Modifying the Norwegian approach to lower mileage

There is no real linear relationship between race pace and true easy pace or effort. There's lots of examples of variation even with pros. Strava is there for you to pull all the data on. Just because your brain can't compute this doesn't make it not true and certainly doesn't mean you are correct, simply because you don't understand the facts in front of you.

fair enough =) I just want to spair poor hobby joggers to strutting around at 8 min/km when they can manage a 18 min 5k. I think maybe it will kill the joy and they would be happy enough to have an easy pace at 6 min/km.

Lets put it like this then:

Runner A and B both runs 5k at 20 min.

Both have set their max HR at 190.

Runner A can manage 5:20 min/km at 70% maxHR.

Runner B can manage 7:00 min/km at 70% maxHR. Runner B still feels that 5:45 min/km feels really easy. More easy than he would normally run.

Should runner B slow down to get under 70% HR?

Here's an example for you. I'm 18 months younger than my brother, both in our early 30s now and running since our teens. He recently ran a 17:44 and I recently beat him and ran a 17:33 lifetime pb in the same race. My easy pace at 65-70% of MHR is 5:40-50/km and his for the same intensity range is 5:15/km and that's actually me closing the gap! It has slowly crep down for me. Both max HRs within 2 beats of each other, live within 5 miles of each other, often run the same roads in the same climate.

Work that one out. We have gone back and forth on it many times and cannot really understand it. That's just my easy pace and that's just his and now i don't think about it anymore. It frustrated me for a long time though.

This is an hypothetical scenario that has little practical value.

There is a correlation between fitness and the heart rate you have at any given pace be it easy pace or race pace.

A 20 min 5k runner that can't run faster than 7:00min/km in order to keep his pulse below 70% MHR is an outlier

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But sure in the extremely unlikely scenario that there is a 20 min 5k runner that can't stay below 70% MHR running faster than 7:00 min/km then he probably should run his easy days at 7:00 min/km.

So what you are trying to say is that NSM would work better if people ran their easy runs faster? Why? What are you wanting to accomplish by running easy runs faster?

Im not saying there is not variance between runners at the same level. My examples was about runners that do their easy runs at almost walking pace just to stay below 70% of max HR. And I think the reason for that maybe could be a wrong maxHR setting.

No?
but if it does not matter how slow easy runs are, why even run? Could take nice walk instead?

My argument is that maybe you should forget about the 70% rule if it makes you almost walking when you actually runs decent times.

You seem to be of the misconception that two runners with the same PR would have the same muscle damage, the same need for recovery and rest during a week of NSM. But this is obviously wrong. Runner A can have a past of 150km weeks, a life without much stress, good nutrition and plenty of sleep. Runner B can have a past of 60km weeks, lots of stress at work and a baby waking them up at night. Should these two do their easy runs at the same pace?

Easy is easy, what is easy is hard to say, but 70% is one limit. If you have the need to push the pace of your easy runs I think it would be beneficial to remind yourself whats the purpose of your easy runs (in any system) and how a faster pace would help.

Because running is mechanically and thus neurologically different from walking.

The walking world record for a 5k is below 18:00 minutes. It's all walking pace :D

But if you run easy runs truly easy. Would you slow down to crazy slow just to get under 70% of max hr?

Yes, you would do that because Sirpoc and Bakken said so (I have never had an easy run average under 70% MHR).

Why do you ignore all of my questions?

If I never had slowed down to under 70% of max HR I would have thought that 80-82% was truely easy. If I had never had 3 workouts weekly in a normal life I would never see the point.

If i want people to run faster? No, not really. I would argue that true easy pace is easy enough, and thats it. If its 6:00 min/km thats fine, but I dont think you should slow down to 8 min/km just so that you see 69% of HR Max.

I dont really get why I get downvoted for that. :)

Your other argument is just weird. Ofc its gets more easy if you slow down more and more. But the point of easy running is not to run as slow as you possible can. You are supposed to run easy, thats it.

Guys stop feeding the troll. This is clearly Jan Stenson. The use of “well, for one thing,” the smile faces =) and the mention in one of his other posts that “training is not magic,” a reference to the wizard.

Im not a troll.

You made up a hypothetical of an extreme outlier that likely does not exist. “18-minute 5K runner that runs 8min/km at 70%” I haven’t seen anyone post anything to tha