I would love to be able to shuffle a 4:45 mile...

I recommend doing your best to keep HR within the guidelines. Just like you downshift on the bike to stay in zoine 2 even at high cadence, learning to do this on the run as well is critical. The adjustment is awkward, but learn to run slowly at high turnover. Keep the pushoff very soft, like spinning higjh cadence in a 39 x 21 gear on the bike. Ken

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Ken Mierke
Head Coach, Fitness Concepts
http://www.Fitness-Concepts.com
Author, The Triathlete's Guide to Run Training

Jaretj. Speed equals stride lengthxRPM. To run fast, you have to do both well, but there is a limitation to how hard you can push off (kick) within the laws of physics for a person's body type (otherwise there would be no limitation to the long jump world record).

Just cause you are small, it does not mean that you can't have long stide length. Since you are lighter, you can spend more time flying in the air. This works well for short distance. When I run beside my friend Stefan Kusurelis, we have the same stride length and same 90 RPM. Stefan looks like he is shuffling (which he is at 6'6") and I look like I am flying (which I am to keep up with his shuffle since I am only 5'6"). Long stride length is OK as long as you are not overstriding (feet land under hips)

This works up to half Ironman where I have enough spring in my stride to keep up with tall dudes, both of us running at 90 RPM at the same stride length (I just use more spring since I am lighter). At Ironman, when we all lose that spring in the stride, the tall guy still shuffles OK, while the short guy has zero stride length.

So if you are short and want to run a fast Ironman, you need to find a way to either maintain stride length (close to impossbile), or jack up RPM from 90 to 96, which is the diff between a 3:45 and a 3:30 Ironman run split !

If you watch the fastest Kenyan women at Boston, all around 5 ft tall, they are all running at 96 RPM for >2:20 marathon speed. The men are around 88 to 90, usually around 8 inches taller and then nearly kick the back of their shoulders with their heels with the hige kick.

Thanks Dev

That's what I was thinking about stride length and cadence but being an inexperienced runner I needed confirmation.

Still looking for my 1:45 half. I can do it in training but not in a HIM yet.

jaretj