• Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

SpeedEndurance.com

Success in Track & Field ... and Life

  • Home
    • About
    • Contact
  • Archives
  • Track & Field
    • 400 meters
    • 800m & Mile
    • 1/2 & Full Marathons
    • Long & Triple Jump
    • Hurdles
  • Training
    • Weight Training
    • Abs & Core
    • Injury Prevention
    • Shoes & Spikes
    • Masters
  • Coaching
    • Freelap Friday Five
    • Interviews
    • Sport Psychology
    • Sports Nutrition
  • STORE
44
SHARES
FacebookTwitter

David Rudisha: 800m Training, Splits, World Record

posted on August 12, 2012

Believe it or not, I missed the Olympic 800 meters in the stadium, and I didn’t even watch it on TV.

Why? Because I was attending a private coaching clinic with Jessica Ennis, Toni Minichiello and Mick Hill.  I’ll be posting that 60 minute interview shortly on this Blog, so stay tuned.

David Rudisha 800m WR

One of the reasons why I collect splits for the sprints and hurdles is to find the sweet spot for ideal race pace.

This will lead me to the most important question:

What do you need to do in TRAINING to accomplish this?

It doesn’t matter if you run 1:40 or 2:00 for the 800 meters.  You need to have the right stuff (I’ll get more into that later)

Now, I wasn’t at the stadium, so I’m relying on second hand information.

According to LetsRun.com, David Rudisha’s 400 meter splits were:

49.28 + 51.63 (a differential of 2.35) = 1:40.91

According to Track and Field News, 200 meter splits were:

  • 23.5
  • 25.8 [49.28]
  • 25.0 [1:14.3]
  • 26.6
David Rudisha 800m World Record

Click To Tweet

I think we all know David Rudisha WAS the rabbit in this race as opposed to the other races.  Quite an incredible feat!

David Rudisha at 700 meters

Predicting 800m Potential

I’ve always used the double plus 10 seconds rule to determine the potential of a 400m sprinter moving up to the 800 meters with the proper training.

That double plus 10 seconds works out to the first lap around 3-4 sec slower than your 400m SB, and the second lap about 3 seconds slower than the first lap. (For example, [3.3 x 2] + 3.3 = ~10 seconds)

READ  2007 Harry Jerome Womens 4x400m Relay

As you can see from the splits above, the sweet spot between the 2 laps is anywhere from 2.5 to 4 seconds.  Each body is different because every trains differently.

Multi-pace 800m Training

One of these days I’ll have to interview Wynn Gmitroski.

If I ask you to run the first lap in 50 seconds and your PB is 50, you’ll be in a world of hurt at 500 meters.  If it’s 46, then you should be okay.

What that means is you need all 3 types of pace training at the 400, 800 and 1500 meter levels.  Hence 3 track sessions a week, each one with specific goals.  Speed, race pace, and endurance/strength.

You need that speed reserve for the first lap, so the faster your PB, the easier it will feel when it’s 3 or 4 seconds slower.  You still have to do the aerobic and lactate training, though.

Now everyone has their theories, and they have proven it with their results like Arthur Lydiard (coach of Peter Snell) or Harry Wilson (coach of Steve Ovett).   This Blog has a wealth of training articles, so here goes…

800m Training Articles

  • 800 meter Training Weekly Cycle (and Video slideshow)  This gives an example on how to setup 13 training sessions in a week.
  • Peter Snell Training with Arthur Lydiard famous training methods.  Definitely a long to short program!
  • Steve Ovett Training:  Again, definitely a long to short program and quite a contrast to Seb Coe.
  • Scott Christensen Training Videos.  This is worth a look for the High School and Junior College coaches, as he follows a similar philosophy as me.
  • 800 meter training by William Wuyke.  This is a classic article with over 30 comments with full workouts and annual plans.
  • How Much mileage should a 800 meter run?  The classic question to prevent overtraining and burnout.
  • Sample 800m workout:  The Breakdown  Here is my performance indicator chart that breaks down one of tracks classic workout.  Looks easier on paper.
READ  Inside the Training with HSI - Part 3

  • Bio
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Latest Posts
Jimson Lee

Jimson Lee

Coach & Founder at SpeedEndurance.com
I am a Masters Athlete and Coach currently based in London UK. My other projects include the Bud Winter Foundation, writer for the IAAF New Studies in Athletics Journal (NSA) and a member of the Track & Field Writers of America.
Jimson Lee

@speedendurance

Jimson Lee
Jimson Lee

+Jimson Lee

Jimson Lee
Jimson Lee

Jimson Lee

Jimson Lee

Latest posts by Jimson Lee (see all)

  • Ron Davis & Filbert Bayi: Looking to Past for its Athletics Future [Part 2] - February 13, 2019
  • Brothers across the miles: Ron Davis & Filbert Bayi, Looking to Past for its Athletics Future - February 11, 2019
  • Neural Recovery Circuits (Part 2): Valuable Training Tool for Sprinters & Distance Runners - February 10, 2019
Jimson Lee

Filed Under: 800m-Mile, Coaching, London 2012 Olympics, Track & Field, Training Tagged With: Arthur Lydiard, David Rudisha, Speed Reserve

About Jimson Lee

I am a Masters Athlete and Coach currently based in London UK. My other projects include the Bud Winter Foundation, writer for the IAAF New Studies in Athletics Journal (NSA) and a member of the Track & Field Writers of America.

Google+ comment widget by skipser
  • radunga says:
    August 12, 2012 at 2:28 pm

    I’ve made an article about Rudisha two days ago. In these could be seen his progress around the years. In another article can be seen more data of this great athlete.

    http://radunga-dejandohuella.blogspot.com.es/2012/08/david-lekuta-rudisha-en-el-terreno-de.html

    Reply
  • radunga says:
    August 13, 2012 at 9:42 am

    Other two articles develop more data about Rudisha before his world record. thanks for your support!

    http://radunga-dejandohuella.blogspot.com.es/#!/2012/06/david-rudisha-la-pantera-de-kenya-del.html

    http://radunga-dejandohuella.blogspot.com.es/#!/2012/07/los-800-metros-un-lugar-en-el-mundo.html

    Reply
  • Vasantharajan says:
    October 23, 2012 at 1:58 am

    hi,
    i need the full training schedulde for 800m under 18 category pls could you help me?

    Reply
  • Ashley Long says:
    November 14, 2012 at 1:52 am

    I need an 800m training schedule for my 15yr old son who is a multi-eventer

    Reply
    • Jimson Lee says:
      November 14, 2012 at 2:02 am

      @Ashley Long, multi-eventer like in Decathlon/Pentathlon, or multi-eventer as in multi-sport?

      Reply
  • Ashley Long says:
    November 14, 2012 at 1:59 am

    Continued…
    We have no real idea of the process of running 800m, what we should be aiming to achieve or how to approach training for the event.

    Reply
    • Jimson Lee says:
      November 14, 2012 at 2:20 am

      @Ashley Long
      For the free version, see my article and video, and the 800 meter Training Weekly Cycle:
      http://speedendurance.com/2012/01/10/video-800-meter-training-moving-up-400m/

      For the paid version, buy this video (excellent)
      http://speedendurance.com/2011/02/08/800-meter-training-with-scott-christensen/

      Reply
  • Patrick O'Flaherty says:
    May 10, 2013 at 8:50 am

    Jimson,

    Should the 1st lap / 2nd lap pace differential of 2.5 – 4.0 second rule be increased for those that run in 2:00 to 3:00 range for 800m?

    For example the average differential on your chart is 2.94 seconds including Rudisha’s 2.35 which wasn’t on the chart. On a percentage basis this translates to an average differential of 2.9% for these same 10 race times which if applied to a youth running a 3:00 800m would result in a pace differential of 5.2 seconds.

    So is it unrealistic to expect this same stringent standard across the board regardless of ability?

    Thanks,

    Patrick

    Reply
    • Jimson Lee says:
      May 12, 2013 at 3:08 pm

      @Patrick, yes, those numbers are for elite athletes. Taking percentages is best for slower times. Thanks for pointing that out.

      Reply
  • Primary Sidebar

    Follow Us

    • E-mail
    • Facebook
    • Google+
    • LinkedIn
    • RSS
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    Click here to reveal the mental secrets to go from joking around to world champion

    SEARCH OR LOOKUP BY CATEGORY

    RECENT POSTS

    • Sprinting: 10 Research Articles for Effective Sprint Training [Part 21]
    • Ron Davis & Filbert Bayi: Looking to Past for its Athletics Future [Part 2]
    • Brothers across the miles: Ron Davis & Filbert Bayi, Looking to Past for its Athletics Future
    • Neural Recovery Circuits (Part 2): Valuable Training Tool for Sprinters & Distance Runners
    • Neural Training Circuits (Part 1): Valuable Training Tool for Sprinters and Distance Runners
    • Dan Pfaff: Live in Australia – Fastrack400 [Part 1]
    • Sprinting: 10 Research Articles for Effective Sprint Training [Part 20]
    • Training 400/800 Runners Via High School Cross Country
    • Integrating Neural Training with Metabolic Training for Developing Distance Runners
    • Be Proactive, Not Reactive With Your Injuries
    Copyright © 2019. SpeedEndurance.com is owned and operated by Aryta Ltd.