Alisa Vainio does not follow her heart rate during races, and she says she never has. The 28-year-old goes into the Birmingham EM marathon as the pre-race gold favorite, with a route that is built to punish hesitation rather than reward caution.
"En seuraa kisan aikana sykettä ollenkaan. En ole koskaan seurannut." Vainio said that during a marathon too many things affect performance for heart-rate monitoring to feel necessary. Her approach is simpler: feel the race, watch what others do and trust her own sensations.
Birmingham EM and 42 195 meters
The Birmingham EM marathon will be run over 42 195 meters on Sunday at 7.30 in the morning. Vainio said the start area has to feel like the moment when she wants to go running, and she added that the opening kilometers must feel easy even if she is entering the championship as the top favorite.
Jarmo Viskari said the Birmingham EM marathon route will be the toughest championship marathon of all time. The course includes climbs, many turns and cobblestones, and Birmingham will award the title rather than decide the race by time, which turns pacing into a tactical contest from the first steps.
Vainio, 20 kilometers
At around 20 kilometers, Vainio says fueling becomes especially important. She said liquid and energy have to be absorbed well so she does not run her legs out from under herself, and she listed energy bars, sports drink and water as enough for her.
That leaves her race-day logic narrowly defined: do not overreact to numbers, do not start too slowly, and do not waste the early stages trying to force a tempo the course may not allow. On a title course with climbs, turns and cobblestones, that makes feel and positioning part of the same calculation.
The open question now is whether Vainio’s no-heart-rate method gives her the right rhythm when the Birmingham EM starts at 7.30 on Sunday. If she wins, it will be because she judged the race by sensation and demand, not by the screen she never watches.
