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Lance Armstrong demonstrates textbook pacing at the Boston Marathon.

April '08

It was interesting to watch Lance Armstrong running the last couple of miles in last Monday's Boston Marathon. The images of Lance competing were on one hand familiar; his face a picture of concentration, his movements focused and rhythmic - a model of general efficiency. Less familiar of course was seeing his buffed upper body, baggy shorts, and an excited entourage of fellow competitors who though pretty good runners, were not exactly world class.

Lance was clearly pushing the limits of the fitness that he brought to the table that day and in the process provided us with an example of smart pacing for optimal performance. Check out Lance's splits for the 5k (3.1miles) segments - a generally consistent effort and with a slight build, or stronger as the race got longer.

Lance's individual 5k breakdown:

1st 13.1 miles (21k) 1:26:52
2nd 13.1 miles (21k) 1:24:06
Kilometer 0-5 (3.1m) 20:11
Kilometer 6-10 20:58
Kilometer 11-15 20:42
Kilometer 16-20 20:49
Kilometer 21-25 19:28
Kilometer 26-30 19:51
Kilometer 31-35 20:01
Kilometer 36-40 19:55

Where we can accurately measure our effort (watts) rather than attempt to gauge effort on a less reliable metric such as heart rate, Lance's pacing example can be applied in our various workouts for a better workout experience.

Pacing guidelines for M2 workouts:

  • Pace/watts largely consistent within and interval with a slight build trend
  • Pace/watts consistent from one interval to the next
  • Shorter intervals should see higher pace/watts for the same effort

Observations and Tips:

  • In class my observation is that riders tend to push too hard early in the interval.
  • Marking intervals and running an average is a great way to observe your pacing, and correct if necessary.
  • A given work effort will almost always feel much better where your pace is even and slightly building as described above - your average should trend up slightly during an interval.
  • Absent a powermeter when out on the roads, the tendency to push too hard is even more exaggerated, especially on hills.
  • Remember that what might seem easy in the present will feel different (harder) later.

Smart Training.