TL;DR
- There are many myths in running, one of the most popular being that we need to spend more time running faster to become faster. In actuality, to become faster, we should be spending most of our time running at an easy pace.
- Runners’ diets should focus on replenishing nutrients. Low carb and low fat diets may hurt performance and general health.
- Minimalist running shoes are not ideal for everyone. The best shoes for you depend on your gait and body.
- Strength training is an important addition to your running routine to prevent injury and improve performance.
- Many people get faster in their 30s and even 40s. More important than age is how you train.
The sport of running is rife with misconceptions, which may seem surprising because running appears very straightforward. You lace up your shoes and start putting one foot in front of the other. However, much of the popular research on running and exercise is outdated, doesn’t use especially informative methods, isn’t representative (many studies only examine men and/or professional runners), and/or was funded by companies that benefit from particular findings (like Gatorade studying electrolytes).
Plus, most of us underestimate the impact running has on our bodies and so we can end up training, eating, and dressing in ways that seem helpful but are counterproductive to our success and longevity as runners.
Below I outline 6 running myths that I frequently hear from fellow runners and in the media and discuss the research that helps debunk them.
Running Myth 1: Running Faster and Harder During Each Run Will Make You Faster Over the Long-Term
One of the most frequent misconceptions I hear from fellow runners is that to become faster you need to spend more time running faster and harder. It makes sense, to get better at most things in life you have to do that thing more.
However, running fast is not so much a situation where more is better, but rather one where you can have “too much of a good thing.” If you have run even once in your lifetime, it should come as no surprise that running is real freaking hard on your body. If you run fast and hard all the time, your body will have a hard time recovering in time for your next run. If each run leads to progressively more deterioration without enough time to heal, you’ll increase your risk of injury and likely get slower.
Plus, running requires a strong cardiovascular system (i.e. heart, lungs, blood flow). When you run at an easier pace (conventionally considered the pace at which you can still talk), you improve the growth of capillaries, which help move blood through your body, and strengthen your heart and lungs. You also rely on slow-twitch muscle fibers, which are the MVP muscle fibers when it come to endurance.
In contrast, running fast and hard can actually impede capillary growth and relies more on fast-twitch muscle fibers. Fast-twitch muscle fibers are powerful but burn out super quickly, like a toddler on a sugar overdose. They can help produce bursts of speed for short periods of time, but if you want to run anything longer than a short sprint, you’ll be relying way more on slow-twitch muscle fibers.
Consequently, to become faster, running coaches generally recommend that 90% of your training consist of running at an easy pace, with speed workouts and (as I’ll discuss below) strength workouts sprinkled in a couple of times a week. In other words, you want your running theme song to be less like Daft Punk’s Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger and more like the Eagles’ Take It Easy. This strategy has been key for my marathon training and helped me get a Boston Marathon qualifying time–for more guidance on running a marathon, see my post on marathon training.
Running Myth 2: Cutting Calories Helps You Run Faster
Images of skinny runners abound. If you follow professional runners on social media, it’s hard not to notice that they appear to be made of bones, sinewy muscles, bulging veins (sorry for my use of “bulging”), and nothing else.
For us ordinary people, it can feel like the natural conclusion is that we should cut out fat and carbs and subsist on lean chicken breast and broccoli. However, that diet will not only have the side effect of making you hate everyone and everything, it could hurt your running performance in the long run. Your body needs a wide variety of nutrients, fat included, to do its job well.
Fat is important for everything from absorbing vitamins and minerals (many vitamins and minerals are fat soluble and so are better absorbed with fat) to producing energy to hormone function. If you are a female runner and have disrupted periods, there’s a good chance your hormones are out of whack due to insufficient fat intake. It might be time to change to full-fat yogurt, you know it tastes better anyway.
The other diet bugaboo, carbs, are also super important. The feeling of hitting a wall while running arises from your body running out of carbs to burn. Carbs are an important source of energy and many foods that are high in carbohydrates like whole grains, fruit, and vegetables have vitamins and minerals that are important for your health. Plus, your mental health is important too and I for one need dessert for my mental health.
The conclusion is one that we all know and that doesn’t sell books or go viral: healthy diets involve a wide range of foods and nutrients. They include mostly plants, enough protein for your age/gender/activity profile, plenty of water, and that groan-worthy phrase, everything in moderation including moderation. I love Elyse Kopecky and Shalane Flanagan’s cookbooks for runners, they’ve personally helped me get my hormones back to normal with their recipes and nutrition advice.
Running Myth 3: Everyone Should Be Wearing Minimalist Running Shoes
This myth was popularized in the book Born to Run. Born to Run chronicles the author’s interactions with members of the Tarahumara tribe in Mexico. Tarahumarans are known for being uniquely fast and many members of the Tarahumaran population do not wear running shoes. The author then selectively chooses research showing that the use of running shoes may hurt performance and increase injury and argues that we should be wearing no or minimalist running shoes.
However, in his telling of this story, the author largely neglects that the speed of Tarahumarans comes less from their shoes and more from the hard work they put into running. Plus, many Tarahumarans use running shoes or note that they would prefer to use them if they could afford them. He also ignores considerable independent research showing that the use of running shoes is valuable for many runners, that minimalist shoes lead to greater injury in some runners, and that the type of shoes you should wear depends on your body type and gait.
For example, I over-pronate. Since I was a child, when I’m not wearing shoes, I often stand on the sides of my feet without even realizing it, letting my feet roll inwards (I’m sure this looks really weird). Without supportive running shoes, I get arch pain, plantar fasciitis, and other really cool, sexy symptoms. Minimalist shoes can be great for some runners, but certainly not all of them.
So, like with diets, this is another case of beware dramatic claims about particular things being good or bad for you. Most likely, those dramatic claims are being used to sell products or attract viewers rather than actually being helpful. They are also often based on logical fallacies: assuming what works for one person or unique group of people will work for everyone. Do your own research and remember that the solution that works best for you will most likely be personalized to your lifestyle and genetics.
Running Myth 4: Strength Training Is Not Important for Running Performance
Awhile ago, a running study was published where strength training was supposed to be a component of the training program under study. However, very relatably, the runners in the study refused to do any strength training, so the researchers dropped the strength training component of the study. Strength training can feel like it’s taking time away from the more important job of spending time running. And, let’s be honest, it can often feel boring and repetitive, so it’s no wonder the runners in the study were less than excited about doing it on the reg.
However, strength training is huge for preventing injuries, improving running form and economy (the amount of effort it takes to run a certain speed and distance), and building up your muscles’ power so you can run faster and harder. Even strength training for just 10 minutes a couple of times a week can lead to benefits.
Running Myth 5: You Need to Consume Electrolytes During Your Runs
This one blew my mind and I’ll largely direct you to an article from Outside magazine for more information on this, but basically the idea that we need to actively replace electrolytes during workouts is oversold. We are often told that muscle cramps result from insufficient sodium, but research cited in the article above found that sodium levels weren’t associated with whether people reported muscle cramps or not.
Consuming sodium has also been argued to be important for avoiding low sodium levels in the blood. However, electrolyte drinks are not as salty as our blood, so when we consume them we may, counterintuitively, be contributing to the problem.
Electrolytes can be important for your blood concentration (if you want to get into the technical elements of that, I again direct you to the linked article), but unless you are running an ultramarathon, that’s almost definitely not a problem you need to worry about. So unless you’ve signed up for a 100-miler, you’re probably good getting your electrolytes from the food you eat and maybe a post-workout recovery drink.
Running Myth 6: Everyone Inevitably Gets Slower As They Get Older
It’s easy to think that our best running days are behind us if we’re past our early-20s. Everything hurts more, so why the heck should we expect to be any faster than we were in the days when we thought we were just the kind of people who didn’t get hangovers and could thrive on 5 hours of sleep?
However, data from Strava and academic studies have found that speed doesn’t decline much with age and, particularly for women, may increase in your 30s and even 40s. More important than age, is how you train.
If you are eating healthier, sleeping better, and training more effectively in your mid-30s than you were in your early 20s, there’s a good chance you will get faster. Your genetics also influence your running performance over time, which is a good news/bad news situation. The bad news is that we have 0 control over that. The good news is also that we have 0 control, so we can give ourselves a break. If we’re making our best effort to get mostly good sleep, eat mostly good food, train regularly, and we’re still not seeing improvements, then we’re doing enough.
I will not be going to the Olympics, you probably will not be going to the Olympics and most people will be annoyed with us for bragging about our running times anyway, so maybe we can let it go if we don’t get the mileage or PRs we want year in and year out. Yes, there are 80-year-olds who are completing 100-milers, but I probably won’t be that 80-year-old, and I’m mostly okay with that.
It’s easy to forget that running is an action. Running is not about finishing or outcomes. It’s about a process and hopefully a process you engage with over and over again. To do that, your running practice needs to be enjoyable, sustainable, and built for you.
And remember, I’m not a certified personal trainer or a medical professional, so consult with a professional before starting a workout routine or modifying your diet.