The miracle marathon workout known as “Yasso 800s”
It’s peak training season for that fall marathon, and hence a good time to review the once-revolutionary (two decades ago) but now classic Yasso 800s workout. If you do little more than a few long runs and a few Yasso 800 sessions, you’ll find yourself in fine mettle for a solid marathon.
I call the workout “once revolutionary” because it didn’t come from a physiology lab or an Olympic marathon champion. It was invented by a solid, blue-collar runner guy who just happened to find himself working at the Runner’s World home office in the 1990s (because he lived nearby).
Bart Yasso is beloved by all for his combined work ethic and happy nature, but no one ever considered him a math genius. Not until he explained Yasso 800s in the early 2000s. “If you can run 10 Yasso 800s in a certain number of minutes and seconds, you can run a marathon in the same number of hours and minutes.” Wait! What? That sounds crazy.
Two decades later, thousands of runners can confirm that Yasso 800s come pretty darn close to working as advertised. That’s more than enough reason to include them in a marathon buildup. Here Mario Fraoli reviews Yasso 800s, noting (as very few others have managed to deduce) that a Yasso 800 is close to your 5K race pace. And 5K race pace just happens to be one of the best, most efficient training paces for distance runners.
Those who like to go full monty on Yasso 800s will gradually increase from 4 x 800 to 10 x 800 over a period of several months. That’s how Bart did them himself. Like I said, he’s a hard-working, blue-collar guy.
I’m inclined to think that “less is more” when it comes to repeated hard sessions like Yasso 800s.
When I did them, I would often go from 4 x 800 to 6 x 800 to 8 x 800. Then I’d call it quits while I was still ahead of the game. But if you want to Be Like Bart, you can go all in.
With good luck, you might end up as successful as Bart, who got his marathon PR down to 2:40. More at The Morning Shakeout.
Everything you thought you knew about marathon pacing is wrong
If there’s one rule of marathon racing that everyone knows, it’s this one: Run even pace, or even negative splits if you can.
However, there’s a problem with this “rule.” It’s based mainly on results from world-record holders and other super elites. They often get all the attention when it comes to performance metrics, and this has certainly been the case for pacing studies.
But there are vast differences between a 2-hour marathon runner and a 4-plus hour runner, and it’s possible that those differences extend to best pacing practices. In fact, according to a new, big-data study of more than 4 million marathons, the best way for recreational marathoners to pace their 26.2-mile races is not with even pace or negative splits.
Instead, aim for a “controlled fade.” In terms of pacing, this means you should aim for a first-half that’s about 1.5% faster than the pace of your goal finish time. If you’re aiming for a 4:00 finish, run the first half in about 1:58:12.
Absolutely, positively do not run that first half more than 3% faster than goal pace. If you go out faster than 1:56:24 for the first 13.1 miles, the chances that you “hit the wall” hard will increase substantially.
Conclusion: “Slightly positive splits of 0.5% to 3% appear to offer recreational runners a pacing sweet spot.”
This recommendation comes from Barry Smyth, an Irish mathematician (and recent Boston Marathon qualifier), who has been granted access to Strava data collected from 2005 to 2019. He found that 89% of all marathons have been run with positive splits (a faster first half than second half).
That has been interpreted as bad news in the past. Now, it’s beginning to look like good news. As long as you keep your positive split under control.
Smyth also uncovered that the closer you come to even pacing, the better. More than 80% of all marathon PRs were achieved by runners “with a more even split” than their non-PR races.
Similar to previous studies, Smyth found evidence that female marathoners are less likely than males to start too fast and finish too slow. Their conservative approach doesn’t necessarily mean that they are reaching their potential, however. He suggests: “Perhaps there is some room for improvement for female runners by tweaking their pacing to be slightly less conservative.”
Why is the “negative splits” approach not optimal for marathon pacing? Smyth believes that negative splitters, almost by definition, are leaving “too much on the table” at the end of their marathons. If you’re finishing faster than you started, it seems reasonable to conclude that you didn’t drain yourself to the 100% level as a perfect race would require. Whereas positive splitters, who are slowing towards the end, have fully emptied the tank.
Last April in London, Kelvin Kiptum ran the second 13.1 miles in 59:45. That earned him an impressive victory in the second-fastest marathon ever (2:01:25 vs Eliud Kipchoge’s world record 2:01:09.) It also seems to imply that he can go faster. More at Towards Data Science (behind Medium.com paywall).
Listen up! Here are the 3 best paces for your speedwork
Exercise scientists exist to measure things. That’s what all the expensive lab equipment is for. The thing about many runner measurements, however, is that they represent a mixed bag. Some believe: “If you can’t measure it, you can’t improve it.” That’s why we like to know the pace of our key workouts.
Others counter with: “What gets measured gets managed, even if it’s pointless or actually harmful.” If you’ve got too much digital input swirling around in your head, you can easily lose track of what’s really important.
Take peak running velocity and critical speed, two measures that physiologists like to banter about at their cocktail parties. Both require a hard, fast effort. Is one more productive than the other?
Not according to a new study by Brazilian researchers who pitted the two against each other for five weeks in a group of 22 male distance runners. Both groups improved, with little difference in the degree of their improvement. Conclusion: “These findings give further support to the notion that both variables obtained on the track are valid tools to prescribed training in recreational runners.” So don’t bother going to a lab to get these things measured.
But do complete occasional workouts with a modest number of intervals at your 1-mile pace (run 200s at that speed), your 5K pace (run 800s) and your 10K pace (run 1600s). You don’t have to do more than a couple of repeats, or what feels comfortably hard. If you simply “stay in touch” with these faster speeds, you’ll get 98 % of the benefit you might gain from any more precise and physiologically-determined paces. More at The J of Strength & Conditioning Research.
What goes up … gets faster
Whenever I get the chance, which isn’t often enough, I enjoy running stadium steps. (I don’t live close to any large stadiums.) Others seem to find the repetitions boring and tortuous, but I like working them into an easy run. I might do a few miles, then loop through a stadium for some quick step sprints, then head out for a few more relaxed miles. Etc.
Step-ups aren’t exactly the same, but you can do them at home, and they’re a great strength and balance builder. Here’s an article claiming they will “improve uphill running, boost power, and prevent injuries.” While no evidence is offered, I do consider step-ups a great exercise for runners.
They are, after all, a one-leg-at-a-time movement, just like running. More at Canadian Running.
In this short video, big-name health book author and podcaster Peter Attia shows exactly how he does step ups. He considers them a “foundational” exercise for the lower legs, and is careful to load the front leg rather than popping off the rear leg. He also emphasizes the importance of great control on the eccentric down-step. As you get more comfortable with step-ups, you can increase the resistance and your potential benefits by doing them on a higher step or while holding dumb bells in your hand. Good stuff. More at YouTube/Peter Attia MD.
7 simple steps to increased training and faster races
At some point, to improve endurance performance, athletes have to increase the volume (mileage) of their weekly training. There are various ways to do this, but the simplest is probably to add one more day of running.
If you’re running 3 days a week now, move up to 4. If you’re running 5 days, go for 6. This sounds simple, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Nor is it something you should do without thinking about the repercussions.
That’s the value of this article. It will help you evaluate the key questions, and consider if you want to add another day. The outlined approach is thoughtful, gradually progressive, and includes points I had never given much thought to.
For example, here’s the advice in step 3 of 7: On your extra day of running, begin with a distance just half as long as your typical day’s distance. “If you usually run 5 miles a day, run 2.5 miles on your extra day.” That’s a smart, conservative approach. More at Marathon Handbook.
Yes, some supplements actually boost performance. Here they are
From time to time, different research groups look into the bottomless pool of supplements widely available on our unregulated marketplaces. Do any of them work? This group from U.S. and Canadian universities chose to provide “current-day and evidence-based information regarding dietary supplements that support resistance training adaptations or acutely enhance strength-power or endurance performance.”
Their picks: For strength and power, consider “higher protein diets readily achieved through animal-based protein supplements” as well as creatine monohydrate. Also “peri exercise caffeine,” meaning caffeine just before, during, or after exercise.
For endurance: Peri-exercise caffeine again, nitrate-containing supplements (like beet products), and sodium bicarbonate. “Further, beta-alanine supplementation can enhance high-intensity endurance exercise efforts.” More at Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition & Metabolic Care.
New Zealand literature professor, writer, and runner par excellence Roger Robinson keeps setting new age-group records despite his 83 years, two knee replacements, and now surgery for a cancerous lung tumor.
After reading the below article, I sent him an email: “I knew you must be doping.” He replied, “Busted,” and attached a photo of a New Zealand black currant plant.
The new paper found that acute (just in the hours or days before racing) consumption of New Zealand black currant extract could improve 5K race times by an average of 38 seconds. This effect took place “without altering physiological or metabolic responses to exercise.” In other words, the researchers can’t explain why the extract worked. More at International J of Sports Nutrition & Exercise Metabolism.
Lastly, the folks at Supersapiens, promoters of continuous glucose monitors, published an amusing and informative article titled “Why you should play with your food.” You never heard this from your mother, who was wise in some of her nutrition counsel but not on all fronts.
But it makes sense in this context: Only you can figure out what fuels and fluids work best in your endurance efforts. To find out, you’ll need to “play” around a bit. One 2019 study found that “potato puree” was equal to a commercial gel as an endurance fuel. In 2023, many athletes are pushing their total in-race carbohydrate consumption higher than ever before.
But that’s not by any means a guaranteed strategy. Sometimes it works for those who can tolerate high carb loads (and have practiced it in training). For others, it can produce rather disastrous results. The only way to figure it out is to “play with your food.” More at Supersapiens.
How the right pair of socks can keep you cool. (Honest!)
It’s not every day that I come across a study about about socks. So when I do, as is the case here, the study scores high on my weekly must-investigate list. This one is about socks and their contribution to thermoregulation. Oh, boy.
The bottom line:I learned a few things about socks and hot feet, and didn’t totally absorb some of the detailed explanations about sock construction. For example, foot temperature can increase by 5 to 10 degrees Centigrade while running on a hot day--that’s a lot.
Also, socks are constructed in “waves” of fabric with different distances between the waves. I can visualize that, but I’m not sure I totally understand it.
In this experiment, researchers asked a group of trail runners to wear different socks during a hot, hilly 14K trail race. The socks differed in the space between those fabric waves. The runners had their foot temperatures measured before the race started, and after its completion. They also rated how the socks felt while running in them.
Result: There was no difference in measured foot temperature between socks with 1mm of fabric separation vs 2mm of separation. However, the runners perceived the former as being cooler. Since we know that “feel” can directly affect performance, the thinner socks would get my vote.
I also learned that if you ever volunteer for a foot temperature study, you won’t be allowed to drink any hot or cold beverages beforehand. Apparently, those drinks have an impact that extends all the way to your tippity toes. If you’re deeply into socks, you can read the free full text here at Life.
All hail Courtney Dauwalter, undisputed Queen of the ultras
RLRH isn’t a newsletter about elite runners, because the other 99.9 percent of us are different from the elites, and need to look elsewhere for the training and health/fitness advice most likely to benefit us. That said, we should always celebrate the consistently great ones. They are achieving on the world platform what we all want to achieve in our less-celebrated but equally important lives.
That means it’s time to give Courtney Dauwalter a standing ovation. This summer she won three of the world’s hardest ultramarathon trail races, all 100 miles or longer, and did so in record-breaking fashion. Western States. Hardrock. And, last Saturday, Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB). Dauwalter has clearly gone where no female ultra star has gone before, and it might be a long time before someone dislodges her records. (As has been the case, on the male side of the coin, for the unfathomable Yiannis Kouros.)
You can now find hundreds of articles, podcasts, videos, and more on Dauwalter. Have at it!. I’ll simply link to an excellent New York Times story (with glorious photography) that was published just before her Ultra Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) win on Saturday. There’s so much to enjoy about Dauwalter’s approach to the sport, especially her refusal to hire a bigtime coach, follow any particular formulas, or define herself in the rigid way some ultra runners think they must engage the sport.
“In general, I am pretty tired,” said Dauwalter, whose motto when things get tough in a race is “This is fine” and “Be brave and believe.” She said running all three races was not the plan at first, but that she just had to try it. “I am so curious what will happen and excited to test myself.”
So many pearls: “I try and go into every week really open to whatever happens so that I will actually tune into my body and listen to it,” said Dauwalter, who wears a running watch but does not post her workouts on popular running apps like Strava, as many ultrarunners do. “If I go into a week thinking it is going to be a really big mileage week or I have all these grand ideas about it, then I find it harder to listen to my body and actually respond to what it is telling me.” Her big mileage weeks are often 140 miles.
If you read this article or others about Dauwalter and the “pain cave,” you might feel better prepared for your next endurance race. It turns out that when the going gets tough, the tough imagine themselves with hammer and chisel in hand. They just attack that damn cave until they reach the bright sunlight on the other side. At least that’s the Dauwalter approach.
Courtney Dauwalter, you’re ridiculous. But you’re also an inspiration and role model for all of us. Thanks. Personally, I’m going to adopt your mantra: Be curious. Be brave. And believe. More at New York Times, I Run Far, and many other places.
SHORT STUFF you don’t want to miss
>>> Rule your plate: 10 weight loss rules for runners
>>>Training for life: Hard exercise training of kids 12 to 14 has no bad heart effects. (And might lower cancer risk later in life.)
GREAT QUOTES make great training partners
"The real purpose of running isn't to win a race; it's to test the limits of the human heart."
--Bill Bowerman, legendary Univ of Oregon track coach and inventor of “waffle sole” running shoes
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading. See you again next week. Amby