Pacing
There are various definitions of pacing. Kevin Thompson in Pacing says it is the “distribution of energy during exercise.” Another view is that it is the action of leading a pack. Outside of competitive running, it is often seen as doing something slow and steady to avoid overexertion. When racing, I have found pacing describes the “sweet spot” where at the end of the race I am truly spent knowing I have left most of what I had in me that day on the course. It may correlate with time, but I’m sure we all find that our rate of perceived effort, or RPE, is affected as much by the conditions of the day, the terrain of the course, how much sleep we’ve been getting, etc., in addition to the clicks of the clock.
Race strategy comes into play too, and a fair bit of study has been done examining the most effective way to race. Some of this is by convention. For example, Olympic and national-level 5,000 and 10,000 meter races on the track tend to start slower, progress to negative splits as the race unfolds, with the last 400 to 800 meters usually at a near sprint. Place is the goal in these races more than time, resulting in the top finishers often just fractions of a second apart.
Most of us will never be in that type of race. Yet, in regional races we generally keep an eye on our competition and do our best to stay close, perhaps aiming to brush by them down the stretch. Sometimes this allows us to forget how we’re feeling. (It is certainly easier to push ourselves in a race or group intervals than when pounding out repeats solo on a track!) In any event, after each race we have an opportunity to take stock of what happened. Did we empty the tank or leave something to spare? Did we enjoy the ride or did we drag from mid-race, barely holding on? What were our splits and what affected them – hills, wind, etc.?
There are various theories about pacing. Tim Noakes suggests the brain acts as the Central Governor, coordinating all the aspects of maximal output, such that we are literally saved from pushing ourselves through death’s door. While Noakes’ version of pacing is at one extreme, there is definitely a bodily “intelligence” overseeing our peak effort. The fact that very few people die when they are racing is evidence that “something” is at play to reign us in.
While the debate goes on about optimal pacing and the constraints governing that, there is comparatively little research on how age affects pacing. For sure, we slow down as a result of a decline in many known parameters, as summarized nicely by ChatGPT: VO2max, muscle strength, running economy, joint mobility, metabolic efficiency, and the rate of which motor units can be recruited and the subsequent rate of firing. This is not a welcomed reminder, but this stuff is happening!
So, that suggests to me two things: One, some of these changes can be mitigated and we best do what we can to minimize the natural decline; two, as “experiments of one,” various parameters will affect some of us more than others. Meaning, this puts us on notice that we do need to be testing ourselves. If, for example, in younger years we ran our best races with positive splits, maybe we need to consider negative splits, giving our bodies more time to respond to the demands placed on it. Maybe we need to reconsider the type of races we do – perhaps we should retire from marathons and focus on shorter distances that require less of our aging bodies? Or maybe we employ a longer taper before a race so our reserves can top off. There are no simple answers here. We need to figure it out by trial and error. And this may change from year to year.
Whatever our age or length of a race, the overall goal of pacing remains the same: run a given distance in the shortest amount of time, taking all the variables into account. Related, and as I age I find this is of increasing importance, I need to truly enjoy and look forward to the training. My passion for racing stems from the willingness to put in the work. It may be less work or a different type of training than 20 years ago, but if the “payoff” is to be ready for lining up at an important race raring to mix it up with fellow competitors, then it’s worth it.