I will have been running for 10 years this Fall. I started to actually train about 5 years ago, so I'll address that time period. For the first 5 years I was just running for fitness and slowly building a base, though I didn't know at the time that that was what I was doing. I ran my first 5K in June of 2005 and pushed myself to the limit with a 27:56 finish. A year and a half later, I ran my first half marathon and surprised myself with a 1:57:28. I was having a hard time putting together consistent mileage because I was drinking heavily, so I kind of only ran every other day.

Fast forward to October of 2007. I quit drinking and soon after started to take my training seriously. I hired a coach and started to follow his plans to the letter. The first thing he told me to do was slow down. I was doing all my easy runs too fast (in the 8:45 m/m range). He slowed me down to 9:15 to 9:30 range for easy runs. I started to increase my mileage and the results started to show.

In 2008, I logged 969 mile running. My best 5K that year was a 22:04.

In early 2009, I ran my second half marathon in 1:38:51, an ~ 20 minute PR. In 2009, I logged 1804 miles. The increase in mileage paid dividends as I ran 21:15 for 5K in the Fall.

2010 saw another increase in mileage to 2072 miles. I ran 20:50 for 5K, taking 25 seconds off my PR, 1:34:02 for the half marathon, a decrease of almost 5 minutes and I tackled my first marathon in 3:38:21, running at a 3:30 pace through 20 before bonking and slowing dramatically over the last 6 miles.

2011, I decided to try the marathon again in the Fall. I ran a total of 2770 miles for the year, 19:50 for the 5K (sub 20!), 1:32:27 for the Half Marathon and finished strong with a negative split run in the marathon in 3:26:52.

2012, my goal was to qualify for Boston. I needed to run 3:25. I saw a slight dip in total mileage for the year to 2606 miles, but I ran PRs in the 5K (19:37), Half Marathon was in 1:28:05 ( ran three this year, each faster than the one before) and then cruised to a 3:12:20 finish at the Baystate Marathon. PRing by a lot and BQing with plenty of room to spare.


So, the moral of the story is, "yes, it's realistic but it takes time". There are no shortcuts to getting faster as a distance runner. You just need to log miles over time and great things will happen. Being able to run consistently and nearly injury free is the key.

Best of luck!

I found the easiest way to build speed is by doing intervals on the dreadmill.

While interval training is a great way to work on speed, one must first have an aerobic base to support it. Speed work is the icing on the cake, but you have to bake the cake first. That's where lots of easy effort running comes in. Not to mention, interval training to develop speed is only one phase of a 4 phased approach to training. That type of speed work will really only provide benefit for about 6 consecutive weeks, at the end of which you either race (one race or for several weeks worth of races) before returning to the earlier stages of training.

Carson is a wise man!

Miles, miles and more miles is what works best for me. I'm about to hit my 11th year of running.

Half marathon went from the 1:57 to 1:28

Marathon went from 3:52 to 3:21

At age 46, it's unclear whether or not I have any more PRs left in me. That said, I have found satisfaction in well executed races, even if they weren't anywhere near my PR. Running even splits and passing runners at mile 24 when their wheels are falling off is awesome at any speed.

Agree with a lot of what was stated here. Many people will experience the most gains at the beginning, and as they get faster, it gets harder to shave off even just a few minutes. If you've only been running a year, you've probably still got a lot in you.

I have a similar story. I had been running for about 14 years, but nothing like I run now. I just started running to lose weight and then kept it up because I found I loved to run. I never worried about mileage, pace, anything. I then decided to start running marathons just to finish. I didn't know much about training, and this was before the age of the internet where information was so easily available.

I then decided I wanted to start improving my times to see what I was capable of. That was 2011. I started running consistent mileage, learned about training properly, learned to slow down, and learned to run more.

My improvement has been slow and steady. My times at the beginning of my journey were similar to yours - a 2:08 half marathon, 25:55 5k.

Though I finished many marathons before, my first one where I had a time goal was 4:38. The best thing that worked for my shorter races was my marathon training. I went from running 30 miles a week to consistently running 45+ mpw, and I saw huge gains in my marathon time. Took 20 minutes off that time.


I then broke the 2 hour mark at 1:57 just a few races after that, am close to breaking the 50 minute mark for a 10k, and my 15k pace is now close to what my 25:55 5k pace was back then. I haven't full out raced a 5k since then but I know I can definitely PR in that. Marathon time is now much closer to breaking 4 hours now.

The most important thing is that I've been injury free this time around, and I listen to my body. I learned that it doesn't have to be a race everyday and my paces have improved where it matters most (actual race day). Patience is key. It's so easy to want to improve so much so fast. It will happen though! Keep it up!

I have been running for about 2 years and have only done one half marathon. Most of my improvement is in increased edurance. Unfortunately, my speed remains right around the 10min/mile mark - but I am consistent on that pace. After reading these posts, I am going to start increasing my mileage and see if that helps break me out of my rut. Thanks!!

I just did a hilly 10k on Sunday and took 1:55 off my time from 1.5 months previous on a relatively flat course!