The thrill of registration day can be hard to contain for destination marathons, Disney races, and popular Ironman races. These races have appealing medals, fun expos, and great locations. But for runners and triathletes, race selection is more than just motivation and fancy medals. It directly affects performance, recovery, injury risk, and long-term development.
The best race for you isn’t necessarily the most prestigious. While I encourage athletes to sign up for fun races that their friends might be doing, if it’s race performance that you’re looking for, then you need to choose the ones that your physiology is most prepared to maximize.
Speed Dominant vs Endurance Dominant Athletes
Not all endurance athletes are built the same. Some are naturally speed dominant and have excellent 5k and sprint triathlon performances, but struggle with late-race fatigue in longer events. These are the type of athletes that thrive in 5k races, 10k races, sprint triathlons, and Olympic distance triathlons. They might feel they should sign up for race like the NYC Marathon or Lake Placid Ironman because they’re seen as ultimate tests with bragging rights.
Speed dominant athletes will be able to complete these races with proper training, but they might not enjoy it as much and they or they might not enjoy the associated training.
Endurance dominant athletes on the other hand tend to have stronger aerobic engines, have better fatigue resistance, and can maintain steady pacing over long durations. These athletes shine in half marathons, marathons, half Ironman (or 70.3) races, and Ironman races.
Before registering for a race, ask yourself:
- Do I excel at long sustained efforts?
- Do I shine in shorter, faster work?
- Do I enjoy long runs and long rides?
- Do I enjoy track workouts and fast sprinting?
Knowing whether you’re speed dominant or endurance dominant shouldn’t deter you from entering either long or short running races or triathlons. But knowing what you’re naturally good at and enjoy is something you can lean into so that you enjoy your racing and better results. Perhaps having a variety of racing on your calendar would better suit you than feeling the social pressure of only one kind of racing.
Hills vs Flat Course
Most athletes think in terms of distance, but terrain is an important factor to consider also. Hill dominant athletes often have strong relative strength, possess a favorable power-to-weight ration, and excel in variable pacing. They tend to thrive on rolling or hilly courses.
Flat course specialists have exceptional pacing abilities, maintain steady threshold output, and handle sustained efforts well. They perform best on flat courses but struggle on hills.
Before registering for a race, ask yourself:
- Do I pass people on climbs?
- Do I reel other athletes in on steady flats?
Know which terrain you are naturally good at will help you decide on what course you’ll enjoy more.
Race Planning to Suit Your Physiology
Poor race selection is often driven by prestige, social media, peer comparison, and bucket list pressure. If you race calendar selection is only made by these decisions, then you may not get the great race results you’d like to see. By including races that align with your physiological strengths, your performance will shine.
Strategic race selection is an overlooked performance advantage for runners and triathletes. When athletes choose races that match their physiological strengths, then performance improves.
Your race calendar should include A, B, and C races. Planning out these races should include the type of races that suit you the most, but that doesn’t mean you should avoid the ones that would just be fun to do or that would challenge you in different ways. The most satisfying racing comes when you have a variety. So consider choosing A races that suit your physiology, the type you peak for. And include B and C races that may not fit your physiology exactly but would be fun to do. While those A races will help you improve your racing strategy and results, the B and C races could help you improve your weaknesses and be a fun way to add variety. The key thing to remember is to plan well so that you can schedule the correct races at the right time without a B or C race affecting the A race.
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