Pacing webchat with Martin Yelling

Great advice there Martin - thanks for being our expert today. Hope you've enjoyed it!

@15West See my previous answer.  It really depends on what you want to get out of doing the race.  If it’s a pacing exercise then be disciplined and stick to your targets.  If you fancy a smash up and want to test yourself then go for it. With 4 weeks to go pre marathon it’s a good chance to have a blow out and test your form but keep your eye on the bigger prize.  

Thanks Katie.  Hope it helps.  I'll answer the outstanding ones and post the responses below. Thanks for participating in the webchat everyone.If you have any further questions or want more info I will be holding a seminar following the Race your Pace half marathon organised by Human Race on 16 Feb at at Dorney Lake, Eton at 1pm. Participants will also have a chance to ask questions to get bespoke advice. To book your place go to:http://humanrace.co.uk/events/run/pace-your-race-seminar

@knightrider.  No not really. There is no sliding scale as more things than miles run impact on marathon performance, eg genetics, ability. That said though, there will be some correlation between miles run and marathon performance. It’s all about getting the balance right for a long period of time.  You are best to try and string together many weeks of 50miles than a few stop start week of 70miles.  There does come a point at which ‘junk miles’ simply are not benefitting performance.  This is different for everyone.  There’s little point in running miles for miles sake when the quality of the key workouts suffers.  Without doubt, you’ve got to run miles for a marathon, and within reason, the more the better – so long as more miles isn't to the detriment of the best miles you run.

@slimboy with increasing distance beyond marathon pacing becomes increasingly important.  The principles are the same as for running your previous marathons – it should feel easy at the start!  If it doesn’t those final 7miles post marathon distance are going to hurt!  I’d be looking to aim at holding a consistent pace from the off that is slower than your marathon PB time by some 30-45sec per mile. An ultra is about the distance not the time! Enjoy.

@howmanyminutes I use a combination of half marathon race results and long run times.  Double your half marathon time in minutes and add 10% for a guide. The best indication comes from a long run.  If you can't hold your target marathon pace for the final 6miles of an 18mile run (where you run the first 12 45sec per mile slower than MP), then you’ll struggle to hold that on race day.

Thanks, Martin.  Commitement shouldn't be a problem, but do you know where I can buy some luck? 

Great interview on this week's Marathon Talk by the way.  

@RobMoyse Heart rate can be a great indicator of pace assuming that you understand your own heart rate!  Obviously heart rates very for different people at different paces and all heart rates are relative.  I try and encourage runners to get a knowledge and understanding of what their hear rate is at different paces and for them to build a profile of how it feels.  You are right though, lots of other factors affect heart rate (illness, nerves etc) and so it’s really only a guide.

@iancharlton.  Tricky weather makes working to pace very difficult!  You are best to work to effort level and try and keep that consistent.  Of course, running with a massive tail wind means it’ll fee easier but you’ll be running faster.  Running into a head wind and you’ll be going slower and it’ll probably feel harder despite you trying to keep it even.  Try breaking up the race into bigger sections and going for a with wind / against wind average.

@tomhayhoe.  I don't know enough about the use of heart rate variability to comment with any real authority on it's use to accuarately measure fatigue.  I do like athletes to really understand from a holistic stand how they really feel in order to evaulate fatigue levels.  If the iathlete helps them get a better of that through HRV than that must be good thing! 

Hi, A bit late I know but a question about miles and counting.

Is it better mentally to count up from 1 to 26 at the miles or to count down once you get past 13?

Gary - Your not going to be able to help counting upwards as there will almost certainly be very prominant mile markers at every single mile.  I would also say, personally, that if at 14 miles, you're already thinking 'only 12.2 to go' then you're in serious trouble.  I broke my last Marathon up into 4 6 mile / 10k (ish) 'blocks', which I had specific targets for (I ran each 10k faster than the previous one).  That leaves you an extra 2 miles that you can cope with when you get there, depending on how you feel!

Thanks Charlie.  It's my first marathon and just trying to get the mental bit right.

Splitting into 4 sounds like a good idea.  I'll give it a go on a training run ; maybe 18 split into 3.