Running 5 km (concerns only ppl who run often and have experience in long distance races)

Curtruns

I would suggest getting a book on running and following a basic plan instead of requesting info on a forum. Too many highly opinionated people located on these forums. I like Runner's World Complete Book of Running.

riffraff2112

It is all relative. 27min is my best ever 5km but I do not consider myself an avid runner. I enjoy jogging, but not interested in winning races.
Keep on running, lots of great places to help you get better/faster.

Congrats and good job

litsy3

If I want to win a race I pick one with slower people in it.

I think as a relative beginner you need to build up the distance you are running at a slow pace rather than racing every two weeks. If you find you are the sort of woman runner who can do sub 18 it'll take a few years of decent mileage.

Katerina9408

Curt911 wrote: »

I would suggest getting a book on running and following a basic plan instead of requesting info on a forum. Too many highly opinionated people located on these forums. I like Runner's World Complete Book of Running.

I've visited their site.Looks good.I def need spend some time for it !

mreichard

Second the advice to train with others. It's much easier. Also, one thing to put your efforts in perspective --- lots of people say that once you are beyond being a beginner, your racing success this year is mostly about what you did last year and the year before. I've also been advised (by a guy who runs 14:3X 5Ks and coaches college athletes) that it takes about 6 years to fully train your aerobic capacity. Just something to keep in mind if you are serious about wanting to win a race some day. Build slowly.

Also, don't let people tell you that you can't do it. I know a lady who started running in her mid 50s, discovered that she loved it and became a competitive age-group marathoner (i.e. regularly winning her age group in small/medium) in just a few years. It can be done. If you are running 8:40 miles on virtually no training as an adult, you may have some natural talent, which helps.

Elise4270

litsy3 wrote: »

If I want to win a race I pick one with slower people in it.

Yep! I placed second in my age group with a 35+ 5k! Woot woot! Lol!

MeanderingMammal

This thread makes my brain hurt.

Essentially, as a relative beginner, the way to improve is to develop consistency. So get onto a 10K training plan that has you running 3-4 times per week. You'll see an improvement in your 5Km time quite quickly.

Once you've got some decent training volume under your belt then you can go onto a specific 5Km performance improvement plan. That'll probably involve about 40km per week, so it'll take you some time to get to that volume safely.

On non running days, continue with the bodyweight work to help mitigate for any injury risk and that'll help with the leg power.

dbmata

Katerina9408 wrote: »

HI So I did my first 5 km run today....but I am not so happy with the result ( 39 place out of 68). So what do you recommened that I should do to have more resistance and improve my result ? They make this race every week once so I think to go at least 2 times a month.And when have more experience one day (probably after a lot of time ) I might do 10 km or 15 km but first I want to get better at this.

Fast 5km? Get a strong 15km time.

Mr_Knight

To run a 5k really well, you need to be able to run a 10k pretty well. There are lots of "serious" programs to get you running a 5k well - lots of great college coaches out there - here is one that is a pretty typical mix of endurance, intervals, and power.

http://running.competitor.com/2011/06/training/the-10-week-advanced-5k-training-plan_31348/2

This assumes you're already able to run for a full 60 minutes without difficulty and without needing full-on rest days - ie, it's fairly advanced. If you're not there yet, I would suggest a "learn to 10k" program first.

And I can't stress this enough - Build. Up. SLOW.

Your body WILL thank you for it! :drinker: