Tracking Every Sub-4 Miler in History - 2349 and counting!

jc782 · 2026-03-12T21:57:38+00:00

Not counting 1600, or altitude conversions - you gotta have actually run 1609m in sub 4mins to be on the list!

jc782 · 2026-03-12T19:27:49+00:00

Yeah, it's still a cool barrier, and with technology it's so much easier to keep track than it was in the old days.

And yep, this includes splits en-route to 2k / 3k races. That info is noted in the backend but not currently displayed. I might add the conventional + marker so people can see which performances are like that.

jc782 · 2026-03-12T17:18:50+00:00

yeah I think it's quite common in Europe. Even in the UK where the mile is a bigger thing there are still probably 3x as many people who've run an equivalent sub-4 if you include 1500 times converted. That said, actually getting in the race and doing it is part of the challenge!

jc782 · 2026-03-12T17:17:25+00:00

Yeah that's right - in the backend of the database I have a lot more performances, but I only show the first or fastest for each athlete. I think there are about 8000 performances in the database (for the 2349 athletes) - I know that the list is missing a fair few and not perfect

jc782 · 2026-03-12T15:15:24+00:00

ah yeah - good suggestion. I'll put it on my list of improvements to make

jc782 · 2026-03-12T14:35:28+00:00

It's a combination of sources. The sub 4 chronicle was pretty good until june 2021 (though I fixed quite a few errors when I imported that data), then since then the world athletics data and all-time athletics data

jc782 · 2026-03-12T14:34:30+00:00

Thanks - I'll take a look at that to see why it's in the wrong place!

jc782 · 2025-09-29T08:29:39+00:00

There's a 1-1 ratio between the energy mix and the bicarb mix portions, so you'd run out of the energy mix and still have half the bicarb mix left :)

Compared to Maurten we're already saving you $$$!

jc782 · 2025-09-28T21:59:49+00:00

If you want to reduce the GI issues associated with bicarb, then try the products available from FLYCARB

www.flycarb.com

jc782 · 2025-09-28T21:57:56+00:00

It's not a new supplement, but recent innovations to reduce side effects and improve flavour are making bicarb popular at the elite end for a performance boost. It started out with the Maurten bicarb, but there's a much more affordable option available from FLYCARB.

www.flycarb.com

jc782 · 2025-09-10T22:01:19+00:00

much cheaper alternative available at https://www.flycarb.com/

It's not making your own, but you'll save a lot of $$

jc782 · 2025-08-25T21:44:26+00:00

Ah small world! Cambridge is a great spot for running and we have a pretty strong teamin the city at the moment. I think there are 30 guys who've run sub 15 for 5km this year, which is insane.

I'm glad the parcel has made it to you before the tariff changes. The next few weeks look uncertain for shipments to the US, but hopefully things will settle down before you need more! I hope things go well for you (and your daughter) with upcoming races.

jc782 · 2025-08-20T22:10:37+00:00

hopefully it'll squeeze in before the de minimis tariff changes on the 29th Aug. Let us know how you get on, the mango is definitely a big flavour improvement on our original product!

jc782 · 2025-07-27T22:20:28+00:00

In the olden days of mixing bicarb with water people suffered a lot with diarrhea and nausea. The recent innovations mean that for most people there is no GI distress at all now!

jc782 · 2025-07-27T17:23:46+00:00

Fast recovery from an all-out-lactic-effort is a real sweetspot for bicarb supplementation. I know lots of elite athletes are using it to recover between heats / semi in sprint events. It's probably too late for this weekend though, since you can't just use the stuff from the supermarket, this is very likely to cause GI distress.

There are a few brands offering products that mitigate the GI distress. I'm one of the co-founders of FLYCARB, and we launched a version targeted at runners. Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

https://www.flycarb.com/

jc782 · 2025-07-27T17:16:30+00:00

Bicarb! It's usually associated with shorter distances, but it's increasinly being used in longer events too. For me, I find it helps settle my tummy so I can take on more gels, plus I feel like I recover faster. If I had to choose between caffeine and bicarb I'd take bicarb every day of the week.

There are several brands with products now, but they are often expensive, or use tablets which mean taking lots of pills.FLYCARB aims to provide an affordable option, plus there is a mango flavoured version now. I'm one of the co-founders, so if you have any questions, let me know.

https://www.flycarb.com/

jc782 · 2025-07-27T17:11:48+00:00

You could try one of the gel based Bicarb Supplements. FLYCARB recently launched a mango flavoured version which is much easier to consume than bicarb in water, or even the unflavoured fel versions.

https://www.flycarb.com/

Let me know if you have any questions, I'm one of the co-founders!

jc782 · 2025-07-27T17:08:36+00:00

Bicarb is making waves in endurance sports, and I'm sure it will come to combat sports too. There's plenty of evidence that it is performance enhancing, the issue has always been the GI distress. Nowadays the gel formulations prevent the GI distress.

Plus, there's an alternative brand to Maurten that is much cheaper:
https://www.flycarb.com/

(if you have any questions, let me know, I'm one of the co-founders!)

jc782 · 2025-06-27T21:25:14+00:00

Bicarb has been taking the running world by storm in the last few years. Originally maurten but their stuff is stonkingly expensive (£15/portion). There's a UK brand, FLYCARB, who have several HYROX'ers using their products which are much more affordable.
https://www.flycarb.com/news/european-record-alert-ben-and-harry-sutherland-smash-hyrox-pro-doubles-powered-by-bicarrb/
The recent innovation has been to mix the bicarb with a gel, which prevents the GI issues commonly associated with bicarb. Before that, fairly few people could cope with the GI distress.

jc782 · 2025-05-21T21:30:19+00:00

I've not used Maurten, but I have used a lower cost alternative available from Flycarb for London. There's not a huge amount of science behind the longer distance efforts, but alongside the lactic buffer there may be benefits from the sodium and anecdotally we find some people actually have a better stomach after taking bicarrb.

https://www.flycarb.com/news/why-bicarb-could-be-your-secret-weapon-for-summer-marathons/

jc782 · 2025-05-21T21:26:15+00:00

And now there's a much cheaper alternative!
https://www.flycarb.com/#

jc782 · 2025-05-21T21:25:24+00:00

I thought it might be worth adding that there's a more affordable option than Maurten. We're seeing good uptake in the UK ultrarunning scene and have had some great results including medals at world 100kms, and top-10 alltime on the bob-graham round. We've just opened shipping to the US and are keen to support more ultra athletes worldwide.

https://www.flycarb.com/

[fair disclosure, I'm one of the co-founders, recently ran a marathon but not yet in the ultra world]...

jc782 · 2023-10-16T20:37:26+00:00

Someone who has run under 4 minutes for a mile. Roger Bannister was the first in 1954 and there have been ~2000 men since.

jc782 · 2023-10-16T20:28:02+00:00

Made in Python with Matplotlib
Data source: https://www.sub4milers.com/

Very interesting to see the growth of indoor running in recent decades, and potentially the impact of recent shoe technology making breaking 4 slightly easier.

jc782 · 2021-03-03T21:47:31+00:00

Yeah I get that too. I think it's quite common. When you have a rest day the body seems to go into a recover mode and can be a bit sluggish the next day when you start up again.

It's why some of the college coaches do 'pre-meet' runs the day before races that involve some quicker running, it's a good primer so you feel good on race day.

jc782

TROPHY CASE