Pacesmith Is Live
Every Tuesday I ship something. This week it is Pacesmith, a VDOT running calculator for iOS.
If you train with Jack Daniels’ running formula, you know what VDOT is. It is the number that ties your current fitness to five training zones, from easy runs to all-out repetitions. The problem is that the official VDOT app limits free users to three calculations a day, and the alternatives are either $12.99 a month or last updated in 2015. Pacesmith does the same job for $1.99, once, with no account and no network required.
What is in the app
There are five tools, organized as tabs.
VDOT and training zones — The main screen. Enter a recent race result and the app calculates your VDOT score and breaks it into five color-coded training zones: easy, marathon pace, threshold, interval, and repetition. Each zone shows pace ranges in miles and kilometers with a one-line description of what you are actually training.
Race predictor — Enter a recent race time and distance, and the app applies the Riegel formula to predict your finish time at every standard distance from the mile to the marathon. Tap any result to copy it.
Pace calculator — A three-field solver. Enter any two of distance, time, and pace and it solves for the third. The unit toggle between miles and kilometers sticks between sessions.
Split planner — Enter a target distance and goal time. The app generates your splits with either even pacing or a negative split strategy with a configurable finish acceleration from 1 to 10 percent.
History — The last ten calculations are saved automatically. Tap any entry to reload it into the VDOT tab.
Why I built it
I have been training with VDOT on and off for a few years. Every time I pick it back up I reach for a calculator, and every calculator I find is either broken on modern iOS, paywalled behind a subscription, or missing features I actually use. The official app caps you at three free calculations a day, which is enough until it is not. I did not want to pay $12.99 a month to run a math formula.
Pacesmith does the math correctly, works offline, and costs less than a dollar. That is the whole pitch.
Pricing
The VDOT and training zones tab is free with no limits. A one-time $1.99 purchase unlocks the race predictor, pace calculator, and split planner permanently. No subscription, no account, no ads.
Download it at pacesmith.app.