Sub-3 that prefectural government officials really aim for! Can a full marathon run in 3 hours? The preface

Sub-3 (sub-three), which runs 42.195km in less than 3 hours, is said to be a longing area for general runners running in full marathons. Kochi Prefectural Office staff Toby (39 years old) challenges this big wall! Based on the data obtained from physical strength measurement, we will conduct training for about 100 days and aim to achieve sub 3 at the "Kochi Ryoma Marathon 2024" held on February 18, 2024!

Kochi Ryoma Marathon where you can experience the charm of Tosa!

"Kochi Ryoma Marathon 2024" will be the 10th anniversary event. Many runners from inside and outside the prefecture are attractive, as well as courses that run through the cityscape of Kochi and the beautiful Pacific Ocean, as well as water supply and lunch using materials from Kochi's specialty, hospitality by local people, and cheering from start to finish. Participating.

The time limit is 6 hours for general tournaments, whereas the Kochi Ryoma Marathon is set at 7 hours, so it is easy for beginners to complete the race, and the finish rate in 2023 was 94.75%.

The Kochi Ryoma Marathon starts in front of the Kochi Prefectural Office and reaches the goal at the Haruno General Sports Park Athletics Stadium. In the middle of the course, there are difficulties such as Urado-ohashi Bridge with a height difference of 50m, Niyodogawakako-ohashi Bridge, which blows through the sea breeze, and uphill at the end, so physical strength and leg strength are also required.

A big wall of sub-3 standing on the runner!

Sub (the English word "sub" means "lower") 3 refers to completing a 42.195km full marathon in less than 3 hours.

The average pace for achieving sub-3 is 4 minutes and 15 seconds per kilometer, 14.1 km per hour. Since the marathon course has ups and downs, pace allocation is important.
At the Tokyo Marathon 2023 held in March 2023, 4.9% of the respondents achieved sub-3, indicating the high degree of difficulty.

In addition to sub 3, there are sub 3.5 (less than 3 hours and 30 minutes) and sub 4 (less than 4 hours), and many runners are working toward their respective goals.

Toby, prefectural office staff who challenges sub-3 this time

Toby, a staff member of the Kochi Prefectural Office, was invited by an acquaintance about four years ago to run at a half marathon, and he woke up to the marathon because he was able to run in a good time unexpectedly. To date, we have been involved in marathons, including full marathons and half marathons, and have participated in about 10 tournaments inside and outside the prefecture.

In the 9th Kochi Ryoma Marathon in 2023, the goal was 3 hours, 2 minutes, 58 seconds. In 2 minutes and 58 seconds, you can achieve sub-3! Some may think that it's very difficult to cut off one minute and one second.

Physical strength measurement at "Kochi Sports Science Center"!

In order to work toward your goals, it is important to understand the current state of your body and to know what kind of training you need in the future. Therefore, we decided to measure Toby's physical strength at the Kochi Sports Science Center (SSC), which provides support for improving competitiveness and promoting health!

This measurement was also carried out before the Kochi Ryoma Marathon 2024, and the measurement results were "Sport! It will be announced at KOCHI, so if you are a runner, please refer to it in the future.

"Kochi Sports Science Center" is located in Kochi Prefectural Haruno General Sports Park, the goal venue for the Kochi Ryoma Marathon. Here, in addition to specialized physical fitness measurement and general physical fitness measurement, we provide training support and nutrition support based on measurement results by dedicated staff.

We also provide support according to the competition type, and there is also running support specializing in the Kochi Ryoma Marathon, so it may be a good idea to get guidance before the tournament.

To know your body, measure your physical strength!

Specialized physical strength measurement includes instantaneous power measurement and endurance physical strength measurement courses. This time, it was a measurement for marathon training, so I chose the endurance system.

First of all, receive an explanation of what kind of measurement to be performed, then go to physical measurement.

Toby's weight was 71.3 kg, skeletal muscle mass was 35.4 kg, body fat was 9.3 kg, body fat percentage was 13%. Muscle balance is indicated by the right arm (3.27 kg/99.0%), left arm (3.22 kg/97.6%), trunk (25.9 kg/98.6%), right leg (10.08 kg/110.0%), left leg (10.02 kg/109.3%).

Yes, Toby! I usually run, so my muscle balance is good, and my legs muscle mass is higher than standard!

Next, we performed an equal-speed muscle strength measurement to measure leg strength and trunk muscle strength ratio.
The numerical value is expressed in the maximum torque (Nm) that represents the ability of the highest muscular power output during the operation.

The extension, which is the force to extend the legs, is the right leg (138.7Nm), the left leg (150.9Nm), and the bending force that pulls the legs is the right leg (106.6Nm) and the left leg (107.7Nm).
Strength, which is the back muscle, was (270.6Nm), and the bend, which is the abdominal strength, was (182.4Nm).
In both leg and back muscle strength, the numerical value that is the ratio of bend 6 compared to the extension 10 seems to have a good muscle balance. I'm looking forward to seeing how your training will change.

Finally, the maximum oxygen intake is measured. The amount of oxygen that could be taken in per minute was (3351 ml/min), and the weight per kilogram was (47.0 ml/min/kg).
The average value of general adolescent men (including general runners) measured by the Kochi Sports Science Center is (2975 ml/min, 46.6 ml/min/kg), so Toby's endurance is high.

From the trainer, the muscle strength balance is good and there is no problem, but it is better to focus on an oxygen-free exercise such as interval running so that the time to reach the turning point (AT point) switching from aerobic exercise to an oxygen-free exercise can be longer. I received advice.

Toby has finished measuring physical strength. “It was more intense physical measurements than I could imagine. I was able to know the current body while using muscle strength that I wasn't familiar with." "Based on the advice from the trainer, I would like to incorporate training centered on an interval that repeats dash and jogging so that I can run at a fast speed without raising my heart rate!"

The contents and state of the training up to the "Kochi Ryoma Marathon 2024" will be sent from Instagram (@sporu.kochi), so please begging if you can achieve sub 3! I'd like an ale to Toby, a prefectural office staff who works hard for both work and training.

[Additional Information] Check out the practice scene on SNS!

Spool now! On Kochi's Facebook page and Instagram, we regularly post Toby's practice scenery. Please follow your account and support us!

[Prefectural office man "Toby" aims for sub-3 in 100 days! ]

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