Struggling to Keep Easy Runs Easy? Here’s the Tool That Can Keep You Going at the Right Intensity

Mastering easy pace isn’t always easy to accomplish. I’ve been on countless runs during which my heart rate skyrocketed, and I’d have to take frequent walk breaks to desperately try and bring it back down. But there’s a go-to method I rely on to keep me in zone 2 for nearly my entire run, without having to think about it.Keeping easy runs easy is so important to training because it helps you recover better between hard sessions and builds your overall aerobic capacity. On easy runs, your heart rate should stay in zone 2 of the five heart-rate zones, which is about 60 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate, and breathing should come easily enough to hold a conversation.The best place to lock into this go-all-day pace? The treadmill. While many runners find the treadmill boring, it provides the best environment to log maintenance miles, because you can control your easy pace without constantly thinking about it.I’m not the only one to use the treadmill’s set-it-and-forget-it vibe to stick to zone 2. Recently, I interviewed Thomas Nobbs, Canada’s fourth-fastest marathoner with a PR of 2:09:25, and his coach about how he trained exclusively on a treadmill through a gruesome winter.Nobbs found that the monotony of the treadmill helped him keep his easy miles extremely easy, because he treated those runs like meditations. “If you’re just constantly checking the watch, then the minutes are going to go by really slow,” he says. “It’s a lot better if you just try to be in the moment, get to flow state, and clear your thoughts.”Nobbs’s coach, Brant Stachel, explains that Nobbs has a habit of pushing his pace when running outside and not truly respecting effort. The treadmill helped him avoid that.When executing zone 2 efforts, which Nobbs often runs at about an 8:00 pace or three minutes slower than his goal marathon pace, he typically throws a towel over the timer so he doesn’t have to see his metrics. This keeps him from adjusting the treadmill settings and allows him to pay more attention to his rate of perceived exertion (RPE). (He aims for a 2 to 4 out of 10 RPE, with 10 equaling all-out effort.) This training hack helped Nobbs drop three minutes off his previous marathon PR of 2:12:27.If you need other ways to pass the time on the treadmill, try these tips:1. Start With a Shorter RunStarting with shorter runs before tackling long distances can help you get accustomed to the treadmill. “One of the biggest reasons building up to a 17-mile long run [on the treadmill] wasn’t mental torture for me was that I didn’t start anywhere near that,” Emilia Benton, freelance writer and USATF-certified run coach, previously wrote in Runner’s World.Benton started with eight-mile workouts on the treadmill, which made it easy to transition into 10-milers, and then added a mile or two each week.You don’t have to be training for a marathon to utilize the treadmill for zone 2 easy runs, though. Even starting with consistent 20-minute runs first can help you adjust.2. Simulate the OutdoorsNobbs replicates his typical outdoor routine when he runs indoors to make the treadmill comfortable for easy days. For him, that means finishing his 20-minute warmup on the treadmill, followed by his usual drills, such as banded clamshells, A-, B-, and C-skips, high knees, and single-leg knee drives, and running at a 1 percent grade to simulate air resistance outside.3. Give Yourself IncentivesOne of my favorite ways to entertain myself during an easy run on the treadmill is by popping on a TV show, podcast, or music. It helps distract me from speeding up or stopping the run short, especially if I get lost in a 30-minute episode.Benton incentivizes her treadmill runs, too. She enjoys having a Bluetooth speaker set up nearby to listen without dealing with sweaty earbuds. It’s also enticing for her to know the treadmill saves her from dealing with excessive heat or unwanted interruptions, like stopping at traffic lights.Next time you have an easy run on the schedule, consider staying indoors, not because of the weather, but because you’ll rack up crucial endurance volume at a truly easy pace.Kristine Kearns, a writer and avid runner, joined Runner’s World and Bicycling in July 2024. She previously coached high school girls cross country and currently competes in seasonal races, with more than six years of distance training and an affinity for weightlifting. You can find her wearing purple, baking cupcakes, and visiting her local farmers market.