Category: Running

On the weekend I went for a trail run, I ran up the notorious local climb which I recently blogged about here. Typically running is considered a ‘closed skill’ sport, meaning that there are far less variables than most sports. Unlike football or basketball (Open Skill) where tactics, teamwork, preparation and environment all contribute to the outcome, competitive running almost always comes down to who is fittest on the day. Your ability to produce power whilst processing lactic acid is the ballgame, and while tactics and equipment play their part, it is very rare for the 8th fastest person coming into the race to beat their PB by 35 seconds to win the race.

Back to my Sunday afternoon, I decided to climb this hill/mountain slower than I normally would, and as I was going up, I started to think about incremental effort vs incremental gain. The effort that I was putting in was far less than normal, but my speed was only marginally less. Trail running is a bit more interesting than track running, more in common with cycling (think Tour de France). The difference in terrain makes it a more open skill sport, with strategic decisions to be made about how you spend your energy.

For example, the extra effort to go up hill faster vs the gain in speed is quite large. The difference between going uphill at 6 minutes per kilometer vs 7 minutes per kilometer (roughly 15% faster) might require 25% more energy, on the other hand, going downhill faster requires comparatively little extra energy as you are simply using your momentum. It does however require extra concentration and you take on extra risk if you were to have an accident. Like the Tour de France, going uphill tends to separate the wheat from the chaff as the fitness doesn’t lie, you can’t simply take extra risk and go faster.

So far everything I’ve discussed likely seems very specific to aerobic sporting activity, however this concept is as relevant to other areas of our daily life. In anything we are trying to achieve, there is a both a benefit and a cost to increased performance and when making decisions it is important to evaluate the equation. When starting an activity, the benefit of some extra effort will likely far outweigh the cost. Two hours study for a test vs one hour will likely net you a much better result of the test. As you go on, the benefit of extra effort almost always diminishes. Spending 30 hours to study for the test might net you 95% which will put you top of the class, but it may require an extra 30 hours of study to get to 100%.

There are two factors key at play. Firstly, the time required to become the absolute best at anything is typically very long. Secondly, there is typically a cap on what can be achieved and once you reach a certain point, more effort will net 0% gain. Take for example sailing, when going downwind, the air-stream fills the sail and pushes the boat forward. If the boat goes too fast, the amount of wind that the sail physically runs into is enough to collapse the sail and stop the boat. In business, when working with others, you might get to a point where you cannot get your colleagues to work any faster, and sending them yet another email might cause them to go slower out of spite!

Conversely, most endeavors will have opportunities where the extra incremental effort required can net you substantial gains. In David Allen’s ‘Getting things Done’ he quotes world class rower Craig Lambert who talking about a child on a swing. The momentum comes from the swing itself, the small pump of the legs is a comparatively small contributor of power, but it keeps you swinging. If you try to force it, you disrupt the momentum.

Final thoughts:

1. Professional athletes or those wishing to compete at the highest level in their field are very often the ones willing to pay any cost no matter how small the incremental gain. If you want to greatly exceed your peers, assume it comes at a cost that most aren’t willing to pay.
2. If you want to settle for ‘very good’ while making it look effortless, identify where you can get the greatest gain at smallest cost. Efficiency is greatly under-rated and under-recommended compared to effort.
3. If it isn’t costing you extra energy, are you taking on extra risk?
4. Many people obsess over the tangential elements of success. If you are not elite in your field, a good nights sleep or the right shoes won’t win you the race. If you are elite, they likely won’t win it for you either, but they could lose it for you. The only time the best runner loses the race is if they let something else de-rail their day.