Running advice - where to go next?

deluxmary2000

I just got back into running after an extended hiatus following baby #2. I've always been pretty slow - before kids my 5K PR was 29 minutes and my half marathon PR was 2:36. And now I'm even slower. I trained for and "ran/walked" a half marathon last month in 2:52, and while I'm super proud of finishing, I'm not pleased with the finish time because I know I can do better if I try.

I want to get FASTER, and I'm the kind of person who absolutely needs a training plan, so I'm trying to figure out which plan to use. Should I scale back down to a 5K training plan and work on getting faster at that distance first, or should I find another half marathon training plan and work on increasing my speed for longer distances and figure my shorter distance speed will just catch up?

My 2015 goals are a sub-2:30 half, and a 28-minute 5k.
Any suggestions for training plans that incorporate speed-work?

Thanks!

WickedPineapple

Have you tried Hal Higdon? It has training plans for a wide variety of running levels. http://www.halhigdon.com/training/

MeanderingMammal

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

My 2015 goals are a sub-2:30 half, and a 28-minute 5k.

In less than a month???

Anyway, lots of good plans out there with Higdon being pretty popular, as upthread.

Personally I use the endomondo planning tool, subject to a premium subscription, which is dynamic and pretty good.

deluxmary2000

MeanderingMammal wrote: »

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

My 2015 goals are a sub-2:30 half, and a 28-minute 5k.

In less than a month???

Anyway, lots of good plans out there with Higdon being pretty popular, as upthread.

Personally I use the endomondo planning tool, subject to a premium subscription, which is dynamic and pretty good.

lol - oops. 2016 goals, of course!

I actually have Endomondo premium because I was using it for run/walk interval tracking, so I'll definitely check out their training plans. Would you go with a half training plan, or start back down with a 5k?

MeanderingMammal

Since you completed 21.1 last month there seems little point in a 5K plan. I'd probably veer towards a 10K plan for 12 weeks and then move onto an HM plan to meet your calendar.

Personally I'm using it for a marathon cycle at the moment, first race in March.

gdyment

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

I just got back into running after an extended hiatus following baby #2. I've always been pretty slow - before kids my 5K PR was 29 minutes and my half marathon PR was 2:36. And now I'm even slower. I trained for and "ran/walked" a half marathon last month in 2:52, and while I'm super proud of finishing, I'm not pleased with the finish time because I know I can do better if I try.

I want to get FASTER, and I'm the kind of person who absolutely needs a training plan, so I'm trying to figure out which plan to use. Should I scale back down to a 5K training plan and work on getting faster at that distance first, or should I find another half marathon training plan and work on increasing my speed for longer distances and figure my shorter distance speed will just catch up?

My 2015 goals are a sub-2:30 half, and a 28-minute 5k.
Any suggestions for training plans that incorporate speed-work?

Thanks!

How many hours can you commit to training per week? Your half is slower than your 5k relatively - should be 2:15ish if you are <30 on the 5.

deluxmary2000

gdyment wrote: »

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

I just got back into running after an extended hiatus following baby #2. I've always been pretty slow - before kids my 5K PR was 29 minutes and my half marathon PR was 2:36. And now I'm even slower. I trained for and "ran/walked" a half marathon last month in 2:52, and while I'm super proud of finishing, I'm not pleased with the finish time because I know I can do better if I try.

I want to get FASTER, and I'm the kind of person who absolutely needs a training plan, so I'm trying to figure out which plan to use. Should I scale back down to a 5K training plan and work on getting faster at that distance first, or should I find another half marathon training plan and work on increasing my speed for longer distances and figure my shorter distance speed will just catch up?

My 2015 goals are a sub-2:30 half, and a 28-minute 5k.
Any suggestions for training plans that incorporate speed-work?

Thanks!

How many hours can you commit to training per week? Your half is slower than your 5k relatively - should be 2:15ish if you are <30 on the 5.

Not terribly many. I can usually carve out as much time as needed on Sundays to do long runs, but the week is much more difficult. Realistically, I'm looking at two 60-minute weekday sessions. I do crosstrain (Crossfit) 2-3 times a week as well.

And yeah, all the calculators tell me I SHOULD be faster at the half distance based on my shorter runs, but I just haven't been able to make it happen yet.

Stoshew71

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

I want to get FASTER, and I'm the kind of person who absolutely needs a training plan, so I'm trying to figure out which plan to use. Should I scale back down to a 5K training plan and work on getting faster at that distance first, or should I find another half marathon training plan and work on increasing my speed for longer distances and figure my shorter distance speed will just catch up?
Thanks!

More miles. Unless you have been running for at least a year consistently, more miles will get you faster.
Do the Half marathon plan. Build an aerobic base.

gdyment

deluxmary2000 wrote: »

Not terribly many. I can usually carve out as much time as needed on Sundays to do long runs, but the week is much more difficult. Realistically, I'm looking at two 60-minute weekday sessions. I do crosstrain (Crossfit) 2-3 times a week as well.

30-45 min sat, 90 min sun, do 20-30 min jogs before or after your crossfit workouts while you're still sweaty/dressed for it. A 60 on Tues and Thurs and you've got tons of time. Get the miles in for 3 months and you'll be stunned how the time drops.

hapa11

I'm in the middle of Hal Higdon's half marathon training (12 week) program. I use the Wahoo fitness app to track my pace and distance. It has definitely made a difference in my speed and endurance. Good luck on your goals!

djscavone

Question for you: Is your breathing and heart rate fine and you find fatigue in legs hold you back or are your legs strong but your breathing gets labored and slows you down? In my 5K's for speed my legs are fine I run out of breath trying anything sub pace 7.5 ish. an average 8/mile pace is about it for me. When I go slow for a half my breathing is fine but leg strength peters out at mile 10 or 11 of I try anything beneath a pace of 9. For me the last year I have focused on the miles and not the clock. The more I Put in at a 9.5 training pace the longer I could run and then with added strength exercises and yoga for flexibility the speed (if I can call it that) came in slowly. Stoshew71and gdyment I think summed it up well.

mkakids

And yeah, all the calculators tell me I SHOULD be faster at the half distance based on my shorter runs, but I just haven't been able to make it happen yet. [/quote]

This is me too. Almost exactly. My 5k pr is 27:28, and half is 2:38:00.

Stoshew71

mkakids wrote: »

And yeah, all the calculators tell me I SHOULD be faster at the half distance based on my shorter runs, but I just haven't been able to make it happen yet. ---

This is me too. Almost exactly. My 5k pr is 27:28, and half is 2:38:00.

Calculators tend to favor more experienced and elite runners.

fizziofinn

Check out www.jeffgalloway.com
He does very effective training schedules over many distances using run/walk/run. You will not get injured snd you will be able to capitalise on your faster shorter distances to develop s faster time on a longer event. I promise you it works and is user friendly

mdv505

You need to have a good mix of run types, mixing up shorter speed sessions, tempo sessions and the long runs. Build up the long runs in distance slowly to prevent injury. Each session will provide different benefits.

ActiveApril

My favorite is this 3 day a week training plan. It allows for cross training, is very specific and did make me race faster:
http://www.runnersworld.com/race-training/3-day-half-marathon-training-plan

7lenny7

Stoshew71 wrote: »

More miles. Unless you have been running for at least a year consistently, more miles will get you faster.
Do the Half marathon plan. Build an aerobic base.

^ This!

I went from being a non-runner to a sub 2:00 half marathon in under 6 months. My PR in the 5K is 26:32 after 5 months of running. 98% of my runs were at conversational pace. I build up the miles slowly and worked up to a few 40+ mile weeks before tapering for my half. All those easy miles allowed me to hit those numbers. I plan on adding speedwork in 2016 now that I have a solid base built up.