Running Time Question

Improvement for new runners will be swift on any type of training for the first few months and then it will slow down. Exactly how much one can improve in those first months is impossible to say but it can be dramatic.

After the new runner improvement phase is past the way to continue improvement is to run more. For reference, someone wishing to contimually improve for 5k racing ought to be running a minimum of 25 to 30 miles a week with one of those weekly runs being 90 min to 2 hrs in duration.

Consistent and cumulative miles at aerobic pace over time will lead to contiual improvement. The more miles the better as long as your training load does not exceed your body's ability to adapt from the running.

Scott pretty much nailed it.

There are so many variables involved that it's hard to make generalizations. I went from 39:08 (Sep 09) to 28:49 (May 10) to 26:45 (Sep 10) but my time last year was 26:07 - very noticeable improvement early on but sower progression afterward. I should also add that my focus has been on longer distances for the last two years.

It's different for everybody but kudos to her for catching the bug!

Focus should probably be on shaving time off her/your PACE, not your time. The former is much easier than the latter!

Shaving 4 minutes of her time is great! Good improvement for that time period, IMO. There is really no rule of thumb for how long it should ake to improve one's time or how long it will take to get faster because there are too many factors involved; weather, hills,
etc etc. For example, my runs in the fall are always faster than summer because of the heat, for one thing.

Most runners would advise one to focus on building up your mileage first, rather than speed, in the beginning. For beginning runners, say running for 6 months or less, give yourself a year, maybe less, to build your running mileage, and then you can work on dropping time off your PACE, not your TIME, two very different things! Even if you just work on building mileage only, your pace will most likely improve.

A training program that includes speed work i.e. interval runs and tempo runs would help improve pace. Check out runnersworld online or halhigdon.com for some free running programs to improve speed.


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Improvement for new runners will be swift on any type of training for the first few months and then it will slow down. Exactly how much one can improve in those first months is impossible to say but it can be dramatic.

After the new runner improvement phase is past the way to continue improvement is to run more. For reference, someone wishing to contimually improve for 5k racing ought to be running a minimum of 25 to 30 miles a week with one of those weekly runs being 90 min to 2 hrs in duration.

Consistent and cumulative miles at aerobic pace over time will lead to contiual improvement. The more miles the better as long as your training load does not exceed your body's ability to adapt from the running.

Why would somebody need to run that much for just 5k? I can see why for 10 mile races or half marathons, but 5k is only just over 3 miles and to run for 90 mins to 2 hours on one of those runs per week is excessive and really not necessary.

Running a 5k is primarily aerobic. To maximally build aerobic capacity requires regular runs of 90 min to 2 hrs. That length of time is necessary to get the desired training effect.

One can certainly run a 5k on less training but they will be running much more slowly than they could if they trained optimally.

I used to run 5ks. I improved quickly that first year but rarely ran more than 4 miles at a time. Then I began training for half marathons. Wow! 3 miles is nothing! I love that feeling! The guys are right get lots of mileage in for aerobic fitness, then do sprints and hills. It'll help you avoid injury too.
Im training for a full marathon so I need distance but will go back to 5 ks after because I want to win my age group. (The first place is 21 minutes....it will take a ton of sprinting and always one long run a week in there.)
I have books on running and Runners World, Running Times and Women's Running magazines. I get fanatic about types of weekly runs and how long to run and times ran. Hal Higdon is good but he doesnt require enough mileage for his half marathon program.
Run lots run fast dont be afraid to go all out until your legs are jelly!! Thats how you improve. Be obsessive but at the right time...I peaked too soon before a race and didnt do as well as I hoped. Live and learn.

I'm with Lorraine. Suggesting new runners run 25-30 miles/week is probably unrealistic in most cases, and asking for an injury. My take was that the OP was just looking to improve, not turn into an age group competitor.

If that's the case, working to improve pace is the first thing, then increase mileage gradually.

To be clear, I wouldn't suggest suddenly jumping to 30 miles per week from nothing -- this is something to build up to gradually to avoid injuries. However I really don't think 25-30 miles per week is that unusual for the recreational runner - an hour every other day during the week and a long run on the weekends. And to be honest I don't think that's enough mileage to be an age group competitor unless you're blessed with tons of natural talent. I need to do 40-60 miles per week to stay competitive in my age group, like top 10 for the bigger races, I only win my age group in the really teeny tiny ones. I know that the top 1 or 2 are doing even more than that, and in our area we have a pretty small scene.

I would also point out that the most tried and true approach to improvement in running is to increase mileage FIRST, and let the pace improvements follow. I find that the speed workouts are my biggest injury risk, not the distance (unless making the jump to big distances too fast).

I am new to running- just did my first 5K in August with another coming up in January. Thought I'd pass along this article:

http://m.active.com/running/Articles/How-to-Double-Your-Endurance-in-6-Weeks

I'm in week 5 now and have really noticed an improvement in my speed as well as endurance. Since other people are suggesting increasing mileage in order to increase speed, well, this is a good way to get started!

Here's the program at a quick glance:


Week ONE:
Maintenance (Miles) - 3.5
Fartlek (Miles) - 3
Long Run (Miles) - 4

Week TWO:
Maintenance (Miles) - 4
Fartlek (Miles) - 3.25
Long Run (Miles) - 5

Week THREE:
Maintenance (Miles) - 4
Fartlek (Miles) - 3
Long Run (Miles) - 4

Week FOUR:
Maintenance (Miles) - 5
Fartlek (Miles) - 3.5
Long Run (Miles) - 6

Week FIVE:
Maintenance (Miles) - 5.5
Fartlek (Miles) - 3
Long Run (Miles) - 4

Week SIX:
Maintenance (Miles) - 6
Fartlek (Miles) - 3.5
Long Run (Miles) - 7

Every other day is good in the beginning. Just add on gradually. Eventually you can add consecutive days when you feel ready and if you want to!

I'm sure that's fine too. You just don't want to suddenly go from nothing to 4 days in a row when you're new.

I think that was Di3012. Hehe

Eh? What was lol?