diff --git a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
index 2cb33d7da..4d37926dd 100644
--- a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/beacon_chain.rs
@@ -131,7 +131,11 @@ const PREPARE_PROPOSER_HISTORIC_EPOCHS: u64 = 4;
 /// run the per-slot tasks (primarily fork choice).
 ///
 /// This prevents unnecessary work during sync.
-const MAX_PER_SLOT_FORK_CHOICE_DISTANCE: u64 = 4;
+///
+/// The value is set to 256 since this would be just over one slot (12.8s) when syncing at
+/// 20 slots/second. Having a single fork-choice run interrupt syncing would have very little
+/// impact whilst having 8 epochs without a block is a comfortable grace period.
+const MAX_PER_SLOT_FORK_CHOICE_DISTANCE: u64 = 256;
 
 /// Reported to the user when the justified block has an invalid execution payload.
 pub const INVALID_JUSTIFIED_PAYLOAD_SHUTDOWN_REASON: &str =
diff --git a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/state_advance_timer.rs b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/state_advance_timer.rs
index 48c0f2f8a..4359b6f1e 100644
--- a/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/state_advance_timer.rs
+++ b/beacon_node/beacon_chain/src/state_advance_timer.rs
@@ -38,7 +38,11 @@ use types::{AttestationShufflingId, EthSpec, Hash256, RelativeEpoch, Slot};
 const MAX_ADVANCE_DISTANCE: u64 = 4;
 
 /// Similarly for fork choice: avoid the fork choice lookahead during sync.
-const MAX_FORK_CHOICE_DISTANCE: u64 = 4;
+///
+/// The value is set to 256 since this would be just over one slot (12.8s) when syncing at
+/// 20 slots/second. Having a single fork-choice run interrupt syncing would have very little
+/// impact whilst having 8 epochs without a block is a comfortable grace period.
+const MAX_FORK_CHOICE_DISTANCE: u64 = 256;
 
 #[derive(Debug)]
 enum Error {