over all - and the harder marathons off road ones are the trail when's my next one .... Tell me a good scenic one ...?

[tompatrick]

Cool. After three years of training and racing I was frustrated having to walk some portion of the race because I paced it wrong. Yesterday I ran the 42.2 distance (I know not advised) and got it done at 4:30. That it seems is my set speed. So I’m a 4:30 marathoner. Now I can just enjoy. Enjoy your videos old and new.

[rameses]

Hey Ben! just did my full marathon last sunday. I followed your 16 week training undulated plan (every other day run) and finished it in 5:48. Highly appreciate you for making that plan available for slow runners like me. More power!

[michelleharnett]

As an old and very slow runner, I actually focus on distance, not time, otherwise I'd never get any kilometres done. Injury has never been a problem - I figure cos it's so slow and low impact (and on trails). Oh, there's also a lot of walking, lol.

[steveimprovises]

Thanks for including slower runners in your family. I appreciate all the advice. I'm doing my first half marathon 6/1 and goal is 3 hrs but I'd be fine with 3.5-4 just want to complete it as the next step in my long journey of building health.

[allday]

Very helpful as someone looking at at 6hr for their first marathon

[alyssahaha]

I really like the idea of splitting the long run. I’m super slow so I absolutely see that in my future if I keep upping my mileage. I was just thinking how to even train effectively for my half marathon when my current long run (9 miles) already takes me 2 hours 🥴
Overall it can be kind of discouraging being a slow runner; I’ve been in a bit of a running rut lately so I’ll def implement some of these tips. Thanks for the vid!!

[rachelbarker]

I hope you guys get 100k, your channel is the reason I started running with any consistency ❤

[missingmimic]

I did a 20k yesterday and I had to walk for a minute right around the 12th mile and I always get mad at myself, like i shouldn't need to. Im going to keep telling myself that its the 20k that counts, not a minute of walking 🎉

[vangoesglobal]

Slow runner here and training for an ultramarathon- this is such a helpful video!! I am the runner who takes 3h for 24km and learning that from now on I can split my long runs into two makes those run days with 30km a lot more manageable, especially reducing the risk of injury. I also just watched two of your other videos and subscribed immediately, hope you hit 100k!

[helibladerunner]

Solid advice as always . Thanks for sharing.
As an older (67 ) year old runner I am all about injury prevention and slowly building up my pace and distance. First 5 K in several years now next weekend and I have been slowly building up my running time and logging it on All Trails. Your training, stretching, and conditioning tips are spot on . I have subbed your channel and always look forward to your videos.

[fecardona]

7:56 Mary coming down and then realizing you’re recording 😂😂😂😂😂