Learning how to pace a marathon is the best way to ensure you get the most out of your training and achieve the result you want.
What is Marathon Pacing?
Marathon pacing is essentially working out what time you are aiming for and then calculating what you need to do to achieve it.
Be realistic with your time; take into account how your training has been going and the time you achieved in any previous races.
If it's your first time doing a marathon, you might not know what goal time to set and might want to just focus on crossing the finish line - that is a great target to set!
However, we do recommend having a rough idea of a goal and pace to help you mentally have something to focus on during the run.
To work out your pace, break down your goal time to work out your per km pace. For example:
If you are aiming for 3 hours 30 mins, then this is an average pace of 4:58 min/km. Hitting the pace to the exact second is tricky, so I'd recommend setting a pace range of 3-4s either side of your target pace.
For the 3 hours 30 mins runner, this would be a pace range of 4:55-5:03 per km.
Aiming for a sub-3 hours finish? A 3 hour marathon pace is 4:15 per km (6:51 per mile), or a range of 4:11-4:18 per km.
If you're aiming for 4 hours, your marathon pace should be of 5:41 per km (9:09 per mile).
Another thing worth noting is that even with all the marathon pace prep in the world, you still need to allow for on the day adjustments due to weather or terrain to help you avoid fatigue or disappointment.
How to Find Your Marathon Pace
The best marathon pacing strategy is to break down the entire distance into sections and focus on each section at a time.
One strategy that we recommend is introducing a negative split. A negative split is when you plan to run the second half of your marathon slightly faster than the first half. This will help you finish strong, rather than struggling to push through that last stretch.
Here is an example of how Runna recommend breaking down a marathon.
1. The first half of your marathon: from 0 to 21 km (13 miles)
If you have picked the right marathon pacing strategy, the first half of the race should feel comfortable and easy. Now is the time to stick to a slower pace to ensure you have plenty left in the tank - there is a long way to go yet!
A key thing for the first part of your marathon is to keep on top of your fuel. This is something you should have practiced in your marathon training plan, but we advise a gel every 30-35minutes (60g of carbs every hour).
2. From half way to the 36 km (22miles) mark
Okay, it’s go time! The half way point is the real start of the marathon! This is the part that will start to test you both mentally and physically, and this is where having a strong marathon pace strategy will prove to be crucial.
Focus on the now and take it one km at a time. Visualising smaller goals, such as checkpoints or upcoming landmarks, can also help keep you mentally motivated and engaged.
Keep checking in with yourself and if you're feeling good, then you can gradually pick up your pace but only by around 5 seconds per km.
3. The final push: the last 6 km (4 miles)
It’s the last leg, and now is the time to tap into those reserves!
Keep ticking off the kilometres and give it everything you have got; now is the time to focus on achieving that goal time you set. When it comes to the final kilometre, use the crowds to get you through and sprint across that finish line!
