The Secret Every Fast Runner Knows
Most runners work too hard to ever reach their potential
I run a lot. I coach running a lot. And when I’m not doing either, I’m usually reading, watching, or studying running a lot.
Running looks simple from the outside — just one foot in front of the other.
But once you get past the surface, it’s one of the most complex, fascinating things I’ve ever studied. The deeper you go, the more you realize how many variables and how much nuance there is — including how much of performance isn’t about effort, but about understanding.
Every week, I talk to runners chasing progress — trying to shave minutes off a PR, feel stronger on long runs, or finally break through a plateau. And almost every time, I’m struck by how our instincts work against us.
What feels right in running — pushing harder, grinding more — is usually the thing that holds us back from quickly improving.
It’s one of the reasons I love this sport. Running forces you to challenge what you think you know about hard work, progress, and patience.
Because once you start to see how the best runners train, you realize something that doesn’t quite fit our modern “more is better” mindset — a truth that separates the fast from the frustrated: you need to work on running slow.
“The paradox of endurance training is that most of the work should feel easy.” — Stephen Seiler, PhD
Tired of running on effort alone and wondering why progress keeps stalling? Book your FREE Discovery Call and let’s build a training system that makes getting faster feel easier—because it should.
The Confusion Around Easy Running
If you’ve ever tried to “run easy,” you know it’s not as simple as it sounds.
Most runners hear easy and think slow, and that alone feels wrong. We’re wired to believe that progress only happens through effort — that the harder we push, the faster we’ll get. So when a run feels comfortable, we assume it’s not doing much for our improvement.
But easy running isn’t lazy running. It’s controlled, steady, and deliberate. It’s the pace where you can breathe freely and maintain full control over your form. It’s the kind of running that quietly builds endurance under the surface — the work your body needs most, even if it doesn’t feel productive in the moment.
The problem is that comfort doesn’t feel like progress. There’s no visible struggle, no burn, no sign that you “earned it.”
So we rush it. We pick up the pace to what feels more natural, chase numbers that look impressive, and turn what should be recovery into low-grade stress. Over time, that constant gray zone effort burns energy without building much fitness.
Easy running feels too simple to matter.
But that’s exactly why most people never master it — and why those who do, become the ones everyone else is chasing.
Because underneath that calm effort is where the real work happens — stronger capillaries, better oxygen use, and more efficient fuel systems. The quiet miles are the ones that make you durable.
The Hidden Cost of Always Pushing
Let me be clear — if you run often enough, you will get faster. Eventually.
Even running too intensely all the time will build some fitness. That’s what makes it so tricky. When you start seeing small gains, it’s easy to believe that more effort is the key. For a while, it even feels true.
But there’s a limit. The body can only handle so much intensity before fatigue builds and progress slows. You don’t always notice it right away — it shows up as stiff legs, nagging soreness, or workouts that just feel draining
When you stay near your threshold too often, your body never fully resets. You burn through energy stores, elevate stress hormones, and start breaking down the very systems that make you faster. That constant stress keeps you in survival mode instead of adaptation mode.
That’s your body being pushed too hard, warning you that injury risk is rising.
Most runners live in that gray zone — running too hard on easy days and too tired on workout days. It’s not enough stress to break you all at once, but it’s too much to let you adapt well. And over time, that steady grind quietly robs you of both speed and consistency.
If you can stick with that long enough, without a major injury, you might eventually get faster. But it’ll take a lot longer — and it’ll feel harder than it needs to.
The smarter path is learning when not to push. The more time you spend at truly easy intensities, the stronger your base becomes, the quicker you recover, and the more room you have for real, lasting improvement.
Slowing Down to Get Faster
Running easy isn’t about holding yourself back just ‘because’ — it’s about giving your body room to grow.
Most of the real fitness you build as a runner comes from consistent time spent well below your threshold, where your systems adapt quietly in the background. It’s how you develop the aerobic base that supports every hard workout you’ll ever do.
When you run easy, your body becomes more efficient overall — using oxygen better, tapping into energy-rich fats for fuel, and keeping stress low so you can actually recover and adapt. That’s what builds the foundation for higher mileage and better workouts, because your body isn’t constantly playing catch-up.
You’re also reinforcing movement patterns and mechanics without the strain of high intensity. Over weeks and months, those small adaptations stack up — and that’s what turns “slow” training into real speed.
The runners you see cruising fast but looking effortless? That is their easy pace.
They’ve spent years building the foundation that makes that possible — it’s time spent training smart.
So the next time you head out for an easy run, remind yourself that this is where speed starts. Every relaxed mile is an investment — one that pays off the next time you ask your body to go hard and it’s ready to answer.
Speed doesn’t come from squeezing more effort into every run. It comes from building a body that’s strong enough, efficient enough, and patient enough to handle the work that real progress requires.
The best runners know this. They don’t rush their fitness — they earn it mile by mile, letting their base do the heavy lifting. That’s why their “easy” looks fast. They’ve put in the quiet work long enough for their foundation to carry them forward.
So if you find yourself frustrated, stuck, or feeling like you have to prove your effort every time you lace up — remember that progress doesn’t always feel like pushing. Sometimes, it feels like control.
Now that you know what actually makes you faster, how are you going to start running easy?