The Golden Rule: Effort, Not Pace
On the road, maintaining a consistent pace is a reliable way to measure your run. On the trail, it's a recipe for disaster. Uneven surfaces, rocks, roots, and especially changes in elevation mean that pace is a meaningless metric. Trying to hold an 11-minute
mile up a steep, rocky incline requires a vastly different, and much higher, effort than on a flat, smooth path. The key to sustainable trail running and hiking is to aim for a consistent effort, not a consistent speed. This means letting the terrain dictate how fast you move. Your main goal is to finish feeling strong, not to hit specific time splits on every kilometre. Even elite runners know there's a point on a steep climb where power hiking becomes more efficient than trying to run, saving energy without spiking your heart rate.
Listening to Your Body: The RPE Scale
So if you're not looking at your watch, how do you measure effort? The most effective tool is the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale. It's a simple 1-to-10 scale that gauges how hard you feel your body is working based on factors like breathing rate, muscle fatigue, and overall strain. A rating of 1 is sitting on the couch, while 10 is an all-out, unsustainable sprint. Most of your time on the trail should be spent in the RPE 4-6 range. At this level, you're moving purposefully, but you can still hold a conversation or speak in short sentences. If you're gasping for air, you're pushing too hard for a sustainable endurance effort. This method is more honest than heart rate, which can lag or be influenced by heat and hydration, and it instantly adapts to the trail's demands.
Putting Effort-Based Pacing into Practice
Applying RPE feels intuitive once you start. As you approach an uphill, your goal is to keep your effort level the same. To do this, you must slow down. Shorten your stride, increase your cadence, and if it gets steep enough, switch to a powerful walk. This isn't giving up; it's smart energy management. Conversely, when you crest a hill and start a descent, you can let gravity help and speed up while maintaining that same steady effort level. The aim is to smooth out the peaks and valleys of effort you'd experience if you tried to maintain a steady pace. You'll avoid redlining on the climbs and have more energy left to enjoy the entire outing. Many experienced trail runners find this approach helps them finish faster and feel stronger overall.
The Supporting Role of Breathing
Once you've mastered effort-based pacing, you can introduce specific breathing techniques to further improve your efficiency and comfort. Think of breathing as a tool to support your chosen effort level, not to create it. When your body is working at a sustainable intensity, focused breathing can help you feel more relaxed, deliver oxygen more efficiently, and keep your heart rate steady. It’s about making your well-managed engine run even more smoothly. The goal isn't to find a breathing pattern that lets you sprint up a mountain—it's to find one that makes a steady, conversational effort feel even easier.
Two Simple Techniques to Try
For lower-intensity sections (RPE 4-6), try nasal breathing. Inhaling through your nose warms, humidifies, and filters the air. It also promotes the release of nitric oxide, which helps improve oxygen absorption in your bloodstream, making it a highly efficient way to breathe. It might feel slow and restrictive at first, but practicing it on easy runs can build a strong aerobic base. Another useful method is rhythmic breathing, where you sync your breath to your footsteps. A common pattern is inhaling for two steps and exhaling for two steps (a 2:2 rhythm). This creates a steady cadence and helps prevent the shallow, panicked breathing that can occur when you start to get tired. You can adjust the pattern as needed, but the simple act of coordinating breath and movement brings a powerful sense of control.
