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Improving 5K time "just a little bit"

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Replies

  • firef1y72
    firef1y72 Posts: 1,579 Member
    You're closer than I am, but I found a running streak helped me bring my 5k time down from 36.05 to 33.43 as well as finally break the 10min mile. When I'm doing a streak I'll do a minimum of a mile a day, and if I'm just doing a mile then I'll go all out and push as hard as I can. Otherwise I'm a plodder and my longer runs are 10-20km so I try not to worry too much about time on those.
    I also do a lot of work with a PT, strengthening my legs, dealing with weak links (my hips), hill sprints, lots of lunges, running while carrying a weighted ball or wearing weighted vest.
  • The_Enginerd
    The_Enginerd Posts: 3,982 Member
    edited November 2017
    At this point, training volume and a higher MPW would result in your greatest improvements to time. I made my biggest improvements to my 5k time by training for a half marathon, and then another big improvement by training for marathons/50ks. I cut out speed work and concentrated on adding mileage when I trained for my first marathon and ended up over a minute faster on my 5k time and breaking the sub 20:00 threshold.

    A 5k is still HIGHLY dependent on aerobic performance. Only after maximizing that aspect would I ever bother with speed work. I concur with @jlklem, if you aren't already doing 30-40 MPW, speedwork won't pay off as much as more mileage and increases your risk of injury.
  • muedra52
    muedra52 Posts: 11 Member
    1) Run more miles. Up to 30 miles/week, if you can handle it. Increase no more 10% a week to avoid injury.
    2) Speedwork. Doesn't have to be per a super formal training program; just get used to pushing yourself and being uncomfortable for some portion of your runs, whether it's doing a fast finish, intervals, whatever.
    3) Lose weight. Every pound adds 2 seconds to your mile time.
    4) Race on a cool day (40F is ideal), with little wind.
    5) Find a course that doesn't have a lot of turns.
    6) Pick a race that's "right-sized" -- i.e., not so big you'll be bobbing and weaving through the crowd to speed up, but not so small that there's no one to pace yourself against.
    7) Find a friend to pace you for the race.
    8) If you don't already, get a Garmin or other watch so that you can track your pace. 5ks are notoriously hard to pace for, since you're running so close to your maximum speed.
    9) Get enough sleep the night before.
    10) Do some type of "taper" if you've been training vigorously; no hard/vigorous/overly long (it's all relative to the overall intensity of your training) workouts 5 days before the race.
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    Agreed. 30-40 MPW is overkill for a casual 5K runner--that's the mileage I was doing for half marathons (which I run at an 8 minute mile pace). Obviously the more you run distance the easier the shorter distances will be, but you certainly don't need to run that distance weekly to shave 10 seconds per mile off.

    qyb5ancfk4h9.png

  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    mitch16 wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    Agreed. 30-40 MPW is overkill for a casual 5K runner--that's the mileage I was doing for half marathons (which I run at an 8 minute mile pace). Obviously the more you run distance the easier the shorter distances will be, but you certainly don't need to run that distance weekly to shave 10 seconds per mile off.

    qyb5ancfk4h9.png

    And there's no reason you can't get into the 21-24 minute range with 25 MPW
  • scorpio516
    scorpio516 Posts: 955 Member
    BrianSharpe wrote: »
    scorpio516 wrote: »
    Start closer to the front, less traffic to dodge. Not too far that your in the way of the sub-20 people, but dodging eats time.

    Hit the apex of every turn. Run the least possible distance. If the course was certified, the least possible distance through the apexes is 5000m, any time you deviate from the ideal line you run further than 5km. 6s is just a couple steps wrong in a couple corners.

    I set my watch to metric, train in imperial, and set auto laps to every 500m. That's a short enough distance I can check and adjust my pace. 30:00 is only 5:00 per 500m, if you can run 4:59 every half kilometer, you'll destroy your goal.
    Or you could do the optimal and negative split, start with a 5:03 and speed up 1s every 500m.

    I think your math is a little off, 5:00 for every 500m would result in a 50 minute 5K, to hit 30 minutes or less requires a pace of 6:00/km or faster.

    Lol. That's what I get for typing on the train at6 am.

    3:00 per 500m is the right number
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    Congrats
  • spiriteagle99
    spiriteagle99 Posts: 3,730 Member
    Terrific.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    Thanks. I'm really happy I hit this goal in 2017.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    edited December 2017
    Even backed it up with another sub 30 (29:54) this morning.

    Yay for me.
  • fitoverfortymom
    fitoverfortymom Posts: 3,452 Member
    Way to go! Pooping always helps!
  • Vladimirnapkin
    Vladimirnapkin Posts: 299 Member
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    What? Depends on what you want. If you want to go faster, you have to put in the miles. High school XC programs have freshman runners at over 20.
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    Vladimirnapkin wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    What? Depends on what you want. If you want to go faster, you have to put in the miles. High school XC programs have freshman runners at over 20.

    SOME, might. When I went out as a freshman(didn't stick with it, because XC wasn't for me) we were doing less than 10 MPW. Some of the sophmores and juniors were doing 20 MPW, but the team plan was 9-12.
  • rybo
    rybo Posts: 5,424 Member
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Vladimirnapkin wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    What? Depends on what you want. If you want to go faster, you have to put in the miles. High school XC programs have freshman runners at over 20.

    SOME, might. When I went out as a freshman(didn't stick with it, because XC wasn't for me) we were doing less than 10 MPW. Some of the sophmores and juniors were doing 20 MPW, but the team plan was 9-12.

    That's a pretty pathetic running plan for HS XC.
    If you truly want to run a fast 5k, and maximize your abilities, you're going to need to run more than 10-20 mpw.
  • stanmann571
    stanmann571 Posts: 5,727 Member
    rybo wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Vladimirnapkin wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    What? Depends on what you want. If you want to go faster, you have to put in the miles. High school XC programs have freshman runners at over 20.

    SOME, might. When I went out as a freshman(didn't stick with it, because XC wasn't for me) we were doing less than 10 MPW. Some of the sophmores and juniors were doing 20 MPW, but the team plan was 9-12.

    That's a pretty pathetic running plan for HS XC.
    If you truly want to run a fast 5k, and maximize your abilities, you're going to need to run more than 10-20 mpw.

    That may be so, but we're talking about someone who' wants to run a 29 minute 5K. Not a truly fast one.

    And that's certainly doable on 15-20 MPW.
  • Tacklewasher
    Tacklewasher Posts: 7,122 Member
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    rybo wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Vladimirnapkin wrote: »
    stanmann571 wrote: »
    Absolutely no reason to do any more than 20 MPW on a 5K program.

    What? Depends on what you want. If you want to go faster, you have to put in the miles. High school XC programs have freshman runners at over 20.

    SOME, might. When I went out as a freshman(didn't stick with it, because XC wasn't for me) we were doing less than 10 MPW. Some of the sophmores and juniors were doing 20 MPW, but the team plan was 9-12.

    That's a pretty pathetic running plan for HS XC.
    If you truly want to run a fast 5k, and maximize your abilities, you're going to need to run more than 10-20 mpw.

    That may be so, but we're talking about someone who' wants to run a 29 minute 5K. Not a truly fast one.

    And that's certainly doable on 15-20 MPW.

    Oh, I think this thread stopped being about me a while back.

    :)
  • Vladimirnapkin
    Vladimirnapkin Posts: 299 Member
    Tacklewasher wrote: »

    Oh, I think this thread stopped being about me a while back.

    :)

    You made me LOL with this! Yes, people have strong opinions about mileage.

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