How can you run longer without getting tired? How
can you stay on course, on trail, for 10 hours, and not feel like crap. A feeling I will always
chase is this feeling of running on trail and just gliding through it. You're running, but
you're not really aware that you're running: you're moving on the trail. You're...
you're flying through the trail. You're just going! Slow breathing. You're just
looking at the views. And you're just in the zone. That's what I want to talk
about today: how can you run longer without getting tired. And what are some
specific tips that can help you get there! Hi! My name is Simon - welcome to my channel!
I'm an ultra runner with 33 x 100 milers under my belt. And none of that would have been possible
if I hadn't learned how to run longer without getting tired. But how do you do that? I mean
running longer seems pretty straightforward... just run longer! But you get tired from it. But
how can you reach a stage where you increase the distance but also you're still feeling good
and you're able to be out there for a very long time? So today I'm giving you 6 tips on how to
improve your running so that you can run longer without getting necessarily tired. And these
are quick tips BUT they are quick tips because they're quick for me to give you, but these are
very long tips in terms of how long you need to practice and be consistent day in and day out to
actually reach that. But what I can tell you is that it is possible to run for example a marathon
and be absolutely not tired afterwards. And with these tips you'll be able to do that too... with
enough training. Tip number one! The first one is probably the most obvious one and we kind of all
know it. But we also all do it improperly. Which is - run slower! And I know what you're thinking
:you're thinking "I'm already running slow Simon! ...but I'm still getting tired" And that's my
point. You're doing it wrong! You're not running slow enough. You're running slow-ish but you need
to run even slower. And next time you go on your long run, try to do it even slower. And you'll
run slow. And think about me that says "NO! This is still too fast dummy! Run slower than that!"
..."NO! That's still too fast! Slower than that!" What we're aiming for is a zone 2 training. And
we can talk about heart zones. I talked a little bit about that in my "How to build a training
schedule" but try to aim for a zone two. And the most common thing you hear when you tell someone
to do that is "That's impossible, I cannot stay in zone 2 and run. I would need to walk." Well
there you go! You just found the solution! You can run / walk during your training to get used
to longer distance. What you're trying to do is not reach a destination quickly. What you're
trying to do is reach the destination fresh. "Feeling fresh like chocolate ice cream" "Mile 70
- fresh like a toast". And if that means having a run walk strategy, guess what? Then run walk. Set
yourself some times. Maybe you run or jog for 4 minutes. Then you walk for 1 minute. 4 minutes,
1 minute. Oh reminder! You're not walking: you're power hiking! But that's beside the point
today. Point is alternate between the two. That is totally okay if that helps you stay in your zone
2. Do that for now and eventually you might be able to get rid of that power hiking segment and
just be jogging. But for now what we're trying to do is keep the heart zone low because... look
on race day if you're running an ultra marathon, you're probably going to be power hiking a lot
of that anyway. So don't be silly and think that in training you only need to be jogging
or running all the time. No, power hiking is part of that. And find your rhythm. Find your
slow rhythm that helps you stay fresh. So run slower which could mean walk. Would you like
some cheesy bacon mashed potatoes? The second one is somewhat related to that which is a bit of
a change of a mindset. You're not trying to reach a destination as soon as possible. You're really
trying to reach a destination feeling fresh which means what we're aiming for is sustainability.
That means you're never in the red in terms of effort but importantly in terms of fueling and
hydrating. And the best way to stay fresh on your long runs and not be tired is to eat properly,
drink properly. And I made a video about this "How to fuel your long run". Take time to look
at it. Take time to study that. And take time to practice it because fueling properly and
running for a long time without getting tired are are intimately related. They go together.
And never underestimate the importance of that. Another important tip is that you have to be
patient and you have to trust the process. You will not get to a point where you can
run very long distance seamlessly tomorrow. It will take a lot of time. And it will take
a lot of training. But you have to trust the process and stay consistent. Improve gradually
your mileage. Include slow run in that. Your back-to-back long runs, remember you're going
slow! I said back-to-back long runs. I'm okay if you want to call that back-to-back "I'm
moving". You're walking too? Totally fine! Be patient. Don't expect results tomorrow. But
one day, if you keep a log, you'll actually notice it! I remember very specifically the
day that I went for a marathon in my training and I said "I'm going to finish this marathon
without getting tired. Nothing else matters. I don't care about finishing time." And I did it.
I was like "Wow I can't believe I did a marathon in training!!! And I can't believe I'm still
feeling relatively good!" Of course, you know, a little tired. But relatively fresh. Would it
have been possible for me to run after that? Yeah... yeah! And that was the goal. The goal
was to reach that. So you will reach that... not tomorrow, not next week. It's going to
take maybe 3 months, 6 months, 1 year. It's going to take time but know that you're going to
reach that destination if you stay consistent. Work on your mental game. Endurance sports
and long-distance running. Yes, it's obviously physical. But it's also very mental. And you need
to change your mindset. I've said it a few times already and I'll say it a few more times. You're
not trying to reach the destination quickly. You're trying to reach the destination fresh.
That's what we're working on right now. It's running longer without getting tired. Not running
longer and getting there as soon as possible. And having this patience is tough. We always want
to run faster. It's tough to... you're jogging. You're feeling good at 11 minute mile. My body
will naturally move to a 10-minute mile... and then 9 minute mile. And I will go as fast as
my body allows, and you need to say -NO! No no no no no. First of all, let's set ourselves a pace
and let's not go faster than that. And if you're including walking, stick to it. You know, we're
not trying to reach that destination as soon as possible. We're trying to reach that as fresh
as possible. As simple as that. And there's a lot of mental trick that you can have with that.
It can be as simple as listening to music. It can be as simple as having a reminder. But it can be
as simple as just thinking - what are you trying to do right now? And coming back to the "why" this
long run is in your training. The why is to build that. The why is to run your first marathon in
training where like, where did the miles go?! The other one that is pretty good is like, have
something to think about. Personally, you know, my long runs is the time of the week that I'm just
disconnecting. I'm not thinking about anything. I'm just or ...I'm not thinking about anything
specific. But my mind is busy and it's just a way to disconnect from work or from any trouble.
And just going. If you enjoyed this video, if you think it's helpful, please leave a thumbs
up! That is helping me a lot! Even better, if you've been following my adventure over the
past 2 years racing 24x 100 miles, you know Nora, my wife has been nominated as Best Pacer of the
Year by ultrasignup. She's a finalist and if you're not very familiar with her, I highly
suggest to look at movies like Ouray 100 or Badwater 135 or Leadville 100. And I guarantee
you will fall under her charm. She's absolutely wonderful. She's my partner in crimes. She's
a pacer / trainer / crew. She's always there supporting me. This year alone, she's paced me
for 7 races, including crewing. So sometimes it goes up to 50 hours. Running for 20, 30, 40
miles with me! Always keeping a smile. Always being there for me. Always being a good source
of inspiration. And a big reason this channel is possible is thanks to her. If you want to
help me say "thank you" to my wonderful Nora, please go in the link in the description below
where you can vote for her as the Best Pacer of the year. It will mean the world to her, the
world to me, and it's a great way to say "Thank You" . So thank you Nora! You mean the world to
me. None of that would be possible without you. If your long runs are very boring, something
you could consider is having some running buddies. And your running buddies have a lot of
different purpose. First, just running with other people is pleasant. If they are more experienced
runners, they can have tips for you. If they're at the same level - you're growing together
which is always helpful. They will help you maintain your pace because they have a pace goal
also, so if we say we're going 10 minutes mile, they'll probably be around 10 minutes
mile. And if they see you going faster, they'll probably slow you down. So it's helping
in controlling the pace. The other thing that it's doing is that zone 2 is associated to being able
to talk. That's the way we describe it usually. If you're with someone, you have to talk. It's
difficult to go too fast, so you naturally go a little slower. And time will go by faster.
And next thing you know, it's been 2 hours, you've run your 12 miles and you're feeling good.
And you had an interesting disconnection from the world. And you met a new connection. So a running
buddy is super helpful. Obviously the advantage of running with someone are multiple. It's
also, at least personally, if I tell someone we're going to run tomorrow. Uh, we ARE running
tomorrow. Whereas if I would only tell myself, it's more likely that I skip the workout. But
it will help you be consistent which goes back to consistent training through the months will be
what will help you do these long runs and not be tired. Breathing is super important when you're
running. And I see a lot of videos about how to correct your running form but how to breath
properly is not nearly as common. And I find that a little bit baffling because I think one of
the biggest switch I did beyond just the mindset of "I'm going to run for very long time and not
be tired" is how to breath properly. And we tend to breathe too fast. We tend to breathe with our
mouth a lot. When you're trying to do something that is long distance and not be too tired, try
and focus on nose breathing as much as possible. And I don't know if there's any physiological
reason why it would be any different but the biggest difference at least for me is that it's
harder to breathe through my nose. Which means I can't be out of breath. I can't be at a pace where
I would need to breathe like that. That would not happen through my nose. If I'm breathing through
my nose, I will naturally go slower. The other thing that is good for that is also to try and
pace it. So you can set yourself a rhythm and think of "I will breathe in every 3 steps. That's
how long I'm breathing in through my nose. Then I will breathe out. Either with my mouth or my nose
for the next three steps" And then you count. 1 2 3, 1 2 3, 1 2 3, 1 2 3, 1 2 3, 1 2 3. First, it's
distracting you which is always good. If you can, it's like counting the sheep to fall asleep. I
think this is just to help you move. And like not think too much. But also it will slow down your
breathing. It will calm you down. And it will help you stay at a level that is much more zone
2. Which is much more "we're going slow but we're going for a long time" It's proper breathing. So
nose breathing, count your steps, and practicing. It's good to stay aware and the more often you do
that, the more natural it will become where you don't really need to think about your breathing
anymore. You're just going to do it properly. Now I know it can be tough to just nose breath
throughout like a full marathon. So you can set also yourself some goals. Maybe every mile, your
watch will bing bing bing. It's been one mile, then for the next, I don't know, 0.1 mile just
focus on just doing that breathing through your nose every 3 steps, or every four steps. Whatever
will be comfortable for you. And you're really focusing on that. And then when it's gone like
you release. But I'm sure you will notice that you really have to control yourself to not breath
through your mouth at the beginning. But that's going to help you squeeze it down. We're running
slow right now. They're quick tips and maybe sometimes you feel they're a little bit vague. But
for me these 6 things is really what has helped me move from running a half marathon was a big
deal to running a 100 miles every month. And it's focusing on these things. Focusing on reaching
the destination and I don't care about how long it takes. And these tips, all of them, are geared
towards you training hard, you doing what you need in training, providing what your body needs,
but also making sure you're not going too fast. Because we always go too fast...And I'm saying it
again... And when you go on your next long run, think about me that says "You're running too fast
dummy!" And you're going to slow down. And I'll say "You're still running too fast! Walk!" There's
so much no shame. And walking to be able to be consistent. Try to think about it on your next
long run so that you trying...your goal is not necessarily the mileage or anything. It's to stay
fresh like I said before - fresh like chocolate ice cream! And I can guarantee there is a feeling
that is very difficult to describe of just being able to do these miles and just basically
flying... not flying because you're going fast. I'm not, you know, I'm not Jim Walmsley. But
you don't... you don't feel any pain from that. It's just movement. You're just moving through
the trails. And that requires a lot of practice with these tips. But I know you can get there!
As you can see, I'm taking the time during the holidays to put these movies together. Sometimes
that means being a little bit away from family to help you guys. So it would be a great way to say
thank you back would be to go on ultrasignup in the link below and vote for Nora! Honora Einhorn
as the Best Pacer of the Year - thank you so much! Yay!
