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10 Running Songs To The Pace Of An Average Marathon

Using the average marathon finishing time for women last year, Run Hundred developed this playlist to help you hold the pace.

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marathon playlist

In 2015, women completed marathons with an average finish time of 4:45:30—according to Running USA’s annual report. This corresponds to roughly 10:52 per mile, which—in turn—translates to around 141 steps per minute. To help you approximate this pace in your own workout, we’ve compiled a playlist focusing on songs within 5 beats per minute (BPM) of this tempo.

As a rule, rock songs are almost always faster than their pop counterparts, and that’s reflected in the mix. To that end, the tempo moves up progressively starting with solo artists like of Rihanna, Meghan Trainor, and Lady Gaga before moving on to bands like Sheppard, The National Parks, and Blink-182. By running to the beat of these songs, you’ll move at roughly the pace of a marathon. Whether you’re training for one currently or just curious, this should give you some idea what to expect. To see how it feels, just grab your sneakers and press play.

Songs For The Average Marathon

Rihanna – SOS – 137 BPM

Meghan Trainor – Lips Are Movin – 138 BPM

One Direction – Drag Me Down – 139 BPM

Elle King – Ex’s & Oh’s – 140 BPM

Lady GaGa – Applause (DJ White Shadow Trap Remix) – 141 BPM

Sheppard – Geronimo – 142 BPM

The Weeknd – The Hills (Daniel Ennis Remix) – 126 BPM

The National Parks – As We Ran – 144 BPM

Blink-182 – All the Small Things – 145 BPM

Bruno Mars – Locked Out of Heaven – 146 BPM

To find more workout songs, folks can check out the free database at Run Hundred. Visitors can browse the song selections there by genre, tempo, and era?to find the music that best fits with their particular workout routine.

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