What determines your natural running pace

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Each person has their own natural running pace. The life hacker understands what exactly affects him and whether it is worth always adhering to this pace in training.

Every runner has a natural pace. You automatically maintain this pace when you are going to run measuredly and calmly a given distance, for example, 8 kilometers, or run for a certain time, for example 45 minutes.

The natural pace changes depending on the physical form and even on the state of health on a particular day.

What determines a runner's natural pace? Exercise scientists have had little interest in this question, so the answer is not easy to find. However, there are several studies that clarify the situation at least a little.

Natural temp and lactic acid

In a 2001 study, scientists at the University of Udine in Italy tested the hypothesis that a runner's natural pace depends on blood lactic acid levels.

They assumed that the natural rate was primarily affected by the maximum steady state in blood lactate. That is, this is the fastest pace that a runner can maintain without accumulating lactic acid to a concentration at which fatigue is felt.

The study involved eight amateur runners. To begin with, we determined their lactate threshold - the maximum speed and heart rate before the level of lactic acid in the blood increased. The participants were then asked to run at their natural pace for an hour.

On average, all runners completed the hourly run with maximum steady state lactate.

The maximum steady state for lactate is the intensity of physical activity at which the maximum steady state is created between the release of lactic acid into the blood and its utilization.

And despite the fact that the running speed to achieve the maximum steady state in lactate was very different for all participants (some ran faster than others), the differences in the natural pace for an hour were minimal for all runners.

This led scientists to believe that besides the need to avoid the accumulation of lactic acid in the blood, there are other factors that affect the natural running speed.

The study by scientists from the University of Udina had two problems. First, there is no evidence that running pace is strictly limited by blood lactate levels. In short races, for example, runners often reach lactic acid levels above the lactate threshold.

If such a high concentration of lactic acid is acceptable in short races, why should there be severe lactate limits in other circumstances?

The second problem with the lactic acid hypothesis is that there is no mechanism in the human body by which lactic acid levels could affect running pace, even if it causes muscle fatigue.

If blood lactate levels regulate running pace through fatigue, then each athlete would always run at the same pace that maintains the correct lactic acid level. And as we know, the natural pace of running can even change with mood.

What the researchers at Udina University missed was the brain's role in regulating physical activity. After all, it is the brain that tells the muscles how much they should strain when performing any exercise.

So the real explanation for the natural rate phenomenon must be in the brain.

The natural pace is determined by two desires

This truth was discovered in another 2001 study by scientists at Wayne University in Nebraska.

Eighteen men and women were asked to exercise for 20 minutes at the appropriate intensity. There were three exercises in total: workout on a treadmill, exercise on a stationary bike, and climbing stairs on a stepper.

According to the results of the experiment, the physiological indicators after each exercise were different. On average, participants had a higher VO after exercise on a stationary bike.₂max than after stepping and treadmill workouts, and after stepping they had a higher heart rate than after pedaling and running.

Be that as it may, during all three exercises, they felt about the same. From this we can conclude that the natural pace of running and the preferred intensity of other exercises are not completely determined by physiology: sensations are also of great importance. Where are they born? In the brain.

Other studies have shown similar results. When participants were allowed to choose their intensity, they always exercised at the edge of the comfort zone with an eye on the duration of the training. Why this particular level?

Perhaps this is some kind of compromise between two desires that arise in the brain during training: to complete the task as quickly as possible and feel comfortable.

So, your natural running pace, be it 7, 6, or even 5 minutes per kilometer, shows your inner compromise and individual running ability.

But how does your natural pace affect the achievement of goals? Does it help improve your running fitness or does it hinder it?

Should you always run at a natural pace?

Your natural running pace roughly matches the intensity at which you remain in your fat-burning heart rate zone. So this pace is ideal for long runs for fat burning and endurance training.

Since a natural pace does not require as much energy as a fast pace, it can help you gradually increase the distance you run, as well as develop an economical running. So running at a natural pace is worth incorporating into your training plan.

However, some runners run too often, if not constantly, at a natural pace. It is worth incorporating high-intensity running into your workouts at least once a week. It will improve your fitness and complement the benefits of running at a natural pace.

You don't have to have grueling interval sessions and lactate threshold jogging. You can just diversify your workout a bit by combining natural-paced running and a small amount of acceleration.

Natural pace + acceleration

A good example is fartlek workout, in which you alternate short sprints (for example, six times 45 seconds over 5 kilometers) with measured jogging, which makes the workout easier and at the same time builds some speed and resistance to fatigue.

Fartlek runs are great for entry-level training when you're not ready for the grueling interval training just yet.

Another option is progressive running. This is a calm, measured run (usually 2 to 5 kilometers at a marathon or half marathon pace) with acceleration at the end.

This training method also works well at the basic stage if you are not yet ready for interval training, as well as at any time during training, when you have planned an “easy day”, but you feel great and want to increase the load a little.

Finally, progressive running is great for transitioning from long runs to peak training when you want to convert the overall endurance developed over long runs into competition endurance.

In addition to understanding when to use your natural running pace, it is also helpful to simply observe it. Noticing changes in your natural pace is the easiest and most motivating way to track your fitness level.

The more you progress, the faster your natural pace. You will run faster and faster while maintaining a sense of comfort. Just trust your senses and enjoy the results.