It always baffles me how many seasoned runners still run at one pace, most of the time.

Running slow is almost forbidden – especially in the age of Strava.
“I can’t be seen running that slowly… what will people think?”

The truth?
They either won’t care.
Or they’ll quietly wonder what you’re up to.

I spend a lot of my time telling runners they need to run slower to get faster, and I get why it sounds counterintuitive. We’ve been conditioned to believe effort equals progress. That if it doesn’t feel hard, it doesn’t “count”.

But these days, nothing gives me greater pleasure than the freedom to run 11-minute miles while training for a goal, half-marathon pace of 8 minutes per mile.

And no — I don’t do that all of the time.

  • I still do speed work.
  • I still do tempo runs.
  • I still love a proper blow-out at a Saturday parkrun.

But my longer runs?
If you looked at my Strava, you’d see they usually start around an 11-minute pace and gently progress to about 9:30s if I’m locked in. That gives me an average pace of roughly 10 minutes per mile.

And I don’t care one jot what anyone thinks.

No one questions it.
No one comments.
Unless I do something faster than usual.

And that tells you everything you need to know.

The Problem With Running Everything “Moderately Hard”

Most runners don’t run easy enough on their easy days – and don’t run hard enough on their hard days.

They live in the grey zone:

  • Too fast to recover properly

  • Too slow to stimulate real adaptation

And then they wonder why:

  • They feel constantly fatigued

  • Their Garmin running watch and data tells them they have a shortage of low aerobic training

  • Their race times plateau year after year

80/20 running

Sound familiar?

Enter: 80/20 Running

The 80/20 principle is simple:

Around 80% of your running should be easy, and 20% should be hard.

Easy means genuinely easy – conversational, relaxed, controlled.
Hard means purposeful – intervals, tempo, race pace.

Not everything in between.

This approach was popularised in endurance sport research by exercise physiologist Stephen Seiler, who studied elite endurance athletes across disciplines and noticed a consistent pattern: the best performers spent the vast majority of their training at low intensity, with a small but meaningful amount at high intensity.

It wasn’t accidental.
It was deliberate.

“But Elites Are Different…”

Yes, and no.

Elite athletes use 80/20 because it works, not because they’re elite.

In fact, many of the world’s best runners swear by it:

  • Eliud Kipchoge is famous for his incredibly slow, relaxed, easy runs

  • Mo Farah built his dominance on aerobic strength

  • Paula Radcliffe trained with a huge emphasis on easy mileage

They’re not hammering every session.
They’re building engines.

Why Running Slow Actually Makes You Faster

Low-aerobic running:

  • Improves mitochondrial density

  • Enhances fat utilisation

  • Builds capillary networks

  • Strengthens connective tissue

  • Allows you to absorb hard sessions properly

In plain English:
It makes you more efficient, more durable, and more consistent.

And consistency beats hero workouts every time.

The Real Benefits of 80/20 Running

The biggest benefit of 80/20 running isn’t just improved race times – it’s sustainability. By keeping most of your mileage genuinely easy, you recover faster, reduce injury risk, and show up fresher for the sessions that actually matter.

Low-aerobic running builds a stronger aerobic base, improves efficiency, and teaches your body to burn fuel more effectively, while that focused 20% of harder work delivers the speed, strength and race-specific adaptations.

The result? You train with purpose instead of fatigue, progress without constantly feeling broken, and enjoy running far more along the way.

The Strava Fear (Let’s Talk About It)

So many runners are governed by how their training looks, not how it works.

They won’t slow down because:

  • Someone might see the pace

  • They don’t want to look “unfit”

  • They think easy pace means regression

But here’s the irony:
The runners who actually improve long-term are the ones confident enough to look slow.

Running slow isn’t a lack of discipline.
It’s a sign of understanding.

My Takeaway

If your Garmin is telling you you’re short on low aerobic work – believe it.

If every run feels “comfortably uncomfortable” – you’re probably running too hard.

If you want to race faster, recover better, and enjoy running again – slow down.

  • Run easy on purpose.
  • Run hard with intent.
  • And stop worrying about who’s watching.

Because the only people who notice your slow runs? Are usually the ones who should be doing them too.