Class 3

Nothing will make you feel better, and do better, as a runner than finding your own best pace and then holding steady at it from start to finish. Today’s run was meant to test your pacing. The closer you came to 12 or 24 minutes, the better you paced this run.

Starting today, I award a “prize” (extra credit) for the runners who distinguish themselves the most that day. The first of those was a two-way tie.

Thursday will bring another easy day. Again you’ll go 30 minutes in whatever way you choose – walk, walk/run or run – but the route will differ from Tuesday’s. In fact, I pick a different course almost every day.

TODAY’S 12 MINUTES

(with actual time and comparison of second half with first; target was to come as close to 12:00 as possible)

Brianna – 11:23 (-37 sec. for 2^nd half)

Asilia – 12:07 (+7 sec.) best pacer, tie; earning extra credit

Jie – 14:07 (+2:07)

TODAY’S EVEN-PACE 24 MINUTES

(with actual time and comparison of second half with first; target was to come as close to 24:00 as possible)

Megan – 22:04 (-1:56 for 2^nd half)

Vadim – 21:49 (-2:11)

Kate – 23:22 (-38 sec.)

Becky – 22:31 (-1:29)

Nathaniel – 22:04 (-1:56)

Guangyu – 23:53 (-7 sec.) best pacer, tie; earning extra credit

LESSON 3: YOUR PACE

Pace has two meanings, one mathematical and the other physical. The first – a key figure for any runner to know – is a calculation of your minutes/seconds per mile. Divide the total time by the distance (remembering to convert seconds to tenths of a minute; an 8:30 mile is 8.5 minutes). The second meaning is even more important: how you find your best pace. On most runs, this means pacing yourself comfortably – neither too fast nor too slow. There are several ways to arrive at that pace. The most technical is to wear a heart-rate monitor and to run between 70 and 80 percent of maximum pulse. Another is to know your maximum speed for that distance, then add one to two minutes per mile. The simplest: Listen to your breathing; if you aren’t gasping for air and can talk while you run, your pace is not too fast. Your effort should stay constant through the run, but your pace-per-mile seldom does. Expect the pace to pick up as you warm up.