I recently suggested to a friend that she go running with her.
You can guess three times what I got in response:
You are much faster than me!
Quite apart from the fact that the stamina or the pace – i.e. the running pace – play no role at all here.
Who should determine what is fast and what is slow anyway?
Who says you have to run 5 kilometers in 25 minutes and 10 kilometers in under an hour to be a good runner?
And who the hell determines which pace is right ?!
There is simply no right or wrong here.
You alone define your own running speed.
Don’t let yourself be blinded by the pace bragging of other runners.
Everyone as he likes and above all everyone as he can.
And since there is still some confusion about pace, this article clears up any doubts about running speed.
What does the pace say?
Step frequency, GA1 training, pace.
I used to think that running was easy.
Lace up your shoes and hit the streets.
It still works that way, of course, but more and more technical terms pop up the deeper you dig into the subject.
The pace is nothing other than your speed when running.
It is calculated from the quotient of the elapsed time and the distance covered.
So if you run 10 kilometers in 47 minutes, you had an average running speed of 4:42 min / km on this route.
Expressed as a formula:
47 minutes / 10 kilometers = 4.7 min
And 0.7 minutes x 60 seconds = 42 seconds (result in 4:42 min / km)
While there is nothing wrong with knowing how to find your running speed, all running watches and apps these days track your pace.
What is a good cut when running?
In his unofficial world record, Eliud Kipchoge ran the marathon in 1:59:40 hours.
That is a pace of 2:50 min / km.
So Kipchoge ran at an average speed of 21.2 km / h.
There is no doubt: this speed is superhuman and for most amateur athletes not even 100 meters can be run.
This pace is even faster than some people cycle on their bike.
For comparison:
To run a marathon in under 3 hours, you need to maintain a pace of 4:15 min / km.
And those who crack the 3-hour mark in the marathon can count themselves to the top third of the running society.
You can read about what kind of training effort that means and how difficult it is in my Breaking3 project.
But what is the good pace now?
There can only be one answer to that.
The pace is individual for everyone and of course strongly dependent on experience, age, fitness level and also on the talent of the runner.
When I started running after my active football career, my average pace was 6:30 min / km.
Regular running and varied training sessions will improve your pace very quickly.
Read more: The top 15 reasons to run regularly
Overview of the targeted competition times and the resulting pace for the slow endurance run
How can I improve my pace?
After a broken tibia in 2011, I gave up my career as a soccer player.
Nevertheless, I wanted to stay active in sports.
That’s why I bought my first real running shoes and invested in a Nike sensor to track my running route and performance.
On my very first 1.61 kilometer run, I had an average pace of 9:22 min / km.
A year later I only needed 30 minutes for 5 kilometers.
And again a year later I ran the 10 kilometers in 50 minutes.
As you can see, you increase your speed almost automatically while running.
You achieve your successes relatively quickly while jogging.
You just have to train regularly and always work on your basic endurance.
As soon as you are in a good condition, you can dare to do interval training.
This not only makes you faster, you also optimize your running economy at the same time.
You can also improve your pace with regular strength and stabilization training.
Because only with strong muscles can you keep your running technique upright over a longer period of time.
Strength training not only strengthens your muscles, but also improves your running economy
You’re guaranteed not to get any faster this way
There should be.
People who want everything and, above all, must have everything.
Best of all without much effort and already yesterday.
You won’t get very far in life with such an attitude.
And such an attitude is pure poison in endurance sports.
If you really don’t want to make any progress while running, then you shouldn’t make the following mistakes in running training!
Read more: As a runner, you should avoid these 9 mistakes
Run as fast as you can
They’re the hardliners of running.
They run past you with bright red heads, puffing and snorting.
True to the motto: the faster the better.
This means that you have completed the training faster, but running fast is not efficient in the long run.
Because the optimal development of the condition plays a fundamental role in endurance training, as it represents the basis of all performance-determining skills.
A runner without well-trained basic endurance can do an infinite amount of speed training – but it does not make them significantly faster.
The better you have worked on your foundation, the more successfully you can deal with your speed in further training.
Your body also has to get used to the stress of running.
While your cardiovascular system adapts after a few days, your tendons and muscles need significantly longer to be resilient.
So take it easy.
Run as much as you can
A lot helps a lot.
Another misconception in endurance sports.
It may be a lot of fun to extend your running streak day after day.
In terms of sports medicine, however, this running trend is complete nonsense:
- the constant stress weakens your immune system
- without sufficient regeneration you will not achieve any performance development
- there is a risk of overload damage to your musculoskeletal system
Sure, streak running can of course also increase motivation.
However, there are far better reasons to motivate yourself to run.
For a beginner runner, 2-3 training units per week are initially completely sufficient.
The number of runs should not be increased by more than 10 percent per week in order to prevent overuse damage.
If you have trained long enough in the basic endurance range, you can also start with interval training.
Read more: 18 tips that are guaranteed to increase your motivation to run
Don’t run regularly
There are many benefits to running regularly.
As with any other sport, you will only get better at running if you train continuously.
The stimulus must take place regularly and over a longer period of time in order to achieve an increase in performance.
Similar or the same stimuli have to act on your body again and again at the correct intervals.
If this is not the case, either no adjustment or a negative adjustment takes place.
Then there is a risk of loss of performance.
Because if there are no regular and permanent stress stimuli, your body will regress.
A period of 4-6 weeks with regular training loads is required for permanent adjustment.
You alone determine the correct pace
How fast does a good jogger run?
How long do you run at 5 kilometers?
And what’s a good cut when running?
All of these are questions that cannot be answered across the board.
Because the pace is as different as the runners themselves.
And what seems slow to one, may already be a brisk pace for another.
But you shouldn’t let that deter you or impress you.
While some runners train hard to improve their performance, other athletes have been gifted with running talent.
But as long as you enjoy running, running pace should be of secondary importance.
You are always faster than those who stayed with their butts on the couch!