5k in 30mins PR

"normal"? "good"?

I don't know where you are from...are you talking about 5 kilometers or miles?

I am 50 and run my 5km in about 23-24 minutes and my 10km in about 45 minutes which is about 4m30s per km. But those times are on a track. When I go for longer runs and in park/trails/streets, my pace is a bit slower. In my early 40's I was at about 41-42 minutes for a 10k.

If you are starting to run, your pace will increase as you go. You should hit the 10k-1 hour pace pretty fast. Just make sure you go step by step as injuries can happen easily if you are not careful and patient. Have fun!

I agree with Slainte831, everyone is different. Plus, "good" is subjective. Last year, I decided I wanted to try to improve my 5K time. Previously, I'd run in 33-34 minutes. So, I trained hard and then on race day, ran 100% of my ability. I was able to run in about 26:30. That became my benchmark. I decided to pick a personal goal of beating 25 minutes. It took me three tries, but last July, I ran a 23:31 5K. I actually just ran another today in 24:15 and placed 1st for my age group. It is entirely possible to improve your 5K time!

Some tips...

1. Run. Consistently. I run about 4-5 days per week, plus cross-train. I do a long run of anywhere from 6-10 miles once every week or every other week.
2. Reserve your speed. You do not need/want to go out on all your training runs blazing fast. I promise, just put in the work of running at an easy/conversational pace. You can build in some speedwork or even better, hills, after you've been consistently running for awhile.
3. Race more than once. I've found what has helped me become a better runner/racer is by simply racing more frequently. You learn how to pace yourself, push when needed, and compete. It's also nice knowing you've got lots of chances to reach your goal vs all your eggs in one race basket, so to speak.

Finally, BELIEVE you can run faster. I really had to change my mindset on this one last year! I made some mantras for myself like "I'm training to win" and "I'm strong." While this might sound corny, I really feel it made a difference. Goodness knows I've wasted so many years telling myself things like "I'm just here to finish" and "I'm slow."

Wow, I know that's a novel. I hope that helps. Bottom line, set a benchmark by running a race as hard as you can. Then, start making a reasonable next goal. Once you've met that one, make another. Good luck.

Based on current basic army fitness standards, you'd need to be under 24 minutes to be "acceptably" fit. At the other end, under 19 minutes would put you at "superb" fitness.

Like you, a year ago I could go 5 k in about...oh I don't know...never! Today my best time has been around 33 minutes (on a treadmill) and just under 34 (in a race). I train a 10 K once a week or so at about 65 minutes. I'm *not* fast. I'm 44, and have short legs and a wide hip span. I'm still about 20 lbs overweight. I am not built for speed! But I feel like my progress has been good. I feel fit and healthy and I set small challenges for myself every week. The only person I'm competing with day-to-day is myself. In a race, it's the person in front of me.

My personal goal is to be able to run a 30 min 5k in a race, but I signed up for my first race when I could reasonably compete in the middle of the pack (so 36 minutes for my daily 5K without working on speed).

I ran my first official 5k yesterday in the s same time as you. Initially I was giddy because it was 30 sec faster than my previous best. Then I allowed myself to worry about how I compared to others. As it happens, I was squarely in the middle of my peer group (55 - 59 M), so I felt OK. But objectively it would be foolish to feel better or worse based on how others ran.

BTW, this was a pretty big group, 1500+, and the results are posted online, so if you want an empirical db to compare yourself to, go to cruiseinshoes.com, click on Race Results and find your peer group.

I don't think there's a normal time as everyone is different. Running for me is beating myself rather than others. But in saying that before my injury I did a pb of 28.29 for 5km but on an average run for training I'd do it in around 32mins.

Have a look here:

Average Race Times

Sign up for a race and go for it. You'll have a great time.

I've been running races for decades, it has always worked out that between 8 minutes per mile and 9 minutes per mile is the average range for all ages.

My PR is 19 minutes and 38 seconds but I currently can barely go under 9 minutes per mile average. I set my PR about 30 years ago.

Since there are so many variables such as age, gender, and experience so that there is no normal. If you can run a 5K at 8 minutes per mile you will normally finish in the top 50% of the field.

And don't forget that temperature affects times pretty significantly. A 30min 5K in the heat of summer will be faster in cool weather.

Right now, my easy run pace is 11-12 min/mi because it's 90+ degrees. When the temps are 70-80, my easy pace is 9:30-10 min/mi. Huge difference.

stealthq wrote: »

And don't forget that temperature affects times pretty significantly. A 30min 5K in the heat of summer will be faster in cool weather.

Right now, my easy run pace is 11-12 min/mi because it's 90+ degrees. When the temps are 70-80, my easy pace is 9:30-10 min/mi. Huge difference.

This is so true! I am short and 49 years old. I've never been fast. I live in Tucson and it's hot here right now; 82° and 65% humidity when I woke up at 5:30 for my run this morning with an expected high around 105°. During the winter I was easily pushing sub-10 minute miles. Right now I'm happy with 10:30 miles for a 5K and 11 minute miles for 10K. I know that once it cools down that I'll get faster again, though, probably even faster than I was this winter.

dewd2 wrote: »

Don't focus on your time. Focus on finishing. Once you can finish, focus on being just a little faster the next time. And the time after that.

Dewd2 is right. Don't worry about your time right now. There is no "normal" time for a 5k run. Every runner is different depending on how long you've been a runner. I've been running seriously now for about 6 years and when I first started running, I couldn't even run a 5k without stopping a few times and it probably took me 40-45 minutes to run it. Now after running seriously for 6 years about 5-6 days a week, I now average a 10k anywhere between 41-44 minutes and my best half marathon is 1:33:20. My first half took me over 2 hours. You will get faster over time but until your cardio is up, don't even worry about it.

Are you running on a treadmill all the time (or am I not seeing your picture correctly)?