Six Fifty-Two

Author's Note: This article was published in Marathon & Beyond in 1999. I am republishing it here so that everyone can see how goofy I used to be. Enjoy.

Six Fifty-Two

Six Minutes and Fifty-Two Seconds had been burned into my psyche for eleven years. That is the pace per mile that I would need in order to break three hours in the marathon.

Why three hours? Mostly because it was my Boston Marathon qualifying time. But also because for me, it was my Mount Everest, Four Minute Mile and First Step on the Moon. And finally because it had simply eluded me for so long.

I had come close: 3:04 in 1978; 3:10 just two months before. I always seemed to hit The Wall around the twenty mile mark.

It was warm and sunny for the Revco Cleveland Marathon that day in May, 1989. For this race, I had followed a modified version Jeff Galloway’s training plan, which included one mile intervals and long runs of over 26 miles. I had also managed to lose a few pounds.

As the race started, I began running those 6:52 miles. The half way mark came up so fast it surprised me. Exactly one hour, thirty minutes!

At 20 miles, I began to feel those doubts and fears; but it was now or never. This time, I actually picked my pace up a bit.

Those last 6.2 miles are etched into my memory forever. As each one passed, I grew more confident. Yes, they were getting tougher. And I still wasn’t entirely sure I could keep that pace up. But I felt like I was flying; like my feet weren’t even touching the ground.

At 25 miles, I was still flying. But only when I could actually see the finish a quarter mile ahead did I really relax. At that point everything changed to slow motion. I was going to make it and nothing could stop me. The spectators were cheering wildly as I sprinted past others for whom the distance and heat had taken a greater toll. I had a strong urge to do a cartwheel (this was way before such displays became fashionable among world record breakers) just before the finish line, but decided that it was too risky. I just ran through the finish line like everyone else. My time was 2:59:16. After 11 long years, I had made my goal.

A few weeks later, a friend called to tell me that Boston had relaxed their qualifying standards. All I needed now was 3:15. The 3:10 I had done earlier in the year had me qualified! But I still had my Mount Everest, my Four Minute Mile, my First Walk on the Moon.

Close Encounters of the 3 Hour Kind:

Sub-Three Hour Marathon Hits and Misses

Of Dan Horvath’s 42 marathons, 11 have been near misses (3:01 to 3:05), and 7 were successfully run in two hours, fifty-nine minutes or two hours, fifty-eight minutes. The others were slower, and were run either as training runs or as a poorly executed attempt that ended in a crash and burn. Here is a list of those 18 that were hits or near misses:

Event Date Time

Revco Cleveland Marathon, Cleveland, OH May 14, 1978 3 Hours, 4 Minutes

Revco Cleveland Marathon, Cleveland, OH May 21, 1989 2 Hours, 59 Minutes

Detroit Free Press Marathon, Detroit, MI October 15, 1989 3 Hours, 1 Minute

Detroit Free Press Marathon, Detroit, MI October 20, 1991 3 Hours, 5 Minutes

Scotty Hanton Marathon, Port Huron, MI September 5, 1992 2 Hours, 59 Minutes

Detroit Free Press Marathon, Detroit, MI October 18, 1992 3 Hours, 3 Minutes

Scotty Hanton Marathon, Port Huron, MI September 4, 1993 3 Hours, 1 Minute

Detroit Free Press Marathon, Detroit, MI October 17, 1993 3 Hours, 1 Minute

Ohio/Michigan Marathon, Toledo, OH July 10, 1994 2 Hours, 58 Minutes

Boston Marathon, Boston, MA April 17, 1995 3 Hours, 4 Minutes

Scotty Hanton Marathon, Port Huron, MI September 3, 1995 2 Hours, 59 Minutes

Detroit Free Press Marathon, Detroit, MI October 15, 1995 2 Hours, 59 Minutes

Ohio/Michigan Marathon, Toledo, OH July 14, 1996 2 Hours, 58 Minutes

Toe to Tow Marathon, Cleveland, OH October 14, 1996 2 Hours, 59 Minutes

Boston, Boston Marathon, MA April 21, 1997 3 Hours, 5 Minutes

Ohio/Michigan Marathon, Toledo, OH July 13, 1997 3 Hours, 5 Minutes

Scotty Hanton Marathon, Port Huron, MI August 31, 1998 3 Hours, 4 Minutes

Chicago Marathon, Chicago, IL October 11, 1998 3 Hours, 5 Minutes

How to Break the Three Hour Barrier

In the midst of the second running boom, average and median times for runners completing marathons have soared. In the first running boom of the seventies and early eighties, most of the runners in big-city marathons would have finished by about three and a half hours. In the late nineties, however, as the participation has skyrocketed, so have the times. Nowadays, the average runner in most marathons is still on the roads four and a half hours into the event.

There is nothing wrong with running just to finish, or otherwise moving at a slow pace. In fact, running just to finish should be the goal of most first time marathoners. Some however, still do aspire to certain time goals. Of course those time goals will vary by individuals, but the ones that end in zeros often become popular yardsticks.

Three hours is tough. To run those 26 consecutive six fifty-two miles is quite a task for most non-elite runners. Yet it can be done. All that’s required is the right training and mental attitude. Nice race conditions are helpful as well. Here is what worked for me. It may or may not work for others.

Soul Searching

The first question to ask yourself is, why do you want to do this? Of course there are plenty of other running-related goals out there. Why this one? For me, it had been something just beyond my reach for many years, and then it evolved into a personal standard of excellence. But a reason for one runner’s goal isn’t necessarily the same for another’s.

The second question is, how much are you willing to sacrifice? For any goal, there is a price to pay. In terms of time, it cost me about 8 to 10 hours per week strictly running, plus 2 to 5 more hours on related activities such as weight lifting, stretching and driving to and from other races. In terms of wear and tear on my body from hard training, it’s difficult to say. I was frequently tired and sore, and I had my share of overuse injuries, but I would have to say that the benefits of hard training outweigh the costs. Each runner with any kind of goal needs to determine the amount of time and effort they are prepared to endure.

Training Plans

Like many runners, I looked for a recipe to follow. I only asked that someone just tell me exactly what to do in order to crack 3 hours, and I would meet or exceed that. Several sources provided detailed training plans that just didn’t work out for me in the early going. It took some time to realize that a cookie-cutter, recipe type training plan just wasn’t going to work. I learned that I needed to develop my own, by borrowing the best ideas from the different sources, and tailoring them into something practical and doable for my lifestyle and running capability.

Tempo runs? Mile Intervals? Hill training? Long runs? Marathon pace runs? You probably need to do them all. Variety, and the proper mix of training runs are the key to any successful training program. In my own case, there is very little that I didn’t do. And although some methods and techniques work better than others, it’s the whole, the sum total, that’s truly important. And the most important facet of any training plan is simply to have a plan.

Here then, is a list of the training elements that have been essential to my own success. How you use them, and how you incorporate them into your own plans will depend on you.

Injury prevention – Minor injuries will slow you down and put you behind in your training, while major ones will take you out of the running entirely. Fortunately, there are as many ways to prevent injuries as there are to get injured. The ones that usually work the best are primarily rest, stretching and strength training, but the proper combination of all of the training elements is the most important consideration.

Build-up – You need to be in shape to begin with. Most training plans are based on 12 to 16 week build-up periods. I have been most successful by staying in near marathon shape year-round, with the three to four month increase in intensity/speed prior to the event.

Long runs – These are the cornerstone of any marathon training program. My approach, however, is different from most. I do them weekly, year-round. I consider any run over 18 miles to be a “long run”. Three months or so prior to a race, however, I will start to run still longer long runs. The typical twenty milers will become twenty-four to twenty-six milers. It helps to schedule some long runs that alternate between a very long 25 one week, followed by an easier 20 the next. The pace of these runs is extremely important. I learned that last year when I ran all of them too fast and wondered why I was tired all the time. Don’t leave your best runs in training; take it easy for your long runs. An 8 to 8:30 per mile pace is about right for a three-hour marathoner. For confidence and pacing practice, you might want to try running the last 4 to 5 miles of one or two of your long runs at that magical 6:52 pace. Don’t, however, try this any more than that!

“Other” races – It helps many marathoners to run other races during their build-up. Some will even use another marathon as a training run. Although it may help to schedule some rest around some of these other races, you need to keep an attitude that you’re just “training through” them. Don’t lose focus of your ultimate goal.

Rest – Every guide to marathon training stresses the need to build rest into your program. Many recommend a cycle of three hard weeks followed by one easy one. This regimen has worked for me as well. I always plan one or two easy days (read: completely off) per week, one easy week (1/2 to 2/3 normal mileage) per month, and one easy month (say, January) per year.

Hills – For some reason I don’t mind running around an oval over and over for my speed workouts, but I do mind running up and down the same hill, over and over. Maybe it’s just me, but one way to avoid this boredom/tedium is to find a very hilly course to run on, and to do it regularly. Regardless of how you do your hill workouts, you do need to do them. I’ve only been successful at the sub-3 game where I had incorporate weekly hill runs for the preceding 3 to 4 months.

Tempo runs – There are plenty of excellent guides to tempo running. One of the ones that influenced me was by Jack Daniels. I like do a three to four mile run at my current half-marathon pace – usually around 6:30 to 6:40 per mile. I try to fit these in about ever other week, although a race (anywhere from 5K to 15K) will also work. Tempo runs are best for periods of time when you’re not racing.

Mile intervals – I learned this trick from Galloway’s Book on Running. For a sub-three hour marathon, the recommendation was to gradually work up to 12 repeats of 6:25 miles. My approach has been to work up to eight or nine repeats fairly fast, and then gradually increase the speed of each one. By the time it’s ready for the taper, I might be doing about them at a slightly faster pace, maybe 6:15 to 6:20. I have also done them weekly, usually mid-week, unless I had a marathon pace run scheduled for the same week.

Marathon pace runs – These are training runs done at marathon pace. After a warm up of a few miles, you should run 4 to 12 miles at your goal pace of 6:52 or so. These should never be done more often than every two weeks, and very little other speedwork should be planned for the same week.

400 to 800 meter repeats – These may have some benefits for marathon runners, but perhaps not as much as the mile intervals, hills and tempo runs. It’s important to schedule these at least two days away from other speedwork efforts.

Strength training – Push-ups and stomach crunches need to be done fairly often: maybe 4 to 5 times per week. Weight training should be done two or three times per week. Light weights (of course) with 3 sets of 8 to 15 repetitions works for most runners. I feel that strength training helps the leg muscles as much as the upper body. I use extremely light weights, however, for my leg curls, leg extensions and squats. I do a variety of upper body weight exercises too, but I concentrate most on arm curls and the bench press.

Stretching – As we marathoners age, this element becomes more and more important. I concentrate mostly on the hamstrings, quads, IT Band and calves. There is plenty of information available on the types of stretches that you can do, and when you should do them. I do some stretching after most hard runs, and then more in the evenings.

Taper – This last element should not necessarily be considered the least. Although you should cut back on your total mileage for at least two weeks leading up to your marathon, you should not necessarily decrease your intensity. A good rule of thumb that has worked for me is to cut mileage back to about 50 to 60 percent for those last two weeks, and to do the same with my speedwork. In other words, I might come down from 65 miles per week to about 35, and from 9 total miles of speedwork to about 5.

Execution (of the race plan)

Yes, you need a race plan. And you need to stick to it in order to be successful. For me, this was extremely simple: run each mile in six minutes, fifty-two seconds. Sometimes it might be necessary to adjust for a slightly slower start, but my plans invariably involved running even splits. All of my successful sub-three hour efforts came with even to slightly negative splits. All of my near-misses were the result of positive splits. And yours should too. Research has shown that running even, or slightly negative splits yields the fastest times at all distances.

Poorly executed marathon race plans almost always take the form of starting out too fast. And if you’ve trained properly, a seven or so minute pace for the first few miles will feel like you’re barely moving. Resist that temptation to pick it up; patience is the most common virtue among successful marathoners!

Finally, recognize that the real race always begins at mile 20. That’s time when the miles have really begun to take their toll, and if you’re mentally and physically tough enough to pick your tempo up at this point, you’ll be successful.