Training for a stand-alone June marathon. Have read a bit about Yasso 800s. Basically, you run 10x800m intervals and your average time in minutes should correspond to your predicted marathon time in hours. eg if your average speed is 16 kph (10mph), each interval will take 3 mins, so marathon will take 3 hours.
Protocol from Runner’s World is that rest time should equal work time, but this just seems too easy. I can easily run 10x2m45s intervals with 2m45s rest, but pretty sure I can’t do a 2:45 marathon! (sub 3hrs is target).
Anyone else got any experience of this, especially rest periods between intervals?
I’ve read quite a bit about these things and the general consensus is that the estimated marathon finishing time based on your 800 time is a bunch of bunk. Most agree that doing the 800 intervals is a good thing, but it’s not going to predict your marathon finishing time. Certainly, it’s close in many cases, but there are just as many situations where it’s not.
Was told once this intersting estimate(worked for me’though maybe not for others).Take your best 10mile time, times 3 then minus thirty minutes for your estimate finish.
If my best 10 mile time is 1:10 (7-minute pace) and I multiply it by 3, that’s 3:30. Subtract 30 minutes and that’s 3:00 or 6:52 pace for the marathon. Doesn’t make sense.
As for Yasso’s, like any other “predictor” it’s going to work for some, but not others. It’s also only one component of training. I could train my VO2 system to run 10 x 2:45. However, if I don’t get in my long runs, tempo runs (LT), marathon pace (MP) runs, high weekly mileage, etc. then I’m not going to run 2:45. My guess is that if you can run 10 x 2:45 you can break 3:00 no problem. I ran 2:58 last fall and there’s no way I could do 10 x 2:45. However, I could do 3 x 5k at 6:40 pace with 800 jog. Work on boosting your LT and hone in on your MPand you’ll run sub-3.
Remember, Yasso 800s are not supposed to predict your marathon time. You should have a reasonable goal in mind for your race, and design your Yasso 800 workouts off of that. These workouts are designed to work ONE facet of marathon fitness. They should only be part of a well rounded marathon training program including long runs, long tempos, mile repeats, etc. While these 800s should produce a fairly hard workout if done correctly, they aren’t going to leave you wanting to scratch your eyes out like 25x400 will. You don’t have to be dragging yourself off the track to have had a quality workout.
I tried Yasoo 800’s when going for a 3:30 marathon, I was running 8-10 800’s at 3:15-3:25 , but I found them INCREDIBLY difficult. In fact, I stopped doing them. Like the other poster have said though, they aren’t supposed to ‘predict’ your marathon time, they are a workout you run to help you hit a target time.
Based on my experience, if you can run 10 at 2:45, AND are getting in a suitable long run(which is more key than the Yasso’s), and tempo run in the week, seems like sub-3:00 would be very doable.
Backup for my point on not having to die on the track: This is an exerpt by Wes Hobson on track workouts. He’s talking to triathletes, but this could just as easily be focused at marathoners:
contents Now that you are approaching race season, you are most likely going to the track once a week. The track is an excellent tool to check your pace, better associate your heart rate with pace and to train with others of greater or lesser ability than you.
When I was in high school, the objective of track sessions was to go all-out and “kill” ourselves. I carried this mentality into triathlon for years. Eventually, I got to the point that I dreaded going to the track. My philosophy changed in the mid-90s as I trained with other top pros such as Molina and Allen. Their mentality was not to go all-out, but to create the endurance and speed needed for triathlon.
It is rare that we run all-out in a triathlon for an extended period. In most races, you need to pace yourself as you are tired after swimming and biking. At the end of the track session, you should feel like you could do one more interval. This thinking allowed me to have a quicker recovery for future workouts. It also made me enjoy the track session more. Sure it is fun to go hard sometimes and it is necessary, but it isn’t needed all of the time.
You can read more at Joe Friel’s Ultrafit site under the monthly e-Tips.
Exactly…right on all counts. These are intended to be a part of a complete training regimen, and they assume that you’re doing your long runs, base miles, etc. If you do everything else THEN do some 800s, they should give a fairly accurate description of what you can expect in a race. If you can’t do 10X2:30, you’re probably not fast enough (in several areas) to run a 2:30 marathon. Fast enough can mean any of a number of things, but one of them will be likely to be defficient, and that will keep you from your goal.