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Yasso 800 - Marathon Readiness Workout
Popularized by Bart Yasso of Runner’s World. The 800 m rep time in mm:ss roughly maps to a marathon finish time in hh:mm.
Target marathon finish time
Reps to complete (start with 4-6)
6 x 800 m @ 03:30 with equal-time jog recovery after each rep.
Expected rep variation is about +/-5 seconds; more than 10 seconds usually means the target is too aggressive or pacing is off. Full reps plus equal-time recovery take about 42 minutes, excluding warm-up and cool-down.
Important: Yasso 800 is a readiness indicator, not a stand-alone marathon plan. It still requires mileage, long runs, threshold work, and recovery. It can be optimistic for recreational runners.
| Finish Goal | 800 m Time |
|---|---|
| 02:00:00 | 02:00 |
| 02:15:00 | 02:15 |
| 02:30:00 | 02:30 |
| 02:45:00 | 02:45 |
| 03:00:00 | 03:00 |
| 03:15:00 | 03:15 |
| 03:30:00 | 03:30 |
| 03:45:00 | 03:45 |
| 04:00:00 | 04:00 |
| 04:15:00 | 04:15 |
| 04:30:00 | 04:30 |
| 04:45:00 | 04:45 |
| 05:00:00 | 05:00 |
Methodology
- Yasso 800: popularized by Bart Yasso through Runner’s World; useful as a readiness check but optimistic for some recreational runners.
- Norwegian 4x4: Helgerud et al. (2007, Med Sci Sports Exerc) and the NTNU CERG body of work.
- Hansons: Keith and Kevin Hanson, Hansons Marathon Method, with cumulative fatigue as the central principle.
- Norwegian double threshold: associated with Marius Bakken and the Ingebrigtsen system; Kelemen et al. (2024) systematic literature review summarizes the scientific basis.
Next: Connect These Methods to a Full Cycle