Runners love the thought of predicting a marathon ending time and therefore the lengthy standing legend of the Yasso 800’s. A easy, but robust, velocity exercise designed by the famend runner and author Bart Yasso. He formulated an idea the place operating ten 800-meter intervals would possibly foretell one’s marathon ending time.
This distinctive coaching idea has develop into a cornerstone for a lot of marathon hopefuls trying to increase their velocity and endurance.
The fantastic thing about this train lies in its uncomplicated nature, making it helpful to runners of all ranges. Yasso 800s provide a structured but versatile coaching methodology that you just an use to progress over the course of a coaching cycle.
Let’s discover out extra about this basic exercise and the way folks use it to find out a possible marathon efficiency.
*As a operating coach, I’ve to remind you that that is however one in every of many instruments and that even Bart himself, a very long time editor at Runner’s World and excessive efficiency athlete, has mentioned it’s not an ideal correlation of race day efficiency.
What Are Yasso 800s?
Coined by famend runner and coach Bart Yasso, Yasso 800s entails operating 10 repetitions of 800-meter (or half-mile) intervals at a tempo correlating to your goal marathon time. The thought is in case you can hit every 800m repeat at your aim time, then it’s an excellent prediction of your marathon end.
For these unfamiliar with the mechanics, the execution of Yasso 800s entails operating repetitions at a tempo that corresponds to the hours and minutes of your aim marathon time.
As an example, in case you’re concentrating on a marathon end time of three hours and half-hour, your aim tempo for the 800-meter intervals could be 3 minutes and 30 seconds.
You might be NOT operating the laps at your aim tempo, however moderately at your threshhold operating tempo. Which is what makes this such a troublesome exercise and may solely be one piece of a marathon coaching plan. We additionally need miles at aim marathon tempo, tempo run work and extra.
Whereas the exercise is just not an infallible predictor, it offers insights into your present health degree and serves as a tangible marker of progress all through your coaching journey. Even Yasso himself says that is however one in every of many components, although regardless it’s a terrific velocity exercise to execute throughout coaching.
This customized method provides a dynamic aspect to coaching, permitting every runner to tailor their Yasso 800 exercises to their particular objectives and aspirations.
A key word earlier than we get in to extra particulars is that you just SHOULD NOT attempt 10 repetitions in your very first try at this exercise! As an alternative, that is one thing that you’re constructing over the course of your coaching plan.
Executing the Yasso 800s Exercise
Step one on this course of might be figuring out your marathon aim time. This course of goes to contain your present race efficiency and the way a lot time you’ve for this coaching cycle. Keep in mind that on day one this tempo goes to really feel laborious and can slowly really feel extra doable all through coaching.
In your first Yasso exercise, full solely 2-3 reps relying how a lot different velocity work you’ve been doing. And in case you aren’t acquainted, learn up on what number of laps make a mile to be sure you’re operating the correct distance.
Heat Up Previous to the Pace Session
Earlier than I dive into the Yasso 800s exercise particulars, know that warming up is non-negotiable for priming muscular tissues for the exercise forward.
A radical warm-up is essential earlier than high-intensity operating exercise. The aim is to regularly enhance your coronary heart fee, heat up your muscular tissues, and put together your physique for the calls for of the upcoming exercise.
- Begin with a dynamic heat up (no static stretching) to loosen up and forestall any strains.
- Transfer in to 10 minutes of simple operating to heat up the muscular tissues and slowly enhance coronary heart fee.
- Think about doing 3-5 operating strides
- And doing 3 to five minutes of operating type drills – A-Skips, quick toes, and so forth.
A correct warm-up not solely reduces the chance of harm but additionally enhances your total efficiency throughout Yasso 800s and related exercises.
Begin The Exercise
Ideally you’ll carry out this on a monitor or different measured space so that you don’t must test your watch or account for variations in elevation whereas operating. This exercise is designed for a selected function of pacing, the place you are able to do different velocity periods on the roads to include hills.
Run the First 800-Meter Interval: Hit the monitor and canopy 800 meters, timing your self to match the minutes and seconds of your focused marathon time in hours and minutes. As an example, in case you’re eyeing a 3-hour marathon, run the 800 meters in 3 minutes.
Restoration Jog: Comply with up your laborious effort with an equal-time jog. For the 3-hour marathon aim, you’d jog for 3 minutes. Match your restoration time precisely to the time you ran your 800 intervals to maximise the exercise’s effectiveness.
Repeat the Course of: Alternate between operating and restoration till you full your set variety of 800-meter runs. Begin with three intervals and add extra as you progress, however solely while you constantly meet your time objectives.
Bear in mind the aim is to not run sooner, however to run the prescribed time.
And we are going to max out at 10 intervals for this exercise, probably within the 3-4 weeks earlier than your marathon.
How Many 800 Repeats Ought to I Do?
As famous, begin with 4, particularly in case you are doing this early within the coaching cycle.
The aim is to max out at 10 repetitions in case you’re utilizing this as some type of predictor exercise in your marathon coaching.
What Are the Advantages of 800s?
These exercises present an a variety of benefits throughout a variety of coaching objectives. Let’s breakdown a couple of of them:
- Working at sooner than marathon tempo will make marathon aim tempo really feel simpler
- It will probably assist with that ending kick since you’ve realized to push laborious on drained legs
- You’ll be bettering your VO2 Max, which implies extra environment friendly operating
- Quick, sharp velocity periods are going to push you to your max rapidly after which permit you to get better
Submit Yasso Exercise
After every session, think about your efficiency. Have been you in a position to maintain the tempo? Solely enhance the variety of intervals when you’ll be able to confidently full your present set on the desired tempo.
Moreover, after an intense monitor exercise, it’s vital to observe an excellent publish run cooldown protocol. Keep in mind that we don’t wish to sit down and we completely should make refueling and hydrating a precedence to be prepared for the subsequent exercise.
Start with a sluggish jog, letting your coronary heart fee decline regularly. This light exercise aids in clearing your muscular tissues of lactic acid and lowering stiffness.
How Typically Ought to You Do Yasso 800s?
Whereas it’s good to repeat exercises all through your coaching cycle to see progress, it’s additionally actually precious to include different velocity periods.
We wish to do issues at 5K tempo, aim marathon tempo and every little thing in between over the 12-16 weeks that you just’ll be coaching.
Since we goal to maintain our complete depth quantity of coaching to twenty% or much less for any given week, you would possibly solely do Yasso 800s 1 time per thirty days alongside your different exercises.
Utilizing Yasso 800s for Different Races
When you’re gearing up for a race that’s shorter than a marathon, you would possibly assume Yasso 800s aren’t for you. I’ll allow you to in on a secret: you’ll be able to nonetheless use them to spice up your velocity and endurance. Begin with 4 repeats and take note of how your physique responds.
Say your aim is a half-marathon time of1:45 end. Intention to run 5 by 800 meters in 3 minutes and 37 seconds (which might be your equal marathon ending time).
When you nail all of your repeats at this tempo, solely then think about including one other.
Coaching for a 10K? Regulate your repeats to fit your race tempo, specializing in finishing every 800-meter interval constantly earlier than rising the quantity.
That is about constructing endurance methodically, with out overtaxing your self earlier than you’re prepared. Keep on with the core precept of the exercise: sustaining the goal tempo for every interval earlier than progressing. It’s this regular enhance that helps you acquire power and velocity whereas tailoring the exercise to fulfill your race objectives.
Do I Assign Yasso 800s?
As a very long time operating coach and runner myself, I can’t say that it is a exercise we repeat a ton with most athletes as a result of as famous above there are a number of issues I need us to work on within the 12-16 weeks of a marathon plan construct up.
Significantly in case you construct as much as 10 repeats, it is a exercise that’s going to require restoration and would possibly take away from among the different issues we wish to accomplish throughout peak marathon coaching.
I do like utilizing 800m repeats in exercises, however normally don’t construct as much as the complete 10. As an alternative, I’ve runners begin to incorporate aim tempo mileage of their lengthy runs, quick end exercises throughout lengthy runs, and so forth.
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