A Progressive Goal-Pace / Date-Pace Program Provides the Framework for a Runner’s Individual Workouts and Training Progression
Bowerman's Training Principles
5. A progressive goal-pace / date-pace program provides the framework for a runner’s individual workouts and training progression.
At the beginning of each school year, Oregon runners during the Bowerman-era performed a 1200m or 1600m “3/4 effort” time trial run. The pace a runner achieved for the time trial would become their Date Pace.
Also at the the start of the school year, Bowerman would sit down with each runner and define their goals for the upcoming spring outdoor track season. Once Bowerman and the runner would agree on a time goal for the spring, that would become the runner’s Goal Pace.
For example, if a runner produced a 4:40 1600m during the fist 3/4 effort time trial run their starting Date Pace would be 70”/400m. And if their target was to run 4:00 for the mile in the spring, Date Pace was 60”/400m.
Under Bowerman training was simple, progressive, and individualized.
The Date Pace was the starting line and Goal Pace the finish line.
Bowerman’s approach made the entire purpose of training being the advancement of a runner from their current condition (Date Pace) to their desired condition (Goal Pace) in about 9 months time.
He would organize workouts to include large amounts of Date Pace work early in the year and eventually transition the emphasis to Goal Pace work later in the year. Oregon runners were never worried about how many miles they ran per week, they cared about how much Date and Goal Pace work they did. They understood getting better meant running faster, not running more.
Bowerman coached 16 sub-4 minute milers in about an 18 year span. Considering the sub-4 barrier was broken for the 1st time in 1954, a full six years into Bowerman’s tenure as head coach at Oregon (1948 - 1973), this is quite impressive.
Bowerman’s training worked so well because a runner would accrue a lot of time (mileage) at their current upper limit (Date Pace) as well as a fair amount of time beyond their current limit (Goal Pace), usually as 6 x 200m or 6 x 300m, every workout. As the athlete became more conditioned their Goal Pace would advance from 70” to 69” to 68”, etc. per 400m and their confidence would increase at a similar rate as their fitness.
Bowerman’s runners could see and feel themselves improving, which would foster greater buy-in and confidence, eventually become a self-fulfilling prophecy.