As a middle distance runner on your high school track team, one of your big goals is likely wanting to maximize your potential in the 800 meters event. This race occupying the blurry line between sprinting and distance running requires a delicate blend of speed and stamina.
But with a wide range of times, how do you determine what makes for a “good” effort? What result is within realistic reach if you put in the work? And what separates a good time from excellent or average benchmarks?
In this comprehensive guide, I’ll break down everything you need to know:
- Realistic time standards based on age and gender
- The physiology and demands of the 800 meters
- Training principles and workouts to get faster
- Essential racing tactics and strategies
- Goal-setting and season planning advice
My aim is to provide actionable insights you can immediately apply to take your 800 meter fitness and performance to the next level.
What Makes the 800 Meters Such a Challenging Race?
Before diving into time standards, let’s overview what makes middle distance races like the 800 meters such a unique test:
The Need for Speed-Endurance
While a full-out sprint like the 100 meters is over in a matter of seconds, you have to keep striding at high intensity for 1:55 to 2:30 minutes when racing an 800. This places immense demand on both your aerobic endurance to keep delivering oxygen and anaerobic power to push through mounting lactate.
800 meter runners need the raw footspeed of a sprinter to maintain pace from start to finish. But you also need robust cardiovascular endurance to handle oxygen debt as your muscles start burning by the halfway mark. The best middle distance runners have developed “speed-endurance” allowing them to keep their form and tempo under duress.
Managing Changing Race Phases
Mentally, you can break down the 800 meters into three distinct sections, each requiring slightly different racing tactics:
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The Start (First 200 Meters): Get out assertively to gain positioning without overextending early pace.
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The Middle (Next 400 Meters): Focus on maintaining rhythm as lactate builds up in your muscles. Fight to stay mentally tough.
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The Finish (Last 200 Meters): Empty reserves of speed as you battle for position approaching the final straightaway.
Learning to adjust pace and effort based on each phase is key to an optimal race. Let‘s break down what makes for a good benchmark time.
Realistic Time Standards by Age and Gender
When evaluating what makes a good 800 meter time, it’s essential to consider both age and physiological differences between boys and girls. Let’s break it down:
800 Meter Time Standards for High School Boys
For high school boys, running the 800 meters in under 2 minutes represents an exceptional time requiring tremendous genetic gifts and training.
More realistic yet still ambitious standards by age:
Takeaway: Any result between 2:00-2:05 indicates solid fitness and competitiveness.
800 Meter Time Standards for High School Girls
For girls, the gold standard is finishing under 2 minutes and 20 seconds (2:20). But the following guidelines are good benchmarks:
Takeaway: A time between 2:20-2:28 still demonstrates quality fitness capable of scoring team points.
As you move up from freshman to senior year, expectations become progressively more demanding for both boys and girls. But the main takeaway is that a "good" time is within realistic reach if you train and race intelligently.
Tailoring Your Training to Get Faster
Reaching your 800 meter goals requires patient, focused work over the course of entire seasons and years – not just a few haphazard weeks of running. Here are training principles to apply:
Building Your Aerobic Base
While the 800 meters prizes speed, expanding your aerobic endurance is still crucial. Challenge yourself with 45-60 minute long runs 1-2x per week to increase your cardiovascular capacity and resistance to fatigue. This allows you to better handle the oxygen debt that builds up during a middle distance event.
Incorporating Speed Development
On the other end of the spectrum, you need sessions focused on pure speed as ultimately the 800 comes down to how fast you can run two laps. Mix short sprints and hill repeats into your program to build strength and power. But limit all-out max velocity running to avoid overtaxing your central nervous system. Save top gear for race day when you really need it.
Emphasizing Speed-Endurance
The ideal middle ground of training for the 800 meters is speed-endurance. Complete tempo runs 20-30 minutes at about 15 seconds per mile slower than your current 800 race pace. This teaches your body and mind to handle extended periods of high-intensity effort.
Practicing Race Simulations
Get race ready by running 600 meter and 800 meter repeats at your current or goal pace for the event with full recoveries. Focus on even splits between repeats and across each individual effort. Use these sessions to practice changing gears, finishing the last 100-150 meters of each rep at a quicker clip.
Preventing Injuries and Burnout
Building the fitness to achieve a good 800 meter time requires tremendous work over months and years. Take care to periodize your training correctly by managing volume and intensity. Prioritize daily foam rolling, use massage guns, and take ice baths. Listen to warning signs from your body and take rest days anytime you feel overly fatigued or sore. The key is consistency over the long run.
Essential 800 Meter Racing Tactics and Strategies
Even the most effective training regimen can only take you so far. Excelling in an 800 meter race also requires skillfully navigating its unique mental and physical demands. Here are key tips:
Start Assertively But Under Control
When the starting gun fires, you need to be assertive in securing a strong mid-pack position within the first 200 meters without overextending early pace. Coming out too relaxed can cost you valuable space and momentum. But blasting full-speed from the beginning risks cratering your race before even finishing the first lap. Find your optimal rhythm that is challenging yet sustainable.
Aggressively Handle the Curves
Passing typically happens more frequently on straight sections of the track. So it‘s crucial you maintain position while running the turns. Concentrate on driving aggressively off the inside leg, keeping your eyes focused 3-4 strides ahead rather than on the lane line. Lean naturally into the curve.
Stay Relaxed from 300-500m
This section is about avoidance and discipline:
- Avoid tensing up or getting flustered surrounded by other runners mid-pack.
- Avoid red-lining your effort level too soon when you still have 300 meters to go.
- Avoid losing ground by making a move too early.
Patience and staying mentally poised pays off at this stage.
Assess the Race at the 600m Mark
When you drive out of the final curve and pass the 600 meter mark, quickly assess the status of the pack. Who is just ahead of you that you may need to reel in down the home stretch? Do you have another gear left to make a final charge over the last 200 meters? Locate your key competitors and get ready to empty your reserves.
Full Throttle Sprint to the Finish
With 150 meters left, it‘s time to throw caution to the wind and sprint like crazy for the finish line. Summon every last ounce you have left of speed-endurance and pure determination built through months of training for this moment. Pumping your arms and driving your knees, make one final decisive surge to pass anyone in your path, including across the line. Cross the finish with lungs burning and nothing left to give.
Setting Goals and Executing a Plan
More than any generic time standard, your assessment of what makes a “good” 800 meter time should tie directly to your individual ability level and development arc. Here is the process:
Set a Challenging Yet Achievable Goal
First, objectively analyze your current fitness and 800 meter skill. Set a stretch goal that is just beyond your present capability after accounting for standard season-to-season improvement rates. While the goal should push you, it must also be realistic enough to avoid discouragement.
Break Goals Down into Smaller Milestones
Your big goal for the season might be improving your 800 meter PR from 2:18 to 2:15. But that can seem daunting in the moment. Instead, set smaller performance milestones session to session and week to week. Maybe this week your target is hitting a new peak split at tempo run pace. Achieving mini-goals along the way will build confidence.
Have a Detailed Plan and Process
With your goals set, outline a comprehensive training plan that methodically builds fitness across aerobic endurance, speed and speed-endurance. Couple this with an organized approach to recovery including nutrition, foam rolling, and sleep quality. Follow the process, stay consistent, and let the results come.
Race with Passion and Perspective
When it‘s time to toe the line for an important 800 meter race, make sure you‘re toeing it with energy and passion. Embrace the thrill and go for it with everything you‘ve got! No matter the outcome, walk away with your head held high knowing you put yourself on the line and that you‘re steadily improving over the long run. The journey continues!
Final Thoughts
I hope this guide has helped better define what makes for a good 800 meter time at the high school level. But more importantly, I hope you now grasp that any result through consistent, intelligent effort is something to be proud of. Keep setting goals, developing your fitness, and racing fearlessly – the times will drop!
