Easy run pace calculator

Put in a recent race time to see your easy running pace. Most runners run their easy days too fast.

Your details

Your easy run pace

6:38

per kilometre, the middle of your range

Per kilometre6:03 to 7:14
Per mile9:44 to 11:38
Your VDOT score38.3
Marathon pace, for comparison5:28 to 5:59 a km

Easy should feel properly easy: you can talk in full sentences. If heat, hills or tiredness push your heart rate up, slow down more. Most of your running belongs here.

The working

From a 25 minute 5K

A VDOT of 38.3 puts easy running at 59 to 74%: about 6:03 to 7:14 per kilometre, or 9:44 to 11:38 per mile. That is more than a minute a kilometre slower than race pace, and that is the point.

Why slow works

The 80 / 20 idea

Elite and club runners alike do about 80% of their running easy. Easy miles build your heart, blood vessels and tendons with little fatigue, so you can run more and do the hard sessions well.

Checks

Is it easy enough?

You can talk in full sentences
You finish feeling you could do more
Heart rate in zone 2 if you use one
Walking up steep hills is fine

Read with care

What this cannot tell you

Daily variationHeat, stress and poor sleep all make easy feel harder.
New runnersIf this pace still feels hard, run walk.
HealthNew breathlessness at easy effort needs a GP check.

Questions

Common questions

How slow should an easy run be?

Slow enough to chat: often 1 to 2 minutes a mile slower than 5K pace.

Do easy runs make you faster?

Yes. They build the aerobic base everything else sits on.

Why does my watch say I am too slow?

Ignore it. Easy is about effort, not the number.

Sources

Last checked 21 October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us and we will fix it.

Before you push on

New to exercise, or got a heart, lung or joint condition? Have a word with your GP or practice nurse first. Stop and get help if you feel chest pain, faintness or unusual breathlessness, and call 999 if it is severe.