How to Run a 5K in Under 20 Minutes
Since I’m in the off-season, between the Boston Marathon and the Mohawk-Hudson River Marathon, I’ve been gearing up for a 5K run under 20 minutes.
This may sound odd, but I haven’t raced a 5K since 2004. I’ve been concentrating on running marathons. I ran some 5K time trials in my workouts in the 20 minute range a couple of years ago.
I don’t know whether other (older) runners do this, but I have been been running race distances, like the marathon, that I never ran in my prime. That way I can’t make any comparisons to my old PR’s. In high school, I could run 5K’s in the low 15 minute range and once ran a 5 mile road race in 25 minutes flat (Racing tip: it helps to have a police motorcycle escort).
To run a 5K in under 20 minutes, I have been doing the following workouts, with a rest day in between:
Day 1 - Intervals
10-15 minute warm-up
One of the following:
8 x 400 in 1:30-1:35 w/ 1:30 Rest Interval
5 x 800 in 3:05-3:10 w/ 3:00 Rest Interval
4 x 1000 in 3:50-3:55 w/ 3:30 Rest Interval
10 minute cool down
Day 2 - Short Tempo Run
1 mile warm-up
2-4 miles @ 6:45 - 7:00 pace
Day 3 - Long Tempo Run
5-8 miles @ 7:15 - 7:30 pace
After a few weeks of this, I should be familiar with and comfortable with the sub-6:30 pace that I will need to run the 5K in. Then it’s just a matter of finding the right race and doing it.
Update: I recently ran a 5K in 19:10. With some additional focus on intervals and tempo runs, I should be able to run a 5K under 19:00.
Have you run a 5K in less than 20 minutes recently? Are you planning to? What are your workouts like? Tell me in the comments.
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