Why is everyone here obsessed with “predictor workouts”?

Lack of patience would be my best guess.

People just need to race more, to be honest.

they are chicken to race or even time trial. It is easier to get someone to say they can do something, than to just go out and do it.

You could help by jumping on those threads and saying they CAN'T do it. Tell them their workout predicts a crappy performance. You ran 3 x 300 in 42s with 3m rest? 2:40 800!!!

Wish I knew. Been that way for 15 years on here.

This is the age of instant gratification. Waiting is hard.

Damn straight, especially when they ask to predict their mile/3k/5k time. Just go out the door and run it, what are you even on about?

For newer runners, races are a big deal. They're exciting and fun, but surrounded by uncertainty. Before you've done it, goal race pace seems impossibly fast for the targeted distance.

Doing well in a distance race is mostly about pace management. Go out too fast, and you're sunk. Too slow, and you won't race up to your potential, at least at 5K-10K.

Put that together, and you naturally get a lot of questions about how to pace a race. Instead of getting aggravated about these questions, sensible people with relevant experience can offer their thoughts.

I don't like the idea of "predictor workouts," which usually end up being long race-pace repeats off short rests. They usually seem too intense, and too close to the goal race, for the runners asking the question. It should be possible to suggest initial race paces based on more typical workout intensities.

Agree with a lot of this thread. The other factor is that a lot of runners are insecure about their fitness. That can lead to a mentality where each workout is about proving that you're fit, rather than building new fitness. A good coach will snap you out of this mentality (it's easy to fall into this pattern of thought, even if you know it's a trap)

The loud minority isn't 'everyone.'

Unless they’ve been training to specifically run their goal pace.

Good post. I always interpret such threads being started by an insecure athlete with little confidence or one that has no understanding of physiology and training methodology.

because they age great! the other day i did 1xmile with R0 in 4.41 and my coach told me that equal to a 4.41 mile! now i have to give it a try and see if he is correct

Time trials are free and local road races are like $20, but people are just scared of their egos being hurt. They want someone to tell them some workout they did equals the time they want to run so they don't have to deal with failure or reality.

This makes sense if the focus during the race is on an absolute pace. But wouldn’t it be more effective for these young runners to learn to focus on effort?

They are more popular here than anywhere else in the world. 1000s of predictor workout threads.

They're not confident in their training and talent.

Because runners love to say "I think I'm in 14:30 shape" even when they've never run under 15 in their life.

What if I ran in the 8:20 range but didn't break 15 then?

I believe I was in 14:30 shape and my tempos corroborated that.

It’s the Jo’s generating traffic.