Photo via Athletics Weekly

Why pacing a marathon is just risk management in trainers

Marathon success often hinges on pacing strategy rather than raw fitness, as evidenced by the high failure rate of runners who start too quickly. Research indicates that roughly 87 percent of participants experience a positive split, while only 1 to 8 percent of recreational athletes achieve a negative split.

Starting just 5 to 10 percent too fast can exhaust glycogen reserves prematurely, frequently causing runners to collapse between miles 18 and 22. Elite performance has shifted toward this disciplined approach, moving away from the pre-1988 trend of aggressive early speed.

Paula Radcliffe demonstrated this with her 2003 world record, and Eliud Kipchoge utilized similar controlled distribution during his sub-two-hour attempts to ensure a strong finish.

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