Can someone explain to me why on my easy days it often feels like my legs are burning with lactic acid? about as bad as that can get? it doesn't matter if i'm running 8:00+ pace, my legs are cramping and burning 50% of the time on easy days. They often feel this way before workouts as well, but when I start going fast, it usually goes away. I run about 70 miles a week and am in currently about 15:30 shape...
Insufficient recovery between hard workouts. Lactate does linger the morning after a hard workout or race, and needs to be cleared slowly.
Either do fewer hard workouts per week, or don't do them quite as hard.
That would be a great theory if I was doing workouts. This happens without actually doing any workouts. Just a tempo a week and the rest is mileage. I don't believe it is actually lactic acid... it just feels that way. Is it diet?