5k/10k training schedule?

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MoscowFlyer Nov 2012 7:59am, 20 Nov 2012 2,608 posts	0 MoscowFlyer I've decided that next year I'm going to stick to 5k/10k as my body struggles with all the training for the longer distances. Just wondering how much different training should be from what I was doing for a half? So Tuesday is usually intervals which I'll keep. Thursday tends to be a quicker run up to 8-9 miles, so progressive, tempo or alternates for example. Weds and Sun would be my long slow run and Mon and Fri would be a slowish run of 6 miles or so. How would things change for a 10k training plan? How long does my long slow run actually need to be, I'm assuming just 8 miles will cover that? Any advice would be appreciated.
Curly45 Nov 2012 8:19am, 20 Nov 2012 1,267 posts	0 Curly45 When I did specific 5k training my week used to look a bit like this: Mon - easy 4 Tues easy 3 am, interval session pm (alternating weeks between something like 200m reps and longer reps) Weds easy 8 Thurs off Fri easy 3 am, faster run pm (usually a multipace tempo such as Steady/Threshold/Steady) Sat - easy 6 Sun - long 12-14 So you can see it looks a lot like the training I do now, the main differences being a few miles less on the long run and shorter more intense work on the Tuesday session, what you need to do is start the reps with long recoveries and as you go through the training aim to reduce the recovery time but keep the rep pace consistent. Short intense intervals give you good fitness gains but that means you can easily injure yourself by pushing too hard hence reducing recoveries rather than making reps faster! Alternating sessions means you train different systems and not over stress one thing (and should help avoid the plateau) like all training plans it has a shelf life: 12 weeks is probably the longest you want to go, then launch into a competition period or a target race, then have an easy week or two and start again. Its not an easy option by any means but it does mean all the runs are well under 2 hours which allows more flexibility for the time poor! Gobi and others can probably offer more detailed advice about what reps are best depending on your fitness now and what you lack etc.
MoscowFlyer Nov 2012 8:23am, 20 Nov 2012 2,609 posts	0 MoscowFlyer Cheers. Fitness wise I'm ok, I've been doing the sort of thing I put in the first post for a while now even with no target races, so for intervals I've been doing 12x400 off 90secs, 6x1k off 2 mins, things like that. Time is another thing, I tend to use my lunch breaks for most of my training so that's just an hour from Mon-Fri. Then weekends, although I prefer to spend time on the bike now, hence not wanting to run too long if I don't really need to. Interesting you still went 12-14 miles on the long run, I wasn't thinking I'd need to do that. Was that just through personal choice of wanting to go that long?
Curly45 Nov 2012 8:33am, 20 Nov 2012 1,268 posts	0 Curly45 I'd say you'd want t least 10 miles for 10k because otherwise you risk fading at the end of the race when you run one, but also because you dont want the multipace tempo to be the longest run of the week (which with 3 miles wu, 1m cd and 3-4m at pace it could well be)... Now whether you could get around that with doubles I dont know...I suspect not but you could give it a try!
Curly45 Nov 2012 8:35am, 20 Nov 2012 1,269 posts	0 Curly45 Also, if you are doing a lot of work at pace already you will need to consider how to keep it fresh over the coming weeks - it takes me about 4 weeks of one session before I plateau, most people is 6 times, but if you look at how to progress the sessions you have already done that would help. Sorry sessions are not my strong point, but someone like Duckinator or Gobi should know
Gobi Nov 2012 9:08am, 20 Nov 2012 49,219 posts	0 Gobi Indeed, surprised MF didn't just drop me a mail :¬) The bike will serve you well MF but when it comes down to it running is about specificity so you need to do enough of it. Probably get away with 10 miles for 10km training but don't think that by only doing short distance it makes it easier. The simple fact remains that not everyones limiting factor when racing shorter distances is a lack of speedwork, especially in a 10km it is still a matter of aerobic endurance letting them down. So looking at Curlys training plan that is keeping a very strong aerobic base whereas if I was confident about that part I would be looking at various paced speedwork in a more Hard/Medium/Easy manner rather than traditional Hard Easy system. Again though it is knowing the body and how much it can cope with.
MoscowFlyer Nov 2012 9:43am, 20 Nov 2012 2,611 posts	0 MoscowFlyer Was going to send you a mail G, but thought it a bit cheeky to try and tap into your knowledge directly. I guess my issue is I haven't any 10k races until Feb but still want to keep ticking along, I enjoy the speed sessions and would rather keep a decent level of training going over the festive period. I'll do a few Parkruns in the meantime, I'd say at a push I'm probably at around 19:30ish for 5k at the moment, next year I'm looking for a PB so have just over a minute to lose off that but I'm happy to wait a while to get to that level again. I think the bike will take priority next year though, hence me trying to fit most sessions in within an hour.
Gobi Nov 2012 9:55am, 20 Nov 2012 49,222 posts	0 Gobi Feb is fine you can relax for the rest of November and start to add sessions in through December and January. For now I do NO speedwork on the bike or running as I get stale if I do. That said I would not have a focus race in Feb :¬) You cannot stay sharp for 12 months of the year and it makes no sense to try.
MoscowFlyer Nov 2012 10:31am, 20 Nov 2012 2,612 posts	0 MoscowFlyer Ok, cheers. Not doing any speed sessions on the bike yet, just building the base over winter. Will start doing the odd Parkrun just to see me through until the serious stuff.