Two Charts to End All Pacing Mysteries!

Last updated: October 30, 2025

As runners, we’ve all been there: you finish a run, you look at your pace data, and it looks like a mountain range drawn by a toddler. That thin, shaky line that jumps wildly? That's the Moment-to-Moment Pace. It reflects everything—GPS jitter, a quick correction in your stride, the moment you stepped around a puddle—and honestly, it makes it impossible to tell what your true effort was.

I wanted data that told a story, not a loud, confusing noise. That’s why I was so excited to bring these two charts to life. They finally separate the tiny, meaningless wiggles from the big, important pacing trends.

Chart 1: The Pace Breakdown – Separating Noise from Effort

We solved the "wiggle" problem with a two-line approach, and the key is the new Smoothed Pace Trend line:

• The Problem: The thin, gray line (Moment-to-Moment Pace) is essential for seeing everything, but it’s too jumpy for analysis. Especially since our Apple Watch data stream is sometimes sparse, a small 10-second average just wasn't enough smoothing.
• The Fix: We now use a 30-second moving average to create the thick, blue line (Smoothed Pace Trend). This line is built for one thing: to show your sustained effort. It ignores those fast, fleeting spikes and dips to reveal the deliberate changes in your speed.
• How I Use It: I look at the blue line to check my tempo runs—it should be flat! I use the gray line only when I want to confirm the exact speed and duration of a short interval or see where I totally stopped for that traffic light.

Chart 2: The Total Run Efficiency – Did I Fade? Yes or No.

When you finish a run, the absolute most important question for long-distance runners is: "Did I slow down in the second half?" Previous charts made this feel like a guessing game. Not anymore.

• The Problem: The old way (just looking at pace splits) forces you to mentally average and compare segment times. It’s hard to see the big picture.
• The Fix: This chart plots your total distance against your total time. The slope of the line is your pace. We add a straight Average Pace Line as your perfect reference point.
• How I Use It: This chart is now my go-to for macro-level consistency. If my run line hugs that straight reference line, I nailed the pacing! If the line starts to curve off to the right in the second half, I know instantly that I faded. It’s the clearest, most undeniable visual proof of your pacing strategy—or lack thereof!

What Your Charts Are Telling You About Your Running

By looking at these two charts together, you can quickly diagnose your performance and adjust your plan for the next run.

Endurance and Consistency

When you're training for a consistent pace (like a marathon or easy run), you want control.

• What to look for: In the Pace Breakdown, the blue line should be as flat as possible. In the Total Run Efficiency chart, your run line should hug the straight Average Pace Line, showing no noticeable curvature.
• Insight: Consistency means you managed your energy perfectly. You were efficient and controlled.

High-Intensity Execution

If you're doing intervals, you're looking for high effort and controlled recovery.

• What to look for: In the Pace Breakdown, look for clear, large peaks on the gray line, followed by distinct valleys. The key is that your blue line (30s MA) should not jump wildly; it should only show a subtle, overall rise that reflects the increased average effort of that block.
• Insight: The blue line confirms that your training block was harder overall, but it smooths out the noise so you know you're not judging your run based on one single fast sprint.

I'm incredibly happy with how these new visualizations turned out. They take away the guesswork and give us runners the clean, insightful data we need to truly understand our bodies and our progress. Dive in, and let me know what stories your new charts are telling you!