VDOT Calculator

Enter a recent race (a flat course in fair conditions) to get your VDOT, Jack Daniels training paces and equivalent times at other distances.

This calculator provides general educational information, not medical advice. See our disclaimer.

What VDOT is

VDOT is a performance-based fitness score from Jack Daniels, widely regarded as one of the greatest running coaches of all time. Instead of a lab VO₂max test, it estimates your fitness from a recent race result — Daniels originally called it a "pseudo VO₂max." It rolls the three main predictors of endurance performance — aerobic capacity (VO₂max), running economy, and lactate threshold — into a single number you can train from.

Why those three matter: two runners with the same VO₂max and the same top speed won't finish together. The one who is more economical and holds a higher lactate threshold can sustain a faster pace before fatigue climbs — and that's the edge VDOT captures.

When you have more than one recent race, use the highest VDOT — it best describes your current fitness.

These tables date back decades, but they hold up remarkably well — in the lab, it's rare to find an endurance athlete whose predicted times are meaningfully off. Don't try to beat the assigned training intensities, though: to train faster, first justify a higher VDOT with a stronger race.

How to use each training pace

Easy (E)

Warm-ups, cool-downs, recovery runs, and most long runs. Roughly 59–74% of VDOT — conversational effort that keeps you at or below ~2 mmol/L of blood lactate (the zone-two range). Because fatigue rises non-linearly, easy running lets you accumulate a lot of low-cost volume: it builds capillary density and mitochondrial capacity — lactate itself is a key signal for mitochondrial biogenesis — and improves your ability to use fat as fuel. It isn't more effective than harder work; it's more recoverable, so you can do more of it. You may land up to ~20 seconds per mile slower or faster on a given day depending on weather, terrain, and fatigue.

Marathon (M)

Steady runs or long repeats at projected marathon race pace. Useful for marathon race-specific work, or as a slightly firmer alternative to Easy on long-run days for beginners.

Threshold (T)

Comfortably hard tempo runs or cruise intervals (about 83–88% of VDOT). Steady 20–40 minute efforts, or repeats of 5–15 minutes with short rests. This is training right around your lactate threshold — the pace where lactate production starts to outrun your ability to clear it. Raising that threshold means you can hold a faster pace before fatigue climbs, which is often the difference-maker in a race. In trained athletes the threshold can sit as high as ~80–85% of VO₂max, versus around 70% in less-trained runners.

Interval (I)

VO₂max work at roughly 95–100% of VDOT — hard, but not all-out. Best as 3–5 minute repeats (commonly 800–1000 m) with jog recoveries of similar duration. "All-out" here really means about 85–95% of max: you can't hold true VO₂max for minutes at a time. Stresses aerobic power and lifts both VO₂max and lactate threshold without tipping too far into anaerobic fatigue.

Repetition (R)

Short, fast reps (200–400 m) with full recovery at about 105–110% of VDOT — similar to current mile / 1500 m race pace. Improves speed and running economy. Recover long enough that each rep feels as crisp as the last.

References

Daniels, J. (2000). Determining your current level of fitness. CoachesEducation.com.
Daniels, J. Threshold training: Finding your VDOT. Runner's World (excerpt from Daniels' Running Formula).
Daniels, J., & Gilbert, J. Oxygen Power: Performance Tables for Distance Runners. VDOT tables and training-intensity guidance; interactive reference at vdoto2.com.

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