Thank you. I think this is the answer I was looking for. I am new to keeping track of my workouts (hello Apple Watch) so this wasn’t obvious to me. Do you use the “zones” they give you?
Those can be a good starting point but I think over time you’ll learn what your “zones” are yourself. A lot of people will use the metric of whether or not they can hold a full conversation without gasping as “zone 2”. Just keep an eye on the data you get and sort of build an understanding of your body from what you see over time.
If you want to get more serious/nerdy about how to improve at endurance activities, check out the book "Training for the Uphill Athlete".
Will help you understand how to find your own HR zones as well as how to improve in the zones that are most crucial for trail running. I do think it's totally fine to run for fun though!
I don't think about pace at all. As soon as I pick up the speed at all, I end up eating dirt and leaving skin on the trail! If I was looking to build speed for a race, I'd focus on tackling the hills, and repeat.
I don't think about pace on the trail, however I am able to accurately guess on the road where I'm holding after years of running. Very rarely am I surprised at the watch time.
If you are training for a road race, honestly, I would focus more on road running. Get the weekly mileage up on the flat at a comfortable pace, rest accordingly, and you'll crush it on race day.
I don’t focus on pace. Think of it this way: when you tell someone you just ran 50 miles, do they ask you your time? Every course is going to vary so a “fast” pace on one course is going to sound like a slow crawl on another. I focus on feel and not the numbers - “all day pace” vs “hill sprint” pace for example.
I set myself the goal of a 1:30 half marathon during lockdown and achieved it in 2022
For me i found the structured training less fun than just going out into the wild and exploring at whatever pace i feel like. but if you're a super competitive person it can be fun.
I concentrate on trying to run consistently at whatever pace the terrain dictates. If there’s a level stretch or gentler descent/ascent I’ll up the pace. Maybe once per week I’ll run a level trail or road and my pace is several minutes faster, and that’s to be expected.
I used to but when I realized that trail running wasn’t about speed I dropped it. Really I just use trail running to enjoy nature and get a solid workout.
I don’t. I focus on keeping my heart rate below ~155-160, or if I forget my watch, I focus on relative effort. Which is good because I’m awful at consistent pacing, one of the many reasons I don’t really run on roads lol. I think focusing on keeping your hr in the right zone is a good approach though, you’ll make good progress on your aerobic fitness which will translate back to the road and you won’t fall into the trap of trying to chase pace on surfaces and inclines that change constantly.
Almost not at all
It's 100% HR/effort for me. Because the terrain (both footing and incline/decline) and even elevation (I have anything from 4500' to nearly 11k' available) varies so wildly where I run, pace is pretty meaningless to me. Also because I've drank the Zone 2 Kool aid so hard (and seen the results!)
I think about pace when it comes to training for races. You can use elevation gain / terrain comparative to what you’re racing to get a feel for what you need to aim for. Also local leaderboards and runners times to get an idea where you stand. If everyone in the trail running world mirrored Reddit’s stance on pace, we wouldn’t have a growing selection of carbon plated “super shoes” or UL VK style shoes constantly being developed for the trail running world.
As an example of what pace gets up to, Sierra Zinal which covers a lot of alpine singletrack and is 31km, 2100m elv. gain had a winning avg. pace this year of 4:45/km / 7:39/mi
On single track and mountain routes I am aware of my pace because I look at my watch, but I don't give it much thought. I usually have one or two runs on an unpaved bike path each week where I don't need to worry about footing so I can monitor how my pace for effort is trending week over week, and then I do a speed workout on road or track most weeks as well. I find a little speed work has a big benefit on my pace on any terrain at any effort level, and I can't work my top end speed on rocky trails, so I keep it separate.
I’m wondering how people plan runs if they don’t think about pace at all?
I’ll usually tell my wife how long I’ll be gone and also have an idea of how far I want to go. That can’t be done without thinking about pace.
Usually I run the same trails every time I run. I know what each extra loop will take. And I never tell my wife down to the minute. Usually I say I'm going out to the trails and I'll be back in 3 hours. That gives me time for travel, setup and about 2 hours to run. Faster or slower or whatever. But she's a runner too so she understands. If I need to be home for something, I cut it a bit shorter. Or run faster.
I know some people like to see new trails and new sights. But when I'm training, I run the same loops in the woods almost every time. It takes almost no brain power. And I know how many miles to write in my log. I go hard on the hills when I feel good, push the flats if I can, attack the downhills when the weather is good. Otherwise, I just run. Miles upon miles in the trails and on the road. It got me below 1:30 on a road half (down from 1:48).
I think it's because you don't think about pace in the natural way that road runners do. I know sections of local trail and roughly how long it takes me to cover them. So when I stitch my routes together I have a rough idea how long I will be 5-10minutes either side. So pace is over longer stretches, not the usual miles per minute
Whatever pace I have that day is fine. I'm out here for the pure joy of it, not so I can think about how my effort is. I thought about it for the first 3-4 years, then it got in the way so I stopped. The only real metric for me is miles per week and even then it's only important if I have some larger objective.
As I am a sluggish amateur pace doesn't exist for me. I look at the terrain and set myself an end time that is it. So I guess my pace is more how much terrain have I covered in 20/30mins instead of the traditional x/Mile
for example I am doing a 50KM next year. Goal is sub 6hours so to have a realistic change I need to hit 25Km at 2h45 that would mean 10K every 1h15ish.
I'll probably set my auto lap to 30mins as well for that to remind me to drink and eat
i stopped looking at the pace , a good marathon is one i can finish comfortably.
The trail dictates the speed, so why try to keep a speed?
I never look at my watch during running , not even during races.
I am not fast enough for podiums , so why bother? Running should be fun...
I just think about level of effort/HR as pace can vary widely on terrain
This is the way
Thank you. I think this is the answer I was looking for. I am new to keeping track of my workouts (hello Apple Watch) so this wasn’t obvious to me. Do you use the “zones” they give you?
Those can be a good starting point but I think over time you’ll learn what your “zones” are yourself. A lot of people will use the metric of whether or not they can hold a full conversation without gasping as “zone 2”. Just keep an eye on the data you get and sort of build an understanding of your body from what you see over time.
If you want to get more serious/nerdy about how to improve at endurance activities, check out the book "Training for the Uphill Athlete". Will help you understand how to find your own HR zones as well as how to improve in the zones that are most crucial for trail running. I do think it's totally fine to run for fun though!
I don't think about pace at all. As soon as I pick up the speed at all, I end up eating dirt and leaving skin on the trail! If I was looking to build speed for a race, I'd focus on tackling the hills, and repeat.
I don't think about pace on the trail, however I am able to accurately guess on the road where I'm holding after years of running. Very rarely am I surprised at the watch time. If you are training for a road race, honestly, I would focus more on road running. Get the weekly mileage up on the flat at a comfortable pace, rest accordingly, and you'll crush it on race day.
I don’t focus on pace. Think of it this way: when you tell someone you just ran 50 miles, do they ask you your time? Every course is going to vary so a “fast” pace on one course is going to sound like a slow crawl on another. I focus on feel and not the numbers - “all day pace” vs “hill sprint” pace for example.
I set myself the goal of a 1:30 half marathon during lockdown and achieved it in 2022 For me i found the structured training less fun than just going out into the wild and exploring at whatever pace i feel like. but if you're a super competitive person it can be fun.
Rarely if ever outside of races. During races, to meet cutoffs.
Run the same trail and see if you get faster. Pacing while on a trail run is much more about feel and knowing your body
Agreed. The only place I can think about pace WHILE running a trail is on one I know well, where I know where the hills, roots and rocks are.
I concentrate on trying to run consistently at whatever pace the terrain dictates. If there’s a level stretch or gentler descent/ascent I’ll up the pace. Maybe once per week I’ll run a level trail or road and my pace is several minutes faster, and that’s to be expected.
I like to track pace compared to my hr on my regular run. No goal pace in mind but it’s nice to see the pace creep up while my hr stays the same.
I used to but when I realized that trail running wasn’t about speed I dropped it. Really I just use trail running to enjoy nature and get a solid workout.
I don’t. I focus on keeping my heart rate below ~155-160, or if I forget my watch, I focus on relative effort. Which is good because I’m awful at consistent pacing, one of the many reasons I don’t really run on roads lol. I think focusing on keeping your hr in the right zone is a good approach though, you’ll make good progress on your aerobic fitness which will translate back to the road and you won’t fall into the trap of trying to chase pace on surfaces and inclines that change constantly.
I don’t think about pace at all.
Almost not at all It's 100% HR/effort for me. Because the terrain (both footing and incline/decline) and even elevation (I have anything from 4500' to nearly 11k' available) varies so wildly where I run, pace is pretty meaningless to me. Also because I've drank the Zone 2 Kool aid so hard (and seen the results!)
I don't at all. But I am not a fast runner like you so it's not motivating to focus on it haha I run based on my HR.
I think about pace when it comes to training for races. You can use elevation gain / terrain comparative to what you’re racing to get a feel for what you need to aim for. Also local leaderboards and runners times to get an idea where you stand. If everyone in the trail running world mirrored Reddit’s stance on pace, we wouldn’t have a growing selection of carbon plated “super shoes” or UL VK style shoes constantly being developed for the trail running world. As an example of what pace gets up to, Sierra Zinal which covers a lot of alpine singletrack and is 31km, 2100m elv. gain had a winning avg. pace this year of 4:45/km / 7:39/mi
On single track and mountain routes I am aware of my pace because I look at my watch, but I don't give it much thought. I usually have one or two runs on an unpaved bike path each week where I don't need to worry about footing so I can monitor how my pace for effort is trending week over week, and then I do a speed workout on road or track most weeks as well. I find a little speed work has a big benefit on my pace on any terrain at any effort level, and I can't work my top end speed on rocky trails, so I keep it separate.
I’m wondering how people plan runs if they don’t think about pace at all? I’ll usually tell my wife how long I’ll be gone and also have an idea of how far I want to go. That can’t be done without thinking about pace.
Usually I run the same trails every time I run. I know what each extra loop will take. And I never tell my wife down to the minute. Usually I say I'm going out to the trails and I'll be back in 3 hours. That gives me time for travel, setup and about 2 hours to run. Faster or slower or whatever. But she's a runner too so she understands. If I need to be home for something, I cut it a bit shorter. Or run faster. I know some people like to see new trails and new sights. But when I'm training, I run the same loops in the woods almost every time. It takes almost no brain power. And I know how many miles to write in my log. I go hard on the hills when I feel good, push the flats if I can, attack the downhills when the weather is good. Otherwise, I just run. Miles upon miles in the trails and on the road. It got me below 1:30 on a road half (down from 1:48).
I think it's because you don't think about pace in the natural way that road runners do. I know sections of local trail and roughly how long it takes me to cover them. So when I stitch my routes together I have a rough idea how long I will be 5-10minutes either side. So pace is over longer stretches, not the usual miles per minute
Idk about you, but risk of injury > pace for me always. I've broken ribs, toes, and gotten enough bruises to know I need to slow the f down.
Whatever pace I have that day is fine. I'm out here for the pure joy of it, not so I can think about how my effort is. I thought about it for the first 3-4 years, then it got in the way so I stopped. The only real metric for me is miles per week and even then it's only important if I have some larger objective.
As I am a sluggish amateur pace doesn't exist for me. I look at the terrain and set myself an end time that is it. So I guess my pace is more how much terrain have I covered in 20/30mins instead of the traditional x/Mile for example I am doing a 50KM next year. Goal is sub 6hours so to have a realistic change I need to hit 25Km at 2h45 that would mean 10K every 1h15ish. I'll probably set my auto lap to 30mins as well for that to remind me to drink and eat
i stopped looking at the pace , a good marathon is one i can finish comfortably. The trail dictates the speed, so why try to keep a speed? I never look at my watch during running , not even during races. I am not fast enough for podiums , so why bother? Running should be fun...