Mile Time
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There's quite a bit of bad advice here.
If you need to increase your mile time, running LSD isn't going to get you there.. EVER
If you need to run 2 miles at 8 minutes(16 minute test pace) or 1 mile at 9 minute.
Running 5 miles at 11 minute(55 minutes) every day will never get you there. That might help with improving your capacity, but in order to increase your speed, you have to train your speed. That means running short distances with recovery time 1/4s, halfs, etc.0 -
I agree you need to train for the mile... not for anything longer.
Get out at your local highschool track and run track intervals. Google track intervals for some good plans.0 -
Just in terms of provenance of the advice, the fitness testing that I referred to above is military entry and annual. Similar entry tests for law enforcement and fire fighting.
When I've had candidates for entry and troops under my command the most effective way to develop then had been to train for distance. Up to 10K you'll make considerable gains in speed from running longer.
Fwiw the guidance that we give to candidates for entry to the military is essentially a Couch to 5K variant. Reaching a 9min mile should be very easy with that. Getting to a 6 min mile is much harder work and includes a lot of track work, as well as a fair portion of LSD. When I run a speed training session I'll easily cover a total of 10K doing it.1 -
The mile is a difficult beast to train for. It's really too far for most of us to sprint, but too short to really benefit from aerobic capacity. If I had to do it again (I did it back about 10 years ago) I'd mix up my training. I'd run 3-5 miles at an aerobic level, which is a slow, comfortable pace, maybe 4 days a week, and then throw in one day of intervals. Maybe 5 to 6 reps x 400m0
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It should be doable in the timeframe you have. If I were you, I would focus on running further distances but would also plan some shorter distance running at a faster pace as well. The longer runs will improve your cardio capacity, but you also need to work on running at a higher heart rate as well.
When I used to run a lot, I got to the point where I was running an hour a day for around 7 miles. I would use my heart rate monitor to more or less track my pace from a curiosity perspective and to see if I think I was being lazy and needed to up my pace. Over time, the pace of my first mile would increase on its own.
As you work up your ability to run longer, it is also important to work on the shorter distance. I got to the point where I could run an hour a day and would consider it a somewhat easy run. My body got used to it and my heart rate wasn't as high running at that level of exercise. Since I primarily did the same longer run, I didn't really know what pace I could carry for a full mile as I never tested it or knew my limits.
Not having trained at shorter runs made it more difficult for me to know my limits on shorter distances. It took a little bit of time to know how hard I could push myself running a 5k or even a mile. My heart rate monitor was helpful in determining it in my case but isn't a necessity. Since my body was used to the longer runs with a constant moderate heart rate, it was more stressful for me to run full out for a shorter distance as I wasn't used to functioning in the higher heart rate zone. It took a little time to figure out how long I can maintain my runs in a higher heart rate range which is why I recommend working in some shorter runs with a very high heart rate.
If you never plan on running further than a mile, you can skip everything I said above. If that is your only goal, I would just practice shorter distance running as fast as you can tolerate with trying to increase your speed.
At the end of the day, running more will improve your cardio capacity, but you can't learn how to run fast without trying to run fast...1 -
_blondevsworld wrote: »antennachick wrote: »10 is really good average imo...how far you planning on running? I found with time and more miles and speed sprints have helped me
It is only 1 mile, we just have to run it as fast as we can and it has to be in 9:00 or less!
Haha that makes sense ☺0 -
Below is a program I've used for preparing hundreds of folks for fitness testing before. Your time frame is quite generous, so honestly any program will work, The below is designed around a 6 week(90 day) timeframe.
Step 1: Ensure you can run the entire distance(pace doesn't matter) Walking isn't permitted.
Step 2: Commence training(3 days a week/every other day--depending on your schedule--on "rest days" you may rest or do other work so long as it doesn't hinder your progress. During training, you're going to run faster than your required test pace. So in your case 9 minute mile-2:15 quarters--Training pace will be an 8 minute mile
Day 1: 1/4 mile warmup, light run or walk. Run 1/4 mile or 2 minutes-Whichever comes first. If you ran too fast. Slow down---If you ran too slowly. Push a little harder. Recover 1/4-1/2 mile walk/slow run.... DO NOT JOG Repeat 4-5 times as tolerated. Log your times
Congratulations-you just ran your test distance faster than your test time.
Repeat 3x a week or every other day for 3 weeks. Rest 2 days-Run a measured test.
Rinse and repeat.
As you get faster, you can reduce the duration of the recovery and increase the number and speed of your training laps. The purpose of the recovery laps is to recover. Walking briskly and running slowly work equally well. Jogging can cause damage to knees/hips/ankles over time and is generally contraindicated.
This program works for test distances of 1-2 miles. For longer distances, You'll have to do endurance work.
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I won't pretend to be an expert, but I have always struggled with pacing. As a result, I end up starting out way too fast and then walking, then running way too fast, and repeating. Since you are only doing 1 mile, this might actually be a worthwhile strategy. In fact, I even saw an article about this method a few months ago (I think Runner's World, but might be wrong). The strategy is to sprint, then slow down and catch breath while walking, then sprint again once you have caught your breath, etc. My sprints are usually around 6-7 min. miles (though occasionally go as low as 4-5 min. miles), then walk for a bit, then start running (sprinting) again. Usually the first mile comes in around 8-8.5 min. It's harder to maintain an average speed using this method for longer distances, but since you are doing only 1 mile...
ETA: Surface makes a bit of a difference as well. I can sprint faster on even surfaces like roads (the 4-5 min. mile sprints) than on dirt trails (6-7 min. miles) because of the terrain... need to be more attentive to rocks, tree roots, etc. and it is more dangerous in those conditions to be running faster than you can look for things and process information... when things start to look blurry (due to speed, vertical movement, and heart rate/blood flow/O2 deficit), it can start to become dangerous.0 -
There's lots of great advice here...one thing you could also try is to really "kick" at the end of one or two runs a week; in other words, when you have a small amount, like 1/10th of a mile to go, just push it into the highest gear you have and GO.
When I broke 30 minutes in the 5k, I found that training for that last push got me to the finish line under time even though I felt like I was tapped out.0 -
midwesterner85 wrote: »I won't pretend to be an expert, but I have always struggled with pacing. As a result, I end up starting out way too fast and then walking, then running way too fast, and repeating. Since you are only doing 1 mile, this might actually be a worthwhile strategy. In fact, I even saw an article about this method a few months ago (I think Runner's World, but might be wrong). The strategy is to sprint, then slow down and catch breath while walking, then sprint again once you have caught your breath, etc. My sprints are usually around 6-7 min. miles (though occasionally go as low as 4-5 min. miles), then walk for a bit, then start running (sprinting) again. Usually the first mile comes in around 8-8.5 min. It's harder to maintain an average speed using this method for longer distances, but since you are doing only 1 mile...
ETA: Surface makes a bit of a difference as well. I can sprint faster on even surfaces like roads (the 4-5 min. mile sprints) than on dirt trails (6-7 min. miles) because of the terrain... need to be more attentive to rocks, tree roots, etc. and it is more dangerous in those conditions to be running faster than you can look for things and process information... when things start to look blurry (due to speed, vertical movement, and heart rate/blood flow/O2 deficit), it can start to become dangerous.
I used to have the same problem, and as I got older I couldn't recover fast enough. Garmin helped me slow down to go faster.
I could do 90 second 1/4, but only got around 14 minutes on my 1.5 mile test. Slowing down to a 2:06 mile helped me get under 13 minutes0 -
myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »midwesterner85 wrote: »I won't pretend to be an expert, but I have always struggled with pacing. As a result, I end up starting out way too fast and then walking, then running way too fast, and repeating. Since you are only doing 1 mile, this might actually be a worthwhile strategy. In fact, I even saw an article about this method a few months ago (I think Runner's World, but might be wrong). The strategy is to sprint, then slow down and catch breath while walking, then sprint again once you have caught your breath, etc. My sprints are usually around 6-7 min. miles (though occasionally go as low as 4-5 min. miles), then walk for a bit, then start running (sprinting) again. Usually the first mile comes in around 8-8.5 min. It's harder to maintain an average speed using this method for longer distances, but since you are doing only 1 mile...
ETA: Surface makes a bit of a difference as well. I can sprint faster on even surfaces like roads (the 4-5 min. mile sprints) than on dirt trails (6-7 min. miles) because of the terrain... need to be more attentive to rocks, tree roots, etc. and it is more dangerous in those conditions to be running faster than you can look for things and process information... when things start to look blurry (due to speed, vertical movement, and heart rate/blood flow/O2 deficit), it can start to become dangerous.
I used to have the same problem, and as I got older I couldn't recover fast enough. Garmin helped me slow down to go faster.
I could do 90 second 1/4, but only got around 14 minutes on my 1.5 mile test. Slowing down to a 2:06 mile helped me get under 13 minutes
I've gotten better over the past year or 2, but still struggle. Sometimes I intentionally go faster (strides or whatever you want to call them), but often I'm just starting out way too fast still. My first 5K (April 2015) was at 30:00 (yes, exactly) and included a lot of walking... second 5K was May 2015 at 28:53 and also included walking. It didn't seem to hurt my total times at all, just meant that I pass other racers, then they pass me, and back and forth to the end. Since I'm now trying to train for longer runs, I'm really trying to make an effort to slow down most of the time.0 -
myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »
As you get faster, you can reduce the duration of the recovery and increase the number and speed of your training laps. The purpose of the recovery laps is to recover. Walking briskly and running slowly work equally well. Jogging can cause damage to knees/hips/ankles over time and is generally contraindicated.
Could you please define jogging for those of us who are confused?
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questionfear wrote: »There's lots of great advice here...one thing you could also try is to really "kick" at the end of one or two runs a week; in other words, when you have a small amount, like 1/10th of a mile to go, just push it into the highest gear you have and GO.
Fast finish is a good way to deal with the psychological aspects as well.
I appreciate that it's somewhat different to what the originator is after, but a 9 minute mile is my half marathon pace, and being able to get the final mile in faster is hugely beneficial.
Pays off a huge amount in shorter distances as well. My last fitness test was about a month before an ultra, so all my running was long, steady paced work with no speedwork. Mile and a half time was 10:40, which I was very happy with. Once I'd run the warm up mile then first mile of the test I treated the last half mile as a fast finish, which brought me down an age band.0 -
autumnblade75 wrote: »myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »
As you get faster, you can reduce the duration of the recovery and increase the number and speed of your training laps. The purpose of the recovery laps is to recover. Walking briskly and running slowly work equally well. Jogging can cause damage to knees/hips/ankles over time and is generally contraindicated.
Could you please define jogging for those of us who are confused?
In this context, jogging is that slow run short stride shuffle that many people do when tired, or transitioning from a run to a walk. There's usually a heel strike vs a mid foot or toe strike that occurs with running.
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myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »autumnblade75 wrote: »myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »
As you get faster, you can reduce the duration of the recovery and increase the number and speed of your training laps. The purpose of the recovery laps is to recover. Walking briskly and running slowly work equally well. Jogging can cause damage to knees/hips/ankles over time and is generally contraindicated.
Could you please define jogging for those of us who are confused?
In this context, jogging is that slow run short stride shuffle that many people do when tired, or transitioning from a run to a walk. There's usually a heel strike vs a mid foot or toe strike that occurs with running.
So, basically, you've recruited the word to mean sloppy, slow running? That definition isn't in my dictionary - but I can see the benefit in making sure you don't get lazy with your form just because you're going slow. Thanks.0 -
autumnblade75 wrote: »myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »autumnblade75 wrote: »myfitpqlstan136 wrote: »
As you get faster, you can reduce the duration of the recovery and increase the number and speed of your training laps. The purpose of the recovery laps is to recover. Walking briskly and running slowly work equally well. Jogging can cause damage to knees/hips/ankles over time and is generally contraindicated.
Could you please define jogging for those of us who are confused?
In this context, jogging is that slow run short stride shuffle that many people do when tired, or transitioning from a run to a walk. There's usually a heel strike vs a mid foot or toe strike that occurs with running.
So, basically, you've recruited the word to mean sloppy, slow running? That definition isn't in my dictionary - but I can see the benefit in making sure you don't get lazy with your form just because you're going slow. Thanks.
IME, most people(myself included) get sloppy when they slow down. For me it's because it's easier to be sloppy when I'm going slower.
When I'm not hurt, I can walk a 5 Mile per hour pace. For short distances, I can get to 6 mph.
Just MHO here, but If you're doing less than 5 mph, just walk it out.
In my youth(some 20 years ago now) I was part of a "formation run" at about 4.5 mph. I got bored with the pace and the pace setter wouldn't pick it up to a pace that was running so I broke into a brisk walk.
Pace Setter-"You're not running"
Me-"Neither are you, I'm just being honest about it"0 -
For me, the gait changes enough at ~10-11min/mile that I will have knee pain - I cannot jog. When I couldn't run continuously, I would run/walk in intervals rather than jog. If I get tired/out of breath and see my pace slowing to slower than a 10 minute mile, I will take a walking break.0
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..and that is with being careful about my form and not being sloppy (just something about the different mechanics of jogging does not play well with my knee - it also doesn't particularly like dancing charleston either).0
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..and that is with being careful about my form and not being sloppy (just something about the different mechanics of jogging does not play well with my knee - it also doesn't particularly like dancing charleston either).
What changes about the mechanics of your slow, not sloppy run when your pace drops to 10-11 minute/miles? Are you defining jogging by pace? I have to tell you that I am definitely running at a 10 minute mile. But I can't walk any faster than a 15 minute mile for any length of time, either. I'm short, and have short legs.0 -
I'm not sure what exactly bothers my knee - maybe just the increased vertical oscillation (which is hard to avoid at such a slow pace). Stride length decreases, cadence decreases, longer ground contact time - but these are of course also true of walking. I just know I always wind up with knee pain whenever I try to jog.0
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