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{{DISPLAYTITLE:The Long Run for Marathon and Ultramarathon races}}
[[File:group run m.jpg|right|frameless|500px]]
The Long Run is a widely accepted cornerstone of endurance training and virtually every marathon and ultramarathon training program emphasizes the Long Run. However, while there are some areas of consensus, much of the advice around the Long Run is contradictory and [[The Science of the Long Run]] is limited. This page tries to balance the need to give usable, specific direction with the need to impart the rationale and limitations of that advice.
==Long Run Pace==
The ideal pace for long runs is UNCLEAR, but almost all marathon runners train at slower than race pace for their long runs, while ultrarunners tend to train at a pace that is faster than race pace.
* Caveats: Running at or faster than marathon race pace for some of a Long Run may be useful. The [[Jack Daniels Running Formula| Jack Daniels]] programs use this approach.
==Ultramarathon Long Runs==
The ideal approach to Ultramarathon Long Runs is UNCLEAR, but it is common for Ultrarunners to do multiple shorter Long Runs than a single longer Long Run, and to run a much smaller fraction of the race distance in on their Long Runs than Marathoners, but at a much faster pace than race pace.