1:59, The Sub-Two-Hour Marathon Is Within Reach

1:59
The Sub-Two-Hour Marathon Is Within Reach.
Here’s how it will go down and what it can teach all runners about training and racing.
By Dr. Philip Maffetone with Bill Katovsky


About the Author:

Dr. Philip Maffetone has trained and coached endurance athletes for more than 35 years. He is the author of 18 books on health and fitness, including The Big Book of Endurance Training and Racing and the popular textbook Complementary Sports Medicine. He has worked with Dr. George Sheehan, famed New Zealand coach Arthur Lydiard, marathon great Grete Waitz, and six-time Hawaii Ironman world champion Mark Allen.


When I was contacted by Dr. Philip Maffetone’s publisher who asked if I would review Dr. Phil’s latest book, 1:59, I was more than honored, but I should have mentioned that I am an extremely slow reader. With a prediction of a sub-2-hour marathon happening soon, I felt a great urgency to get to it before that record was set! So onto my review.

1:59 is based on the belief by Dr. Phil that the current world record of 2:03:23 in the marathon will be broken, not just in our lifetime but in the next few years. The idea of a 1:59 brings about much debate among his colleagues however. They do not agree with him that a 1:59 is possible…ever. But Dr. Phil believes they are not looking at the big picture, nor the fine details, and so he has written this book to define exactly what it will take for a 1:59 to be realized.

The recipe for a successful sub-2-hour marathon has a lot of ingredients. Some, you may believe; others may make you second-guess yourself. I will only highlight a few of them though, since Dr. Phil covered a lot of material. This criteria has to be exactly matched starting with the athlete.

Dr. Phil believes the best promise comes from East African runners. It’s not just about genetics, which although important, is not the most important criteria. It’s actually a combination of nature and nurture. He explains that environment affects genetics. The East African’s location on the globe at altitude with peak sun makes their living and training the ideal environment for creating some of the best long-distance runners the sport has ever known. And though they continue to do so, they are in jeopardy of losing this competitive edge. Dr. Phil explains how this is possible. Some of the factors that will negatively affect this perfect runner from East Africa are migrating west away from the perfect living and training altitudes, decreasing Vitamin D levels as they migrate away from the equator, diminishing nutrition (although theirs isn’t great to being with) as these runners adopt a western diet, and agreeing to lucrative shoe contracts that damage their feet and take them away from running barefoot.

This 1:59 athlete will also have to be a barefoot runner. In fact, I love that throughout his book, Dr. Phil keeps “barefoot” viable, where it’s been dismissed by the public and media as having ran its course. He explains why running barefoot is a key ingredient to a successful 1:59 attempt, both in training and during race times, as well as upbringing. There's a chapter titled Feet First in the book where he talks about the importance of the barefoot element in conquering a sub-2-hour marathon. The chapter opens with a quote by Dr. Mercer Rang, "Shoes do no more for the foot than a hat does for the brain."

Dr. Phil predicts that “the 1:59 marathoner will be in his 30s because running economy doesn’t have to diminish like the rest of the body.” An elite marathoner’s body actually matures as it gets older which is different from an aging body.

He explains, “A well-developed aerobic system is an untapped source of performance potential and could boost running economy.” Dr. Phil lists and discusses in debt the many factors that decrease running economy. Some of them are overtraining, muscle imbalance, dysfunctional feet, poor diet, and altitude (or lack of).

When debating if exceeding your ideal heart rate is more effective, he believes the key is in the aerobic system, slow twitch muscle fibers, not the anaerobic system, as many other scientists, coaches, and athletes do. By working at your maximum aerobic heart rate (instead of your maximum anaerobic heart rate), you can increase your speed at the same heart rate.

Training harder (to run faster) isn’t going to get you there. Targeting the precise heart rate is key to optimal training. The perfect pace for a 1:59 would be between 4:50 and 4:55 at maximum aerobic heart rate during training with a 4:35 per mile race pace. You must train your body to run increasingly faster while at sub-maximal heart rate (aerobic system). Getting to this pace may seem as “easy” as training, diet, and lifestyle, but Dr. Phil breaks this all down into science we can understand while letting us know it’s not as simple after all.

Ongoing assessments should be individualized to point out where improvements can be made in diet, lifestyle, training, and recovery. It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach. Like the body, the brain should be assessed since it may be the most important regulator of athletic performance. Assessing aerobic and anaerobic systems is more important than the usual VO2 Max tests and lactate thresholds.

Although the premise of this book is based on what an elite marathon runner can accomplish with certain tweaks, the book can also be used to help any average, recreational runner achieve not only better times but better running health. He fully explains the criteria that has to work in unison in order to bring this about. So, if you are like most people just wanting to improve your pace but avoid injuries and get more satisfaction out of your running, then this book is for you too.

For example, some of the mistakes average runners make have to do with their training and racing regimen. He talks about many of the myths associated with performance enhancement, and you may just be surprised that it goes against what you have known and followed.

Do you stretch before you run? Wrong!

Do you carbo-load on a spaghetti dinner the night before a big race? Wrong!

How about nutrition bars and sports drinks? Wrong!

Do you train all out, trying to run as fast as you can to build up lung strength? Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!

See who his top three picks are for that 1:59 marathoner and some others following right behind. If you’re dying to know, get the book! It’s well worth it, and you’ll learn a lot about yourself and your running while you’re at it.

I agree with Dr. Phil that the “right circumstances” need to be set up, perfect athlete and perfect venue, if 1:59 is ever going to happen, and he gives great detail to how this is possible. His recipe for the 1:59 marathon is exact, but with one problem, you just may have to remove the “human” from the equation. ;-)

Recommendations? The book could use an Index for searching key terms, or at least I could have used one. I also think a software application that could be individualized based on MAF training could be helpful for those wanting to improve their running economy.

I enjoyed reading the book, and I learned a ton! But I will say, I am glad I never viewed my running so scientifically. Like many barefoot runners, I never cared about pace or race times. I was just happy to finish my run with a smile on my face.

Visit Dr. Phil's 1:59 site: http://www.philmaffetone.com/159

Get your copy: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aws/cart/add.html/ref=as_sl_pc_tf_til

 

I like having an actual book in my hands to read, but since the amount it would cost to ship it overseas to you would be crazy high, maybe you could get it via Amazon download? It's only like $13.00 USD. Or definitely, I would let you have it.

 

Yes, and Dr. Phil predicts this too. In fact, he thinks we can get to a 1:48 marathon, and he feels we should have already been there by now.

He has analyzed in debt the records (athletes, times, durations, length, venues, altitudes, etc.) and he has found a sort of relationship between the amount of time that has passed and when a record has been broken. Using this info, he can then calculate when a "possible" record can be broken again. It's all in the book.

 

I've added to my review: There's a chapter titled Feet First in the book where he talks about the importance of the barefoot element in conquering a sub-2-hour marathon. The chapter opens with a quote by Dr. Mercer Rang, "Shoes do no more for the foot than a hat does for the brain."