Minimum Sub 4 minute mile speed

OP, if you are asking what the "minimum" of anything is then you don't have the mentality it takes to run sub 4 anyways. (probably not the speed either)

I don't think 1:52/52 is enough. That highschooler, Lampron, ran 4:02high and he was capable of 1:50 flat and sub 50. I would say 1:50 and 49mid are minimums.

minimum maximun 400 speed for a four minute is 60 sections.

Not sure why this question comes up so much here, but I do feel obligated to answer, being one of the 'slow' guys. I thought I would have had trouble breaking :55, but that was based on times I ran in workouts (struggling hard to break :27 in practice), in a 'race' situation who knows - maybe I could have gone :53 or :54, but it would have had to be with a running start.

15/mile was my best event by far - no raw speed and only decent endurance (even then only up to 3k or so) and I was pretty good at running pace. I imagine if someone was great or perfect at the mile distance (solely as it pertains to their overall ability), they could get away with something in the :56 - :57 range. That person likely doesn't exist, but I do think in theory it could happen.

Those of you saying sub :50 (and to some extent those of you saying :51 or :52) are way off.

Figure out what Chris Derrick runs for 400 and you will have the answer to this thread.

Former sub 4:10er in college who trained quite a bit with guys who were flirting with 4:00 and a few who went under. I was more of a strength runner and usually ran with or beat these guys in cross, but the common denominator on the track for all of them was pure foot speed. Over 100 meters, I ate their dust. I was 52 fast, they were 51 and under with the best guys being sub 50. Some 48.x. I have never, ever trained with or seen a guy who can only turn a 54 come close to sniffing 4:00. It's just not fast enough. The ones who can ran 4:00 or faster and say they can only run 54 1) have not raced the 400 distance and don't realize how fast they really are; they likely ran a 54 in a workout and think that's their fastest and/or 2) pride themselves on inflating their quarter speed for whatever reason. They are all 51 fast at the slowest and 51 usually not fast enough. It's a speed based race.

800 also has to be fast. 1:52, maybe 1:53 at the slowest.

That's cute. In your four years on one team at one university you never saw a :54 guy come close to 4:00. You should write a book or something.

Its a big jump to 3:59 from 4:01. I ran 4:02 and never could break 26.0 for a 200. Ever. Maybe in a relay 4 by 400 I could have split a sub-55 but I really doubt it.

I would say its pretty accurate that 25.0 200 and 52 high for a 400 is the minimum to go sub 4 in a mile.

Or 38.0 for 300 meters and 18.5 for 150.

Whatever Paul Tergat was capable of