How To Maintain Pace Towards The End Of Your Runs

Before I break down what to do, I want to give you some context on how I think about training for a half or full marathon.⁣

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I look at training for a marathon like a math equation. It’s endurance plus strength equals marathon.⁣

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If you only run, then you will build up the endurance to run 26.2 miles, but you won’t build up the strength to run 26.2 miles.⁣

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And this is actually something that I experienced first hand.⁣

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When I ran my first marathon in 2019, the last several miles were a struggle. My pace per mile slowed down significantly by about two minutes a mile.⁣

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And it wasn’t because I was winded, out of breath, or out of shape, it was simply because my legs were tired and in so much pain.⁣

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And when your legs are tired and in pain it affects you mentally.⁣

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Our brains are designed for survival and so when you are in pain or in discomfort, our nervous system sends signals to our brain saying that we are in pain and that we need to get out of the situation.⁣

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So, in the case of running, we will naturally slow down, walk, or even stop altogether.⁣

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And if you are someone who wants to finish your race in a certain time, you don’t necessarily have the luxury to slow down.⁣

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You definitely can’t stop or walk.⁣

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So what do you do?⁣

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The simple answer is to get stronger.⁣

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You see if you get stronger then you will be able to delay the time of when your legs start to feel discomfort and/or pain.⁣

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My goal while training is to get so strong that it’s unreasonable for me to slow down until I cross the finish line.⁣

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You can see how strong you are by going for a run and looking at your splits.⁣

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If your pace starts to slow down by about 2 minutes per mile, then you know where your strength starts to wane.⁣

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And so what does this actually look like in practice?⁣

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Well, it means going to the gym and lifting weights.⁣

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Doing a weekly leg workout that consists of compound lifts and isolation exercises.⁣

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Here is a leg workout you can do every week.⁣

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Leg press⁣

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Dumbbell cannonball squats⁣

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Hamstring curls⁣

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Dumbbell walking lunges⁣

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Hip abduction machine⁣

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Standing calf raises⁣

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I like to do four sets 8 to 12 reps for each exercise.⁣

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Now you can do this workout and get little to no results.⁣

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The key with lifting weights is to experience the pain and discomfort that your body and mind do not want to experience.⁣

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Growth comes from being uncomfortable.⁣

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and so you have to use a weight that challenges you and makes you feel uncomfortable.⁣

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To give you a little tip, you want the last one to two reps per set to be hard. You should never finish a set and think that it was easy or that you could’ve done more reps.⁣

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Do this workout weekly and I promise you, you will build up the strength to maintain your pace for more miles.⁣

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If you got value out of this post, share it with your running buddies who are also trying to finish their runs faster.

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