Running Pace

Running pace: minutes per kilometre and target paces

Pace is how long you take to run one kilometre, and it's the unit everyone quotes on the road and the track: pace = time / distance in min/km. Example: 55 min for 10 km → 55/10 = 5:30/km. To get velocity instead, v(km/h) = 60 / pace(min/km), so 5:00/km works out to 12 km/h and 4:00/km to 15 km/h. Target paces for marathon: sub-3 h ≤ 4:15/km, sub-3:30 ≤ 4:58/km, sub-4 h ≤ 5:41/km, sub-5 h ≤ 7:06/km. By training zone, the paces split out like this: easy sits at 60-75% HRmax (you can still chat), tempo / threshold at 85-88% (uncomfortable but controlled), VO2max intervals at 95-100% (3-6 min repeats), and R-pace for the short, sharp stuff. Apps like Strava, Garmin Connect, Polar Flow and Coros read it off GPS for you while you run.

Applications: periodised training, Daniels VDOT, Pfitzinger

It underpins periodised training, where each session carries its own target pace (easy, marathon, threshold, interval, repetition). The Daniels VDOT method leans on it too, pulling every training pace from one recent race result. And in plans like Pfitzinger 18/55, the mid-week threshold runs and the marathon-pace long runs only work if you hit the numbers. It's also how you stack runners against each other, and the figure you chase on race day.

FAQ

Why min/km and not km/h? At running speeds (5-20 km/h), min/km simply reads finer. A 5-10 s swing per km actually matters to a runner, and that detail gets lost in km/h.

Does GPS pace match a track measurement? More or less. Consumer GPS drifts ±2-5% per km. On a calibrated track, switch to lap mode or measure by hand.

Should my easy pace stay constant? No. Run it at whatever pace still lets you hold a conversation, even if that number drifts by 30-60 s/km with heat, how you slept, and the fatigue you're carrying.

How big a pace difference between easy and tempo? Figure on 45-75 s/km. If the gap looks small, your easy runs are too quick.