RUNNING ECONOMY: How to use the new metric

Running Economy is NURVV’s newest running metric, here to help you run further and faster with less effort.

Running Economy measures how effectively you use energy when you run. the amount of energy you use to run a certain distance.

NURVV Run calculates Running Economy as the distance covered per calorie (metres or feet per kcal). The more distance you can cover per calorie, the better you running economy.

Improve your Running Economy and you’ll be able to run further, hold a pace for longer and even shave time off your PB. It’s a great indicator of how fast you could run over a goal distance, such as an upcoming race.

How can I find out what my Running Economy is?

After each run, check out your Run Summary in the NURVV Run app. This is where you’ll see your average Running Economy Score for that run.

Want to know more? Tap on the Running Economy tab for a deep dive into the data. You’ll be able to see how your Running Economy changed over the course of the run, your Running Economy Score for each split, and how other metrics including changes in Pace, Cadence and Step Length affected your Running Economy.

How can I improve my Running Economy?

If you want to be a more economical runner, making tweaks to certain aspects of your training and running form could help you reap some performance-enhancing benefits.

1. Work on your running form

NURVV’s Form Coach is a handy tool designed to improve your Running Economy. Found in the app, Form Coach analyses your running form and highlights areas where you could make improvements.

It gives you actions and suggested workouts to help you run more efficiently, and lets you know just how much working on certain aspects of your form – such as Cadence, Step Length and Footstrike –could improve your real-world running results.

2. Add strength training to your training plan

Strength training – especially single leg exercises and plyometric exercise – improve your muscle and tendon strength and stiffness, so you use less energy as you run.

3. Improve your balance

Improving your balance and stability means you’ll use less energy on unnecessary side-to-side movements when running.

4. Run long

Studies suggest people who regularly run longer distances are more economical runners than those who just do short or intense sessions. Make sure you build up your distance gradually and run consistently to avoid injury - NURVV's Running Health feature can help you do this.