Ben's Double-Threshold Day

Workout - Ben's Double-Threshold Day

• 10min @ 9'00''/km
• 4 lots of:
  • 6min @ 7'00''/mi
  • 1min rest
• 5min @ 9'00''/km
• 10min @ 9'00''/km
• 20 lots of:
  • 400m @ 5'00''/km
  • 30s rest
• 5min @ 9'00''/km

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Intro: The London Marathon Humbled Me…Time to Refocus! from Ben Is Running is worth watching. The key takeaways and the workout are below so you can run it yourself. For the complete context, watch the original video.

Key points:

• Double-threshold day: Ben structures his session in two phases. A longer LT1 (first lactate threshold) run followed by a faster LT2 (second lactate threshold) run.
• Pace focus: targets are around 3:30-3:35 min/km for LT1 and around 3:05 min/km for LT2, about his 10K race pace. For guidance on training at this intensity, see Mastering the 10K: Proven Training Plans, Pace Strategies, and How a Smart App Can Elevate Your Performance. He prioritizes effort quality over precise pacing, especially on windy days.
• Workout structure: four 6-minute runs at LT1 effort (around 3:30 min/km) with 1-minute standing recovery, followed by 20 x 400 m repeats at LT2 effort (around 3:05 min/km) with around 30-second jog breaks. This is advanced interval work. For the fundamentals, see Mastering Interval Training: Science-Backed Workouts and How a Smart App Can Personalize Them.
• Practical tips: warm up with dynamic drills and strides, keep mobility work going post-marathon, track lactate (target around 2 mmol/L for LT1), and don’t push too hard in the morning portion.

Workout example (copy for your own training):

Warm‑up: 10‑15 min easy + 4‑6 × 100 m strides

Morning – LT1 (First Threshold)
4 × 6 min @ ~3:30 min/km
   • Maintain steady effort; disregard pace fluctuations from wind
   • 1 min standing recovery between reps

Cool‑down: 3 km easy jog

Evening – LT2 (Second Threshold) – 400 m repeats
20 × 400 m @ ~3:05 min/km
   • 30 s jog recovery (or walk) between repeats
   • Wear a lightweight shoe (e.g., Vaporfly 4 or Cloud Boom Strike) to enhance speed sensation

Finish with 5‑10 min easy cool‑down.

Adjust the paces to your current fitness in the Pacing app.

Closing note: plan your intervals and rebuild speed. The Pacing app lets you adjust paces to your thresholds. Run this double-threshold workout to shift post-marathon momentum into speed gains. If you’re targeting a PR, these principles are core to Mastering 5K Speed: Proven Interval Strategies to Cut Minutes off Your Time.

References

• The London Marathon Humbled Me…Time to Refocus! - YouTube (YouTube Video)