Marathon run

(reduced to figures)

1896 Marathon start

Despite the unrealistic belief of Pheidippides route from Marathon battlefield to Athens in 490BC that supports its legend, marathon run has written its own history. Neither the first modern Olympic games in 1896 were actually the first, as they had already been held since 1859. But the marathon race event did start in 1896 in Greece. Though the current distance of 42.195 Km was agreed in memory of Dorando Pietri's race in 1908 Olympics, that first one was originally of 40 Km, and then Spiridon Louis its first ever finisher, not Pheidippides, in 2h58'50".

Your performance in such a race is determined by concepts like VO2max or the lactate threshold.

1. VO2max is the aerobic (moderate intensity for long intervals) capacity, the maximum amount of oxygen you can consume, in ml/Kg body weight/min. That is, as you make more effort, your body increases its need of oxygen, but it just can hold up to an upper limit.

After training your body regenerates muscles and the number of cells increase, thus raising your rate of oxygen uptake level. For instance interval training.

You can estimate your VO2max peak according to Jack Daniels and Jimmy Gilbert formula (Oxygen Power. Performance Tables for Distance Runners, 1979):

VO2max = (-4.60 + 0.182258 * velocity + 0.000104 * velocity^2) / (0.8 + 0.1894393 * e^(-0.012778 * time) + 0.2989558 * e^(-0.1932605 * time))

where velocity is in meters/minute, and time in minutes as well. For instance, Spiridon Louis VO2max, according to his 40 Km marathon finish time, would be at 50.5 ml/Kg/min.

In 1979, Jack Daniels and Jimmy Gilbert published "Oxygen Power. Performance Tables for Distance Runners". This series of tables predicted all-out racing times for virtually every racing distance. Each performance time in the table is related to a VO2max index, called VDOT. The tables were generated using two regression equations: (1) relating oxygen consumption with velocity, and (2) predicting the amount of time one can run at a given percentage of VO2max. By combining these two equations, substituting VDOT indices, and looking for convergence for Newton-Raphson curve fitting analysis, one can then mathematically match up a predictable racing time expected at a given distance for someone having a particular VDOT index. The validity of these tables is strongly supported by looking at the known VO2max scores of some world record holders and their respective record times.

Inversely, from a known VO2max, racing and training paces can be infered.

2. Lactate threshold is the anaerobic (high intensity in a short interval) level at which it (lactate, or lactic acid) is faster produced by muscles than metabolized, thus starts accumulating in the blood. It is usually between 90-95% of your maximum heart rate. It can also be increased with the appropriate workout, like farleks.

Better training will improve your limits. And that also means better programmed, plus a balanced diet.

Slower run paces (i.e. at 75% of your speed in VO2max) metabolize fat better than faster ones. Quick efforts need quicker energy availability, that is glycogens. Glycogen produces glucose, which reacting with oxygen produces carbon dioxide plus water, and energy. When no more carbohydrates are available, fat is metabolized instead. A slower process, driving to decreasing performance.

Only a small proportion of your workout should be run at fast paces. Anaerobic does not use oxigen, therefore it is less efficient, and performance decreases faster.

Panathinaikon stadium