Lesson 1: Lactate threshold and running economy are more important than VO₂max.
While VO₂max (the maximum volume of oxygen your muscles can consume per minute) has received most of the attention among runners and coaches, a high VO₂max alone is not enough to be a good runner; it simply gives you access into the club, since a runner cannot be good without a high VO₂max. I have tested many athletes in the laboratory with an elite-level VO₂max, but few of them were capable of running at the elite or even sub-elite level because they did not have a high lactate threshold or were not very economical. Running economy is the volume of oxygen consumed at submaximal speeds; the less oxygen you use to run at a given pace, the better.
For longer races (half marathon and marathon), your running economy and the speed (pace) at lactate threshold are the most important factors. For shorter races (1,500 meters/mile, 5K, 10K), the speed at VO₂max is the most important factor. So that is what you have to train.
Stay tuned, more lessons coming up!....