If you’ve recently completed your first 5k race, you might be hungering for your next challenge. Enter the 10k. It’s long enough to give yourself something to work toward, but short enough that you can run it without factoring in huge recovery times that ruin the rest of your season. Keen?
Plan it out – Having a deadline helps to frame the training required. It’s a short enough race that it won’t take your time away from your other interests. Budgeting 8-10 weeks of lead up is reasonable. Aim for 3 runs a week.
Be consistent – Life gets busy, but if you want to give your best on race day, training needs to come first. Schedule it in first thing in the morning before the world wakes up to get it done.
Take it easy pace – Keep the training to an easy pace. A 10k run shouldn’t be a punisher. Steadily build up your stamina. This will help you recover quicker between runs, too.
Interval training – Once a week mix it up with easy running bursts of 5-10 minutes interspersed with short 1-2 minute intervals of sprints. The sprints will help increase endurance and speed.
Add a kilometre a week (or half a mile) – Your last run for the week should be your attempt to stretch out your distance. Aim to add a half mile each week, building up from 5k to 10k. If you can crack the 10k mark, hold it at around 12k, so race day feels like a breeze.
Mix it up with hill climbs and cross training – Give your body something different while still aiming toward race day fitness by introducing cross training. Try cycling to keep the pressure on your heart rate and off your knees. Swim for total body conditioning with zero weight bearing. Hit up the gym for focused muscle development or circuits for a varied workout.
Before the race – Back off the training in the last week to conserve strength. Do a couple of gentle 30-40 minute runs to keep your legs limber. Walk or cycle the race route to familiarise yourself with it, if it’s available to you. Take a little extra water in the days before the race, but don’t overdo it.
Put these tips into action and you should have a very successful first 10k!
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