The numbers in your plan say where you should be. This guide is for when you don’t want to look at your watch: what you feel, how you talk and how long you could hold each Energy Box zone.
The zone is the address.
What you feel is the GPS.
Before you start
Give your effort a score from 1 to 10. 1 is barely moving, 10 is everything you have. Be honest: the most common mistake is thinking you’re at 5 when you’re at 7.
Do the talk test. In the middle of an easy run, say out loud: “I’m running in A1 and feeling good.” If you had to breathe mid-sentence, you sped up.
What each zone should feel like
How it sounds inside: “I could go like this all day. I’m holding back.”
How you talk: Chat freely, you could even sing. Breathing through your nose.
How long you could hold it: All day.
Score: 1–2 out of 10.
The trap: “This is too easy, I’ll pick it up a little.”
What to do: Change nothing. If it feels ridiculously slow, it’s right. This session exists so you arrive fresh for the next one.
How it sounds inside: “I’m working, but I could keep this up for hours.”
How you talk: You tell the whole weekend story without stopping to breathe.
How long you could hold it: Hours.
Score: 3–4 out of 10.
The trap: The group speeds up, you go with it, and suddenly you’re talking in pieces.
What to do: Slow down, even if the watch looks bad. Nobody wins a race on a Saturday training run.
How it sounds inside: “Real effort, but under control.”
How you talk: Short sentences, three to five words. You can talk, but you’d rather not.
How long you could hold it: Half an hour to an hour.
Score: 5 out of 10.
The trap: The plan says “10K pace” and you run it like race day.
What to do: It’s that pace, with a training mindset. Hold back the urge to push.
How it sounds inside: “I’m at the edge of what I can hold. I know it won’t last.”
How you talk: Single words only: “yes”, “ok”. Any sentence needs a pause.
How long you could hold it: About 20 minutes.
Score: 6–7 out of 10, reaching 7 at the end of the set.
The trap: “I feel good, I’ll do one more.”
What to do: Stop at the time in your plan. Today’s extra rep is Thursday’s bad session.
How it sounds inside: “This is the most I can sustain. No talking.”
How you talk: You don’t talk. Only your face says anything.
How long you could hold it: 3 to 8 minutes per rep.
Score: 8–9 out of 10.
The trap: Flying out in the first seconds and finishing the rep walking.
What to do: Start controlled and let it build. The worst moment of the rep should be the last minute, not the first. Finish still running.
How it sounds inside: “Everything I’ve got, right now.”
How you talk: Nothing. Hands on knees when you stop.
How long you could hold it: Seconds: 10 to 90.
Score: 10 out of 10.
The trap: Resting too little and starting the next rep tired.
What to do: Rest 3 to 5 minutes standing still between reps. If the second one feels like the first, the rest was right.
Golden rules
- A1 too slow beats A2 too fast. When in doubt, go slower.
- A VO2 rep isn’t a sprint. It’s the pace you can hold for 4 minutes and finish still running.
- If you can’t speak in sentences, you’re above the zone.
- Rest between reps is part of the session.
- The watch is a reference. Your body is the truth.
- The hardest session isn’t the best one. The best one is the right one.
Want to understand why each zone exists? Read The effort map.
Training right isn’t training hard.
It’s training in the right place.