10K in 3 weeks!

Ny_meria
Ny_meria Posts: 6 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello,
I am a complete noob when it comes to walking/running long distances. In Jan, I had signed up for a 10 K which is supposed to happen on 22nd of May in Chicago.
I was planning on training for it, but did not end up doing it. I was planning on cancelling my spot, but realized that I would be failing more if i cancel it ,than if i go there and walk/run as much as I can.
I have been working out regularly, but more on the weight lifting side. My stamina is very poor. I can walk a 5k on a treadmill in 58 minutes.

I would still like to go to this 10k and give it an honest shot and would like to train for the 3 weeks that I have. I am not keeping any timing goals. My only goal is to be able to finish this 10k.
Am I aiming too high? If the community can give me some tips on how to train for the next 3 weeks, that would be great!

Thanks!

Replies

  • sarabushby
    sarabushby Posts: 784 Member
    If you can walk 5k I don't see why you couldn't walk 10k. You may just want to check there is no cut-off time for the race, if not then over the next few wks have a go at reaching 7 or 8k. Maybe even try walk 4 mins, jog 1 min? But don't ramp up your training suddenly by too much otherwise you risk injury. Just go steady but try pushing yourself a little further out of your comfort zone. Good luck, I am sure you can do it and will feel amazing once you have.
  • KathyApplebaum
    KathyApplebaum Posts: 188 Member
    This will sure be a stretch, but here's what I think your best shot is for doing it.

    Starting TODAY, you want to train 3-4x / week. One of those times will be a long run (and by run, I mean walk or run/walk -- whatever you can do at a pace that lets you say a six word sentence without gasping for breath.) Today you'll do 4 miles, next week you'll do 4.5 miles, the week after you'll do 5, and the week after that is your 10k.

    One time per week you'll do speed work. (Even if you don't care about your time -- this will improve your stamina.) Do a 10 minute warm up at the six word pace, then do 5 sets of intervals, then 10 minute cool down. The intervals should be 2 minutes at a pace where you can only say 3 words before needing a breath, then a minute at a pace where you can fully recover before the next interval. Again, run, run-walk, or walk -- doesn't matter.

    Your remaining work outs will be the easy six-word pace. Do about 3 miles for these. Listen to your body, and if you have a couple of workouts in a row where the six word pace gets noticeably slower, take a couple of days off -- this is your body telling you you're doing too much.

    Get plenty of sleep before your 10k and get there early. Don't jack rabbit at the start -- it's easy to get hyped up by all the adrenaline and think "well, I've been walking in my workouts, but now I'm going to run/walk this whole thing!" BTDT -- run the race the way you've trained for it, and you'll reach the finish line.

    Good luck!
  • ThickMcRunFast
    ThickMcRunFast Posts: 22,511 Member
    so...

    Step 1- check to see if the race has a time limit. Plenty of people walk 10ks. If there is a time cut off, and its say, 2 hours or 1:45 or something, think hard about whether or not you want to still try it.

    Step 2- If there is no time limit, just walk get up to 4 or 4.5 miles walk/jogged before the 22nd. You'll be able to make it through the rest on race day. With only 3 weeks, you're not going to be able to do much. Easy walk/runs. Everything should be at a slow pace. If you are only doing a few treadmill sessions a week, I wouldn't jump into a 4x per week running schedule, and please, NO SPEED WORK - with no aerobic base and no musculature built up to handle it, jumping into sprint intervals is begging for an injury (plus, you won't actually get any real gain from it without that aforementioned aerobic base). The last thing you want to do is injury yourself because you wanted to jump into a 10k.
  • Ny_meria
    Ny_meria Posts: 6 Member
    Thanks so much for your replies!
    I decided that instead, I will start with a 5k that is being held locally. Makes more sense than spending 6-700 on flight+hotel and go for an event that is clearly not at my fitness level.
    Will train the next week for the 5k instead, using all the tips that you guys mentioned :)

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