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The running protocol


Training schemes


A display of different training schemes. Why is this at the top of the page? (as opposed to below the more theory inclined sections) Well, that's because you usually want to know a week training plan before you dive into lactate thresholds, intensity control, nutrition and more!

80/20 training


In the spirit of Kipchoge (Runner's World, 2023; Runner's World, 2023) (and almost every other sane runner!), do most of your runs at a pace that feel almost too relaxed, then come race day and absolutely crush your goals. The idea is to run 80% (in time) of your runs at low intensity (easy runs) and the 20% that is left to higher intensity workouts. Conceptually, this is very similar to how the Norwegian Method organizes its workouts, with the exception that the Norwegian Method really focuses on measuring and basing higher intensity workouts on data.

No matter how many hours you are spending running every week, there are research (Runner's World, 2023) to support the 80/20 split. It is arguably more important for recreational runners as it can be quite tricky to know how to plan your runs in terms of intensity every week. One common problem is to go all out every single workout. It works initially, but progress will stagnate quite quickly due to fatigue or injuries.

Easy runs have a lot of benefits besides keeping the circulation going on recovery days. Easy runs

  • train the cardio and respiratory systems to work more efficiently, which will allow you to have greater performance at your higher intensity runs.
  • train your slow twitch muscle fibres.
  • helps to strengthen the tendons, ligaments, joints and bones without causing excessive stress to them.

The pace of an easy run is where you can comfortably hold a conversation at.

The Norwegian Method


The philosophy of the Norwegian Method is mainly applied to endurance sports like running, cycling and swimming with a focus on increasing the anaerobic threshold. The foundation of the Norwegian Method is to measure the lactate levels to control the intensity during runs. It is split into 3 different training zones based on the intensity levels as different energy systems are trained optimally in different zones:

  • Zone 1: Low intensity. Zone 1 focuses mainly on the oxidative energy system which is responsible for low-intensity work.
  • Zone 2: Sub threshold. Zone 2 focuses on the anaerobic energy system which is required for high-intensity work. The anaerobic energy system gets activated when a lot of energy is released within a small period of time, and when the oxygen demand is greater than the oxygen supply. Utilizing the anaerobic energy system will more quickly drain your energy.
  • Zone 3: Above threshold. Zone 3 also focuses on the anaerobic energy system.

The key idea of the Norwegian method is to perform the most important workouts in zone 2. As stated above, zone 2 lies at or below the anaerobic threshold. By staying close to the threshold, we can stimulate the anaerobic energy system without becoming to fatigued. The problem with only performing zone 2 workouts is that you will not be able to recover enough between each workout. To have a high training volume (high mileage each week) we have to space out zone 2 training with zone 1 training (low intensity training). The idea here being that zone 1 training does not impact your zone 2 workouts and is much quicker to recover from. So what about zone 3? The Norwegian Method does include high intensity workouts, but it is not the main focus of the method since training above threshold has a higher risk of injuries and is slower to recover from.

As stated above, measuring lactate levels is a common approach to control the intensity during workouts. In zone 2 training we would like to approach the highest intensity at which lactate concentration does not increase over time which is why it is called sub-threshold. This lactate concentration level is also known as the Maximal Lactate Steady State (MLSS). To get these measurements you typically measure the amount of lactate in the bloodstream during your workouts at different intensities. So again, when you work out close to the MLSS, you can train at a high intensity without accumulating to much lactate which leads to fatigue, reduced performance, slower recovery times and a higher risk of injuries. By continuously measuring the lactate levels you can adjust and adopt your training intensity for optimal progress (Vossen, 2023).

Norwegian singles


The Norwegian singles training approach is adapted from the high-volume Norwegian model. It is often associated with double threshold sessions. However, this variant emphasizes single sub-threshold workouts per day instead of two as in double threshold sessions. The core principle is to maximizing repeatable training load while keeping the fatigue at manageable levels. This section is heavily inspired by (Unknown, Accessed: 2025).

As in every training plan, the goal is to shift the lactate curve to the right (see Figure 1). This will of course allow higher speeds at lower lactate levels as we would accumulate lactate slower. As with the Norwegian method, the core training efforts will occur below the second lactate threshold (LT2). Like the 80/20 split we would want to spend around 20-25% of weekly time in this training intensity. As stated above, this intensity level provides aerobic stimulus without the negative effects that often comes with training above threshold such as fatigue and injures. As such, high-intensity VO2max work is generally avoided because of its high cost-to-benefit ratio.

To avoid exceeding the sub-threshold level, we have to make use of some sort of intensity control. Measuring effort at a finer grained level allows for more repeatable quality work. It is often better (at least safer) to aim for a slightly lower control level than going too fast in each sub-threshold workout due reduce the risk of exceeding the intensity level. A weekly training load can be seen in Table 1.

DayBeginnerAdvanced
MondayEasyEasy
TuesdaySub (e.g., 1 x 3000m)Sub (e.g., 3 x 3000m)
WednesdayEasyEasy (+-Double)
ThursdaySub (e.g., 2 x 2000m, 90s rest)Sub (e.g., 4 x 2000m, 90s rest)
FridayEasyEasy (+-Double)
SaturdaySub (e.g., 4 x 1000m, 60s rest)Sub (e.g., 8-10 x 1000m, 60s rest)
SundayRest or Easy/Long runLong run

Double threshold


Lactate


In simple terms lactate is the by-product of burning fuel (glucose) in the muscles. Lactate is measured in millimoles per litre of blood (mmol/L)

  • LT1 = aerobic threshold

  • LT2 = anaerobic threshold

  • https://www.totaltritraining.com/2019/10/24/lactate-thresholds-made-simple-by-rob-bridges/

    Threshold training loosely refers to doing most of your training in zone 2 (see figure 1), and polarised training refers to doing 80% of your training in zone 1 and 20% in zone 3. A study in 2012 showed the effects of both types of training on 40k TT cycling performance (ave watts). After 6 weeks of training at both methods the results showed an average of 8% increase for polarised and only just over 1% increase using the threshold training method (see figure 2).

    Now you can’t always take everything from studies as gospel, however you can’t ignore the results. Most coaches and elite athletes now will suggest using the polarised model of 80:20. What people can often get wrong is the thinking that all year round I should do 80% of my training really easy and 20% really hard (very polarised), this will give you improvements in the short term but will mean that you peak really quickly and then plateau. Most elite coaches and athletes will manipulate the thresholds so that most of their program is polarised but potentially isn’t as polarised as a lot of studies will suggest.

Lactate Turnpoint 1 (LT1)


Lactate Turnpoint 1 (LT1) is the point at which there is a measurable rise in blood lactate above baseline.

Lactate Turnpoint 2 (LT2)


Lactate Turnpoint 2 (LT2) is the point at which lactate starts to rise at an accelerated rate.

Aerobic


Anaerobic


Anaerobic threshold


Lactate concentration


VO2max


VLamax


Intensity control


Nutrition


Energy forms


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glycogen

Running form


Cadence


Pronation


Supination


Recovery


Rest days vs recovery days


It is important to note that rest days are not the same as recovery days.

  • Rest days refers no running AT ALL.
  • Recovery days refers to easy exercise days to stimulate circulation in your legs which can aid recovery from more intense efforts.

Avoiding injury


Generally it is important to incorporate strength and flexibility exercises into your workouts as these workouts will strengthen weak areas that may lead to injury.

Knee


Hip


Back


Stress fracture


Hitting the wall


Hitting the wall is a condition of sudden fatigue and loss of energy caused by the lack of glycogen stored in the liver and mucles due to depletion.

Whether a runner will hit the wall depends on how quickly their glycogen stores deplete, which Rapaport found depends on a combination of a runner’s aerobic capacity (or VO2 max), the density of muscle glycogen, and the relative mass of their leg musculature.

Runners


Eliud Kipchoge


DayMorningAfternoon
Monday19 km easy10 km easy
Tuesday16 km marathon pace10 km easy
Wednesday19 km easy10 km easy
Thursday30-40 km (alternative weeks)
Friday19 km easy10 km easy
Saturday13 x 3 min fast/1 min jog fartlek10 km easy
Sunday2 hours easy

Source (Runner's World, 2023)

Keywords


Zone levels


Oxidative energy system


Maximal lactate steady state (MLSS)


Links


  1. https://norwegiansingles.run/
  2. https://github.com/bart6114/norwegian-singles
  3. https://inscyd.com/article/the-norwegian-method-how-to-apply-it-in-training/
  4. https://run.outsideonline.com/training/training-plans/marathon/eliud-kipchoge-marathon-workout-training-principles/
  5. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/marathon/a42722004/eliud-kipchoge-training/
  6. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/beginners/a772514/how-often-should-you-run/
  7. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/motivation/a27718661/what-is-80-20-running/
  8. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/a776622/how-slowing-down-can-help-you-speed-up/

References


Runner's World, (2023). How to train like Eliud Kipchoge. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/marathon/a42722004/eliud-kipchoge-training/

Runner's World, (2023). What is 80/20 training and why should you be trying it?. https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/training/motivation/a27718661/what-is-80-20-running/

Vossen, L. (2023). How To Apply The Norwegian Method To Training. https://inscyd.com/article/the-norwegian-method-how-to-apply-it-in-training/

Unknown, (Accessed: 2025). Norwegian Singles. https://norwegiansingles.run/