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Hi Lee. How do you recommend I train when I don’t have a race in the near future? With winter coming how do I continue making progress and keep injury risk low?

Good stuff, Lee! I was skeptical about the power of the banana; but since I've started having 3 bananas in water one hour before key workouts, the quality of the sessions has improved, as has the recovery. Plus, compared to commercial options, the banana is very economical and pretty much available wherever you are.

Lee, my man- you've got to be the hardest working, most passionate dude on TH-cam

I'm a 46 year old man, last year I ran 3:13. Do you think it's possible for me?

Thanks lee ive learn̈t so much from this video. My first half marathon last spring i took 1 25g gel every 40 mins and felt they had no effect at all. Will slowly work towards 1 every 20 or 30 mins for next springs half (london). Ill try them out on interval Wednesdays too. If im doing say 6 x 4 mins with 1 min rests for a total of 24 mins of hard work, at what point would you recommend taking the gels? Thanks for all you do man 😊

Yeah, I"ve been doing just that. 1 gel every 30min on my long runs with workout portions in them. Also I've been taking an carb electrolyte drink (tailwind) in a softflask in a naked belt and sips every 20min. I've been doing this for the last 10weeks leading into my half marathon race. I'll now move to 1 gel every 20min and practice that ready for my marathon in April which is plenty of time to get the gut ready

Hey mate, great content as always! Question for you and something that’s always been a bit grey for me. I often hear people drinking sugar based sports drinks from up to 2hrs before race start for carb stores. Is there a danger you’re going to start secreting insulin and therefore feel super sluggish at race start if you get the timing wrong? From what I understand fructose (e.g. your banana based drink) doesn’t affect the sugar levels in the same way? Cheers

I did nearly all my runs fasted and didn't really think about nutrition much at all. After watching one of your earlier videos, I went out last Sunday and did 25km of hill repeats taking a gel every 20 minutes or so, the difference was huge, I've never felt so good on that sort of session!!

Hi Lee! Thanks for the video. To know that you went from 3:25 to 2:20 is hard to comprehend! Amazing! I am trying to break that sub 3 barrier....I am close...but another marathon comes and goes and the needle barely moves. I find your videos very helpful and the information you present along with all the knowledge I have accumulated over the years will get me there one day. I am 54 and sometimes I wonder if I will get that "breakout" marathon where I get a 5 to 10 minute PB.....PB was this past September was in Erie, PA....3:06:49....just ran Chicago this past Sunday....3:08:29. I felt that the fueling during Chicago was the best fueling I have had in a marathon. I had a caffeine gel (30 g) ...15 minutes before the race....then had a combination of regular and caffeine gels (30g) every 25 minutes during the race. Had Gatorade at every station...sometimes was able to grab 2 cups because the aid station lines were so long....also had a salt pill with every gel. Just felt a slight twinge of cramping in my calf during the race which went away....and then a bit of cramping after the race....but overall, I felt pretty good after the race....considering I just ran a marathon....and was able to walk with full mobility back to the hotel. I am going to experiment taking a gel every 20 minutes moving forward with my training. Also...your breakfast of bananas with water seems like something I will try as well. I have oatmeal before a race....and yes, I wake up really early to get everything digested. If I didn't have to wake up as early on race morning and in the process get more sleep....that would be a huge benefit! All the best! Allen from Newmarket, Ontario.

Gels are way too expensive where I live so I just run and cycle with several small ziplock bags of dates which are cheap and abundant. Granted I’m a middle-of-the-pack mid pack athlete. Great advice 👍🏻.

Great question, great answer. Probably the most useful video I've seen for where my running is at, currently. Am working through a "run 5km without stopping" programme and want to give it a fair shot. But this approach looks more fun (I love short fast intervals), and more effective. So I'll definitely be trying this advice. Thank you!

When, why, and how often would we add Marathon Pace into the long run? It seems there's a divide for this. Some say none, keep long and steady, others says tempo, others with blocks of MP within.

Hi Lee, thank you for the tips as always. Was wondering what your feedback on my current regiment is. Mondays I do a zone 2 run, last 3 weeks its been 7-8 miles. Tuesdays are my speed days, I do the 4x4 method, where i start off around 8:30/mile pace and go up to 6:30/mile on the last round, Wednesdays are my recovery runs and fridays are my long runs, between 10-13 miles depending how I feel. I take thursdays and weekends off because I also have a job and study in university. any feedback from anyone would be nice :)

I tend to get pain in my knees after 5 miles if I try and run easy slower runs in the 9 min mile range. But if I run faster the 9 then no knee pain and I can go for 10 miles. What is a good way to keep the slow pace for easy days? Any tips thank you.

I cannot thank you more than enough for your tips they are always a good reminder

I found the simple task of changing my gel intake from 30 mins to 25 seemed to have a positive impact on the back end of the long run. Sounds obvious (more energy being consumed) but for ME that 5 mins felt like I wasn't waiting for my next top up.

Hi Lee do you care about the zones for steady long run? Like zone 2 or zone3?

You have a top 5 running channel

Hi Lee, love your content and the frequency of your videos. I’ve been running for years but recently become aware of my low cadence (165 while running slow). My problem is that when I try to increase it, my heart rate goes up 20 beats per minute even though the pace is constant, resulting in the zone 2 training suddenly being zone 3. Will this improve over time or do you have a tips for increasing the cadence while keeping the heart rate down?

Thanks for the tips lee. Following your advice from the other day about in race nutrition,taking a gel every 20mins in my half marathon on Sunday and I smashed my pb by over 3 mins and felt really great throughout (finished 1.22) I’d really like to hear more from you about general day to day nutrition during a training block as I plan for Milan Marathon 25. Thanks again,love the channel

Hi, despite of running many years I have the problem that I don't know what cadence I should use. Using cadence around 180 or more saves my muscles and the run feels easy but the steps are "artificially" short and at faster speeds these short steps are not sufficient. Slower cadence (around 170 or less) is the opposite - muscles work slightly more (but I feel relaxed), steps are longer (but trying not to overstride) so at faster speeds I am able to sustain the pace. Maybe staying in the middle (175...)? But this is can be the same as Zone 3 training. 🙂 But maybe the shorter faster steps can be more beneficial for gaining endurance even if the steps are too short... (?)

I usually run with my friend Spotify - we are always at the same level of fit abilitywise 😄

Thank you so much Lee for sharing your experience and practical wisdom. It really helps to be constantly reminded of hydration and nutrition. I just came back from an interval training session, 12x 500m. Target pace was 3:57/km as I ran a half marathon 2 weeks ago in 1h35 (4:28/km) and I am trying to improve on that. My average pace today during the intervals was 4:01, so I am close and very happy! I experimented first time with nutrition to bring 2 mashed bananas 🍌 (25g carbs each) and 24g of honey (20g carbs) so that’s 70g carbs. + sea salt for electrolytes in a small box in my belt and a spoon. I had the same portion also before the run and half again afterwards. 1h training including warm up and cool down. It felt really good! It seems that bananas contain water so it may help with hydration too. It seems my body took it well, but this is a bit bulkier to carry 😊 Also maybe not the easiest thing to manage on race day, but I am trying to find alternatives to industrial gels. What are your thoughts on it? Thanks for your tips!

For sure! When I’m in deep thought on an easy run my form gets a bit suspect. A bit of focus on picking up my knees, heals,chest ,eyes.. tuck my pelvis under a bit and swing my arms a bit and instantly am running 20 sec faster per mile with the same effort. Best “hack” ever!

I am convinced that the real key is not to stick to one method indefinitely. Our bodies are adaptive machines. Changing things up over time can unlock new potential

Not really sure what your overall point in this video is. You had some issues with some gel but what should you have done differently? It isn't clear what the point you're trying to make is.

Definitely going to try the progressive & tempo routines. Only got back into running this year, generally I've been doing long easy zone 2 / lower zone 3 runs (based off garmin forerunner HR which I don't entirely trust, need to invest in a chest strap) but I do find that even though I enjoy running and theres plenty of benefits to zone 2 it does get boring

Would you take a gel at the start of the race too lee?

How long do you recommend a recovery run or an easy run to be? 30-45 minutes?