Abstract
Much of the literature on marathon pacing is based on flat courses often neglecting the impact of terrain. Runners are often advised to run an even effort throughout a marathon, but it is difficult to establish optimal paces for a hilly race like the Boston Marathon. PURPOSE: This study created a model for effectively pacing the Boston Marathon intending to optimize individual performance. METHODS: 121 runners (72 female, 49 male qualifiers, ages 18-30) entered in the 2023 Boston Marathon participated. Finish times and split times were taken from the official Boston Marathon website, with entry times collected via a survey. Pacing was quantified using split ratios, defined as the ratio of speed over each split to the overall speed, to analyze how runners’ speeds varied throughout the course. A split ratio over 1 meant they ran faster than their overall speed during that split. We also calculated performance ratio which is a ratio of their overall time to their entry time. A successful race was defined as completing the marathon within 105% of the entry time and maintaining a pace within 95% of their overall speed during the final 7 km. The performance ratio of the runners included in the model and those excluded were compared using t test (α = 0.05). RESULTS: Of the 121 runners in this study 61 were excluded based on not meeting the criteria. The excluded group was significantly further away from their entry time (p<0.001). The excluded runners were on average over 13 minutes slower than their entry time and the included runners were one minute faster than their entry time. Runners who were unsuccessful started the race much faster than their overall speed and were unable to sustain that intensity later in the race and slowed down. Upon reaching the hills at the 21-mile mark, runners who started too fast experienced a significant slowdown, averaging over seven percent slower than their overall speed for the remainder of the race. CONCLUSION: Proper pacing, particularly avoiding a fast start, is crucial for optimal performance in hilly marathons like Boston. Runners that finished slower than their entry time typically began the race much faster than their overall speed and decreased speed dramatically in the final stages.
Recommended Citation
VanKeersbilck, Luke; Steele, Jared; Nelson, William Bradley; and Hunter, Iain
(2024)
"Race Smart, Finish Strong: Pacing Secrets for the Boston Marathon,"
International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 14:
Iss.
4, Article 158.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol14/iss4/158
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