How Fit You Are
Maybe it’s the early spring weather that has stuck around the Midwest, but it’s starting to FEEL like racing season once again. While what “racing” means might be different (I’ll use the term “race” to signify actual races, time trials, and harder workout efforts for the rest of this post), and may be happening at different times and in different ways for different groups, a lot of athletes are starting to have more races and hard efforts appear on the horizon in the weeks and months to come.
The first race of the season, affectionately referred to by many as a “rust buster”, serves to get back into the physical and mental demands of racing, as well as getting an initial read on fitness. But in a season debut, especially after one where the time since the last race may be a year or more, how do you know how fast you should get out, when one of the goals of that race is to help you figure out how fast you should get out in future races?
Whether past months have provided an opportunity to build mileage, fitness, and consistency, or if it has been a rocky road with all the unknowns and changes around, the goal for how to execute your first race effort should be the same:
We want to find out how fit you are, not how fit you aren’t.
Getting out controlled the first 2 miles of your first 5k race of the season, then negative splitting to have the last mile be your fastest of the race is racing to find out how fit you are. On the other hand, coming through the first mile 10 seconds under your PR pace, then tiring & tying up in the last half of the race is racing to see how fit you aren’t.
One of those races tells us “If you were able to close strong the last 1/3rd of the race, there’s usually even more in the tank. We can be a little more intelligently aggressive in how we start out our next race.” The other says “Well, I guess today wasn’t the day for a 30 second PR. I know I should start out more controlled next time; I know what kind of pace isn’t sustainable for 5k, but I’m not really any closer to knowing what pace I can keep up.” (Plus, one type of racing feels WAY better than the alternative).
In addition to starting races on the comfy side of the edge being an effective strategy for those early season races where you are still looking to assess your fitness, starting controlled and closing strong is flat out a great way to race anytime in the season. For example, in every men’s 5k world record since 1977, the final 2k of the race has been faster than the first 2k.
The biggest difference between early season racing and chasing maximum performances at the peak of the season is a more precise awareness of your fitness level. There is more time to be gained with a strong close in the final stages of the race than there is lost by starting out under control. Before you step to the line of your first race, ask yourself if you are running to find out how fit you are or how fit you aren’t.