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Every runner is familiar with that burning sensation that builds up in your legs during a hard run. For years, a buildup of lactic acid was blamed for this unpleasant sensation, and coaches and sports scientists have tried to devise ways to rid your body of this so-called toxin as fast as possible. New research, however, is suggesting we’ve been wrong all along. So if lactic acid isn’t to blame, what is?

What is lactic acid?

When you’re engaging in intense physical activity, your body has to burn sugar (glucose) for energy. When you do this, there are two potential outcomes. If you’re exercising at an intensity that allows your cells to get enough oxygen (think walking, easy jogging or steady-state running), the end product of that sugar-burning is pyruvate. Because you’re working at a low intensity, pyruvate can easily be shuttled back through the same pathway to help produce more energy later on.

If you’re working at a high intensity (i.e.- sprinting), your body can’t get enough oxygen for that process to work. This is called anaerobic respiration (as opposed to aerobic respiration). In this case, your body converts pyruvate to lactate and hydrogen, collectively known as lactic acid.

The terms lactate and lactic acid are often used interchangeably, but they are not exactly the same thing. As we’ve learned, lactic acid is a combination of lactate and hydrogen. That hydrogen ion lowers the pH of your muscles and makes them more acidic, which is where the burning sensation comes from. This is where lactic acid got a bad rap. In reality, it actually helps your muscles.

Here’s how: when lactic acid leaves your muscles and enters the bloodstream, the hydrogen molecule detaches so you have lactate and hydrogen existing separately. That lactate can then be recycled and used as energy, which your body desperately needs in that moment. Lactate already exists in your body, even when you’re at rest, but most of the time your body clears it out about as fast as it’s created. As your exercise intensity increases and your oxygen needs exceed supply, lactate levels increase, which triggers your heart rate and respiratory rate to increase in order to supply the muscles with the energy they need.

How does this impact performance?

Contrary to what you may have been told, you don’t have to worry about lactic acid buildup. Why? Because your body simply will not allow you to exercise past the point that it can safely clear lactate and hydrogen from your blood. When you hit that limit, no amount of mind over matter will prevent you from slowing down. This is called your lactate threshold.

A very fit individual can only keep running at this intensity for two to three minutes. 800m runners, for example, will use this system primarily during their race and are thus very well-acquainted with hitting their lactic acid threshold (hence why the final 100m of an 800m race are often not pretty). The same goes for the world’s best 1,000m and 1,500m runners.

To recap so far: that burning sensation in your muscles is not caused by lactic acid, but by hydrogen ions (and other chemical byproducts that researchers are still investigating) that are causing your muscles to be more acidic. These ions attach to lactate and enter your bloodstream, ultimately forcing your body to slow down.

How can I reduce lactic acid?

When you exercise at a high intensity, lactate and hydrogen are going to build up in your blood and there’s nothing you can do to prevent that (as we’ve learned, that extra lactate is actually a good thing). What you can do is increase your fitness level so it takes you longer to reach your lactate threshold by improving how efficiently you use oxygen while exercising. This will allow you to train harder for longer before oxygen is no longer sufficiently supplied to your cells, and lactic acid is produced.

How quickly can you recover from lactic acid buildup?

Your body can clear lactic acid fairly quickly once you reduce your exercise intensity. That’s why you can do a series of 400m repeats at a high intensity as long as you rest in between. The harder you run, the longer you will need in between intervals in order to produce the same level of intensity again.

What about DOMS?

For a long time, lactic acid often got blamed for causing the delayed-onset muscle soreness (DOMS) that often follows a bout of intense exercise, but we know now that is not the case. That soreness you feel the day or two after a hard workout is a result of microscopic tears that form in your muscles during intense exercise. Within reason, these tears are a good thing because it’s the healing process that causes muscle growth.

This is why you may have sore legs the day after a long run or race. You likely weren’t running fast enough to reach your lactate threshold, but you sustained enough tiny tears in your muscles to cause some discomfort in the days after your run. As long as this does not persist for more than a few days, this is a sign that you’re building strength and endurance.

The bottom line

Lactate and lactic acid are not your enemies. In fact, they’re there to help you continue to produce energy so you can keep working at a higher intensity. If you train consistently and recover well between sessions, you’ll be able to increase your lactate threshold so you can run faster and farther.

Most Olympic marathoners spend their youth focused on running. They join track clubs, compete in national championships, and pursue the sport from an early age.

Julia Mayer’s journey was very different.

Today, Mayer is Austria’s marathon record holder, a multiple national record holder on the roads, and an Olympian. Yet for much of her athletic life, running was not her primary sport.

For 16 years, she played soccer.

Then she discovered something that would change her life.

“I noticed that I was really fast in the fun runs and that it was really, really fun,” Mayer said when reflecting on her transition from soccer to distance running.

What began as curiosity quickly became a passion. She eventually made the bold decision to leave soccer behind and focus entirely on running. It was a move that surprised many people around her, but Mayer believed she had found her true athletic calling.

The decision proved to be the right one.

Within a few years, Mayer developed into one of Europe’s top marathon runners. Her steady improvement carried her from local races to the international stage, where she began rewriting Austria’s record books.

She now holds Austrian records in the marathon, half marathon, and road 10K. Her marathon best of 2:26:08 established her as the fastest female marathoner in Austrian history. Her performances in the half marathon and 10K have further cemented her place among the country’s all-time great distance runners.

Her rise culminated with qualification for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

Competing in the Olympic marathon represented the realization of a dream. On one of the most challenging marathon courses ever used for the Olympics, Mayer ran courageously against the strongest field in the world and finished 55th in her Olympic debut.

Behind the scenes, success has come through extraordinary dedication. During marathon preparation, Mayer trains twice a day and covers approximately 200 kilometers, or 124 miles, each week. The workload demands discipline, patience, and a deep commitment to continuous improvement. 

What makes her story especially inspiring is not simply the records or the Olympic appearance.

It is the fact that she found her greatest talent later than many elite runners.

In a sport where athletes are often identified at a young age, Mayer’s journey serves as a reminder that potential does not always reveal itself early. Sometimes it takes years of experience, a willingness to try something new, and the courage to follow a different path. 

The former soccer player who once chased a ball across a field is now chasing history on the roads of Europe.

And according to those closest to her, her best performances may still be ahead.

For runners of every age and ability, Julia Mayer’s story delivers a powerful lesson: it is never too late to discover what you are capable of.

From soccer player to Olympian, her journey proves that remarkable achievements can begin when least expected.

Megan Keith produced the performance of her career in Oslo on Thursday night, shattering one of Scotland’s longest-standing distance running records and cementing her place among Britain’s greatest female 3000m runners.

The 24-year-old clocked a sensational 8:28.35 over 3000m, breaking the Scottish outdoor record that had stood for nearly four decades. In doing so, Keith eclipsed the previous mark of 8:29.02, set by Scottish legend Yvonne Murray back in 1988, ending a record reign that had lasted 38 years.

Keith’s breakthrough run was more than just a national record. The performance also propelled her to third on the UK outdoor all-time list, placing her behind only two of Britain’s most celebrated distance runners — Paula Radcliffe, who leads the rankings with 8:22.20, and Laura Weightman, whose 8:26.07 remains the second-fastest outdoor mark by a British woman.

The significance of Keith’s achievement is amplified by the calibre of athletes she now joins in the record books. For decades, Murray’s mark stood as one of Scottish athletics’ most untouchable records, surviving generations of elite competitors. Keith has now succeeded where many outstanding runners have fallen short, announcing herself as one of the leading distance talents in British athletics.

Her time also compares favourably with the best performances produced indoors. Olympic medallist Laura Muir ran 8:26.41 indoors in Karlsruhe in 2017, underlining just how exceptional Keith’s outdoor effort in Oslo truly was.

The run continues a remarkable rise for the Scottish star, whose progression over recent seasons has transformed her from a promising prospect into a genuine force on the international stage. Running with confidence and composure against elite competition, Keith demonstrated both the speed and endurance required to challenge the very best in Europe and beyond.

With the World Championship season gathering momentum, Keith’s record-breaking display sends a powerful message. Not only has she etched her name into Scottish athletics history, but she has also established herself as a serious contender in one of the sport’s most competitive events.

In Oslo, Megan Keith did far more than break a record. She ended a 38-year wait, climbed into the upper echelon of British distance running, and delivered a performance that may prove to be a defining moment in her career.

British middle-distance talent Phoebe Gill took another significant step forward in her return to top form, producing a determined victory over 800 metres at the Meeting de Marseille in France on Wednesday.

Competing in challenging, wind-affected conditions, the 19-year-old demonstrated both resilience and composure as she held off a late charge from Switzerland's Veronica Vancardo to secure the win in 2:00.81. Vancardo finished just three hundredths of a second behind in 2:00.84, underlining the fiercely contested nature of the race.

While the margin of victory was narrow, the result represented another encouraging milestone for Gill as she continues to rebuild momentum following her injury setback. The young Briton showed impressive race awareness and strength in the closing stages, maintaining her advantage despite the difficult conditions that made fast running a challenge throughout the evening.

The Marseille triumph adds to a growing body of evidence that Gill is steadily progressing toward her best form. Earlier in her comeback campaign, she clocked 2:01.50 for 800m in Bydgoszcz before demonstrating her versatility with a strong 4:05.53 performance over 1500 metres at the BMC Grand Prix meeting in Trafford.

Those performances have highlighted not only her improving fitness but also her ability to compete across multiple distances as she carefully builds her season. The Marseille victory now provides further confirmation that the European junior star is moving in the right direction.

Gill emerged as one of Britain's most exciting middle-distance prospects through a series of breakthrough performances as a teenager, earning widespread recognition for her fearless racing style and remarkable maturity. Injury temporarily interrupted that upward trajectory, but her recent results suggest she is steadily rediscovering the form that made her one of the sport's brightest young talents.

With each race, the signs of progress become increasingly evident. Winning in difficult conditions and under pressure from a quality field is often a stronger indicator than a fast time alone, and Gill's latest success demonstrated exactly those qualities.

As the summer season gathers pace, the Marseille victory offers another confidence boost for the British teenager, whose return continues to gain momentum. If her recent progression is any indication, Gill could soon find herself back among the leading names on the European middle-distance circuit. 

The NCAA Track and Field Championships delivered a moment few could have predicted as Ja’Kobe Tharp produced one of the most astonishing performances in the history of sprint hurdling, rewriting the record books in spectacular fashion.

Competing in the opening round of the men’s 110-meter hurdles, the Auburn star stunned the athletics world by clocking an incredible 12.75 seconds, becoming the first athlete ever to break the 12.80-second barrier. In doing so, he eclipsed the long-standing world record of 12.80 set by Aries Merritt in 2012, a mark that had stood as one of the sport’s most revered achievements for more than a decade.

What makes Tharp’s breakthrough even more remarkable is the scale of his improvement. Entering the championships, the defending NCAA and U.S. champion had recorded a season-best of 13.05 seconds. Yet under the brightest spotlight, he unleashed a performance that exceeded every expectation, slicing an extraordinary 0.26 seconds from his personal best in a race that instantly became one of the greatest ever run.

The achievement sent shockwaves throughout the track and field community. While Tharp arrived in Eugene as one of the leading contenders for the NCAA title, few envisioned a performance capable of redefining the limits of the event. Instead, the American hurdler delivered a race for the ages, combining flawless technique, explosive speed, and impeccable rhythm from the first hurdle to the finish line.

The historic run not only secured his place in athletics history but also transformed the outlook of the championship. With the world record now in his possession, Tharp advances to the final as the overwhelming favorite, carrying momentum that could make an already unforgettable weekend even more extraordinary.

For years, the 12.80 barrier appeared untouchable. On a stunning day at the NCAA Championships, Ja’Kobe Tharp proved otherwise, producing the kind of performance that reminds fans why sport remains so unpredictable. In a matter of seconds, he turned a routine qualifying round into a landmark moment that will be remembered for generations.

The world record no one saw coming is now a reality—and Ja’Kobe Tharp is the man who changed history.

A new chapter in middle-distance running may have begun in Oslo after American teenager Cooper Lutkenhaus produced one of the most remarkable performances of the season, narrowly defeating reigning Olympic champion Emmanuel Wanyonyi in a thrilling men's 800m contest at the Diamond League meeting.

The 17-year-old sensation shocked a world-class field by crossing the finish line first in a race that came down to the smallest of margins. After an intense battle over the final metres, Lutkenhaus held off Wanyonyi by just one hundredth of a second, producing a dramatic finish that left the packed stadium in disbelief.

From the opening lap, the pace was relentless as the leading contenders positioned themselves for a fierce showdown. As the athletes entered the home straight, Wanyonyi appeared poised to unleash his trademark finishing kick. However, Lutkenhaus refused to be intimidated, matching the Olympic champion stride for stride before producing a perfectly timed lean at the line to secure a historic victory.

The result marks a breakthrough moment for the young American, who continues to establish himself as one of the brightest talents in global athletics. Defeating an Olympic champion at a Diamond League event is a feat many athletes spend entire careers pursuing, yet Lutkenhaus achieved it before reaching adulthood.

For Wanyonyi, the narrow defeat does little to diminish his status as one of the world's premier 800m runners. The Kenyan once again demonstrated his exceptional class and competitiveness, pushing the race to a world-class standard and forcing his young rival to deliver the performance of a lifetime.

Beyond the result itself, the race offered a glimpse into what could become one of the sport's most exciting rivalries in the years ahead. With established stars and emerging talents now pushing each other to new heights, the men's 800m continues to evolve into one of athletics' most captivating events.

On a memorable night in Oslo, the spotlight belonged to Cooper Lutkenhaus. At just 17 years old, he stood toe-to-toe with an Olympic champion and emerged victorious, announcing himself to the athletics world in spectacular fashion.