Crushing World Records & Narrowing The Gender Gap w/ Camille Herron | Rich Roll Podcast

Racing as Training

Camille Herron embraces a unique philosophy of using races as a core component of her training regimen. She believes that racing not only develops fitness but also maintains leg speed, which is crucial for her performance. Camille shares, "The longest training run I've done in the past five years is 22 miles. The only time I ever go further than that is if I race."

Racing develops your fitness as well. And so I just really focus on recovering between my races and making sure I feel really good and do a lot of quality work, which is really important.

--- Camille Herron

Her approach allows her to stay fresh and energized, avoiding the fatigue that comes from excessively long training runs 1 2 3.

   

Intensity & Recovery

Balancing intensity and recovery is central to Camille's training strategy. She maintains that 86% of her workouts are at an easy pace, reserving high intensity for specific sessions. Camille notes, "I might be doing anywhere between six to 18 miles at a pretty hard effort," emphasizing the importance of recovery between these sessions.

Whatever I'm doing, I really think just the recovery, the sleep aspect has made a huge difference.

--- Camille Herron

Her recovery routine includes Epsom salt baths and magnesium supplements, which have significantly improved her sleep and overall recovery 4 5 6.

   

Heart Rate Strategy

Camille strategically uses heart rate monitoring to optimize her performance. She trains at 65% to 70% of her max heart rate for easy runs, while racing at 75% of her max heart rate. This approach allows her to maintain a consistent effort without overexerting herself. Camille explains, "I just practice it in training and get a feel for the effort that I want to go at."

I just think I have a bit of maturity in the sport that I feel like I'm a veteran now and that I can be more confident in pulling back the reins earlier in the race.

--- Camille Herron

Her confidence in this method enables her to focus on her own race strategy, rather than being influenced by others 4 7 8.

   

Trail Running

Transitioning from road to trail running, Camille adapts her techniques to conquer new terrains. She emphasizes the importance of strength training for stability and enjoys the dynamic nature of trails. Camille describes the experience as "throttling your gears and learning how to move with the terrain."

I feel like I'm gaining a better sense of how to, I guess, throttle my gears like a bike, knowing when to pull back and when to push.

--- Camille Herron

Her focus on road training enhances her leg speed, which she effectively translates to trail running, allowing her to excel in both environments 9 10 11.