Glossary
Threshold pace
The hardest pace you could hold for roughly 1 hour. For most runners it sits between 10-mile and half-marathon race pace.
What it is
The fastest pace you could sustain for about an hour. Physiologically it is the effort at which lactate stops clearing as fast as you make it.
You do not need a lab to find it. Two field tests get close.
| Test | What you do | Your threshold |
|---|---|---|
| 30-minute time trial | run 30 min hard, alone | average pace of the last 20 min |
| 20-minute test | run 20 min hard | average pace, then subtract about 5% |
| Recent race | 10 miles to half marathon | close to race pace |
What it is not
It is not one precise number. The research uses several different definitions of threshold, and they do not all land in the same place. Faude and colleagues counted more than twenty in the literature.
It is also not a pace you should train at often. Most plans use it once a week at most.
What moves it
- Training at and just below it. The most responsive quality in running.
- Heat. Threshold pace slows in warm conditions like every other pace.
- Freshness. A tired test gives you a slow number, not a true one.
- How you ran the test. Alone, on a flat route, is the only honest way.
When to ignore it
Ignore a threshold figure from a watch that guessed it. Many devices estimate it from a run you did not intend as a test.
Ignore last season's number after a long break. Retest before you build a plan on it.
Sources
- Faude O, Kindermann W, Meyer T. Lactate threshold concepts: how valid are they? Sports Med 39(6):469-490, 2009 primary
- Jones AM. The physiology of the world record holder for the women marathon. Int J Sports Sci Coach 1(2):101-116, 2006 primary
- Daniels J. Daniels Running Formula, 3rd edition — threshold at 83-88% of VO2max reference