I have started running in the the dark as the sun is setting earlier. Just a basic sidewalk with street lamps every 50yards, so never totally dark. I am finding out that my easy chill pace is almost always :45-:60 slower at night than daylight, which I have no problem with because I am constantly trying to slow myself down.
Has anyone else noticed this or have a reason behind it???
You must be scared of tripping. Otherwise I see no reason for this happening. I run at all times of day and don’t see any variation, especially of that magnitude.
I have started running in the the dark as the sun is setting earlier. Just a basic sidewalk with street lamps every 50yards, so never totally dark. I am finding out that my easy chill pace is almost always :45-:60 slower at night than daylight, which I have no problem with because I am constantly trying to slow myself down.
Has anyone else noticed this or have a reason behind it???
Nope. I ran last night as the sun was setting in a park with very little light and I ran roughly the same pace as last week when it was in the light the whole time.
Same thing here. No idea why. I am not scared of stuff. LOL.
I used to run early mornings outside in a local park with no lights. Even though I used my own bright head lights but my pace was always slower by close to a minute. No idea why but I think me being uncomfortable in total darkness plus my brain not registering where I was going caused the slow down in pace even though I felt like I was running faster. Ended up moving my runs later.
From my experience. if you’re patient your pace will pick back up. I’ve spent several winters doing the vast majority of my runs in the absolute dark except for a head lamp and always found after a couple of weeks my pace would come right back to normal if not improve.
YMMV,
Hugh
Pretty much what every one else said I think. I’ve always assumed thats its some kind of subconscious adjustment to the fact that everything comes at you so much “faster” in the dark. Less time to see/perceive things and maybe your brain just thinks you’re running faster than you really are
I see that too, and have been blaming it on the long pants and heavier tops I wear when it is cold and dark in the AM.
Hard to tell correlation vs. causation here with the light, the fact that it is between racing seasons, and the heavier clothes.
You’d think somebody with a user name like “coyote” would be perfectly comfortable running in the dark…
Any difference in your level of effort? Heart rate data would be a useful tell.
You’d think somebody with a user name like “coyote” would be perfectly comfortable running in the dark…
Any difference in your level of effort? Heart rate data would be a useful tell.
No change in my perceived effort, I may have to strap on the HR monitor and see what those numbers say.
Optic Flow Influences Perceived Exertion During Cycling 
2012, 34, 444 – 456
Optic flow on the retina creates a perception of a person’s movement relative to their surroundings. This study investigated the effect of optic flow on perceived exertion during cycling. Fifteen participants completed a 20-km reference cycling time trail in the fastest possible time followed by three randomly counterbalanced 20-km cycling trials. Optic flow, via projected video footage of a cycling course, either represented actual speed (TTNORM) or was varied by –15% (TTSLOW) and +15% (TTFAST). During TTSLOW, power output and ratings of perceived exertion (RPE), measured every 4 km, were lower during TTSLOW compared with TTNORM and TTFAST. There were no differences in heart rate or cadence. This study is the first to show that different rates of optic flow influence perceived exertion during cycling, with slower optic flow being associated with lower RPE and higher power output.
Cliff notes…
I find the opposite actually. I like to do my tempo runs at Hains Point in DC at night during the winter. Very little light. I find it really easy to block everything else out and just focus on the run. Definitely don’t notice any slowing at different efforts.
For me I tend to run faster in the morning just because I have more energy and I’m rested. By the end of the day I’m just that much more tired and my pace tends to be slower. Not that the effort feels that much different. I never really noticed the difference until I did the majority of my running everyday in the early hours (which was just as dark as the evening hours actually). So my issue wasn’t as much the darkness (as you can get that on either end of the day) but the effects of being a little drained from daily life routine.
My 5k PR was during a night race. I don’t see any reason the darkness would be making you slower…possibly just the time of day. Your circadian rhythm (which syncs with daylight) sets certain times that your body is most capable - you could just be out during the down times.
Cliff notes…
Your Optic/Brain complex perceive speed differently in low light levels.
Which is exactly what I experience. I run at about the same time every night, and in the dark from the end of DST to the start of DST. I run on generally the same route, over the same surface (city streets with lots of varying low light sources - stoplights, street lights, headlights, and house lights). I am a very experienced runner and can very closely control my pace based on perceived exertion. The first week of “night” running my brain and eyes are fighting for who is correct with my pace. My brain, via my lungs and heart, is trying to tell me I’m running too slow, while my eyes are telling me I’m flying through the neighborhood.
Are you actually running at a different time of day, or simply that it’s now darker at the same times?
Would be very skeptical that the amount of sunlight had any meaningful difference in the real world, but would totally believe a difference in perceived effort based on the time of day due to caffeine, hydration, tiredness, fatigue, whether you’ve just been horizontal for 8 hours / how you’ve been sitting all day, etc. etc. etc.
I’m experiencing the same thing but I have cut back on my training, and I’m fatter.
Same thing. I feel like I’m really going fast when I’m running in the dark, but when I get to a point where I can check my time I’m 30-45 seconds slower per mile than what I think I’m running.
Zombies
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