Jack Daniels vs Pete Pfitzinger vs Better training for Distance runners vs other?

These plans and each and every other canned plan ever devised has been discussed ad nauseam in previous threads. I recommend doing a search and reviewing what folks have said about the various plans.

The short answer to your question is: it depends. Each plan will generally get you to the same end goal.

Look and plans and figure out which training philosophy best fits your strengths/weaknesses and lifestyle. An important aspect of training is that one tends to perform better when they believe in the plan they are following. Additionally, incorporate strength/core work into your routine for best results.

I think the training plan that works is individual. Having said that- I also think that Daniels' program is easily adaptable to your level of commitment and lifestyle.

I don't know as much about the others but I actually interacted with Jack Daniels on many occasions when he coached in Upstate NY.

I was able to adapt his program to my high school team with success.

I’m a big Daniels fan. One aspect of his philosophy that often gets overlooked is he recommends a repetition/speed/mile race pace phase before transitioning to threshold and VO2 max workouts. This makes a lot of sense to me. If you transition from base building directly to threshold (while skipping a speed phase), then you are adding two running stressors at the same time: 1) speed/turnover and 2) clearing lactate. If you focus on speed first, which will also assist with running economy, then it will be easier to transition to threshold because your leg turnover will be there.

I also like that Daniels targets specific physiological adaptations for workouts. He argues that running lactate threshold pace is much more beneficial than running marathon or slower than marathon pace which makes sense to me. He also gives good advice on maximizing VO2 workouts by recommending 3-5 min intervals (because it takes 2 minutes for your body to reach VO2 max). For my ability level, this make me transition from running 800m repeats which I would do in 2:20-2:30 to 1000-1600m repeats which I would do in 3:07-5:00.

They have all produced good results over the years. Same with others like Hanson's and Brad Hudson's programs from Run Faster.

I think it is important to pick the one that feels best to you, how you like to train, and fits with your personality and physiology. I like most of these plans. One of them I would definitely not do because I just don't like the make up of it. One of these programs I did do in the spring and I loved it. Got a huge PR in my marathon. And I would totally do the plan again. But like all plans, no single one is best for everyone.

It's all just running and not much if any of it is anything new, it's just renamed. In distance running we only have two variables to play with, how far and how fast.

Back in the 80's my XC coach would tell us to run 800s at goal race pace, sounds like tempo effort to me.. we just didn't call it that. Same thing across the board with all the tempos, vo2max, blah blah blah.

If you’re smart, you learn something from all of those. If you’re not, just pick one and commit to it.

Big fan of Daniels too, prior to Daniels a lot of HS coaches would have kids out there burning up repeats so so so much faster than they ever needed to run, and they were taking very long standing rests in between. Guys would be puking, falling down, cramping up because they were running 400s at near max effort.

Not that a workout like that won't get you fitness, heck any running will get you some degree of fitness, it's just that there is GREATER benefit from slowing the pace down cutting the rest period down.

I've read and tried out all of these kinds of plans. They are very intriguing to a lot of people because it feels like "if you do this plan/workout, you will get X result." But ultimately the plans overcomplicate things way too much. I read up on Lydiard and started with his base building fundamentals. Implementing some of the fundamentals he talks about completely blew the doors off any result I was able to accomplish under Daniels or others. Daniels will show you how to maximize your potential at 40 mpw but Lydiard will show you how to reach your true potential.