Prep for 10k run

Diamondmaker · 16-04-2007 10:30pm

lisnsooz wrote:

:-) Wow - ye all did great! I only started running a coupla months ago (and when I say 'running' I mean more like jogging/walking intervals) so am still getting the fitness up. But I entered the race yesterday to see what kind of an effort I could make, considering I haven't trained much in the last 3 weeks due to an awful cold.

But I was quite pleased that I got stretches of jogging in with the walking, and did it less than what I estimate 10km would take me to walk, so the jogging must have increased my time (as it should!).

I've had a hunt, but can't find the answer to this. Does anyone know where I could find information on what a reasonably OK time for a newbie to running, would be for 5km/10km/half and full marathon? I'm planning on entering related races over the summer - will be walking and jogging/running as I build up my strength/stamina. But am wondering what sorta decent times I should be aiming for - or is this all relative?

My definition is based on someone as the OP above describes. A year is loads of training and many avaerage people could achieve great things in a years good training. I agree that is where we differ so....:)

hunnymonster · 17-04-2007 6:52am

DaveH wrote:

As for the times honeymoster posted....Can you tell me where you got these times from?

sorry I explained as clearly as I could. I chose the flore london marathon good-for-age qualificatin times as the benchmark for the marathon distance and then used an average of the predicted times using mcmillan/RW/Grubb for the other distances the OP asked about.

I think based on the consencus here I'm going to have to change my thinking on what a newbie is. MOst people are thinking of it as someone completely new to running with no training unlike the idea I had in my head of someone with less than a year's running. I've been running since August 2004. I've won marathons and done other silly things like ironman but if I'm honest 2 weeks ago in the Connemara ultra marathon is the first time I felt like a proper runner not a newbie. A certain amount is perception.

That aside. I stilll think my times are reasonable for anyone to achieve within a few months if not a year so long as they work hard at it. It takes good genetics to run a 2:10 marathon. It takes hard work to run a 3:00 marathon.

lisnsooz · 17-04-2007 11:34am

hunnymonster wrote:

One bench mark is to take the time for an automatic qualification to the flora london marathon

quozl wrote:

download last year's results for the races you've entered (or similar events if those aren't online) and see what times you'd need to run to be top 10%, 50% 90%, whatever you consider acceptable.

Diamondmaker wrote:

Oh yeah and my GF did her 1st ever race with almost no pre training in 1.20, tell her she should have been aiming at 46!

Thanks for the info, everyone

I'm a female newbie, in that this is the year I tackle the fitness, and prior to 2007 the most exercise I got was walking around the shops at the weekend and so far this year I've been mostly walking to/from work and a bit of cycling. As you mentioned hunnymonster - enjoying the running should be the plan at the moment (as how will I stick with it if I'm not getting some level of enjoyment/satisfaction out of it?!).

But having some sort of ballpark is great too - from the satisfaction and competitiveness side of things. As I said, if I know I'm faster than simply walking - that's something to aim for starting off this Spring, but if I know I'm coming somewhere in the middle of the posse - that's a bonus! And doing some investigating on the Bupa site, I think I came in just shy of the last third of competitors - which for a newbie novice practiced-running-after-buses person, I'm happy with

At least I can hope to not be spending 6 hours slogging around a 26-odd mile course if the fitness improves - I'd have to start investing in audio books to keep myself entertained!!! :eek:

Clum · 17-04-2007 1:58pm

Ireland's top class club runners finish 10Ks from around (often times under) 30 mins to 35 mins. I wouldn't expect part-time athletes, or fun runners, to get anywhere near those kind of times. Even sub 40 is very very good.

The cut-off time for the Bupa 'fittest county in Ireland' Ronnie Delaney trophy was 45.00 minutes. Anybody who competes in races such as the Bupa 10 but doesn't represent a club would be doing very good to finish inside that time.

That type of target is something a 'newbie' who wants to do well after some training would be, I think, a high standard to reach. More than reasonable, as was asked for by lisnsooz.

louthandproud · 19-04-2007 9:17pm

There was a section at the front(BUPA 10K) just behind the 10 or so elite athletes for experienced club runners, the entry requirement was to be a sub 40 minute runner over 10K.

So under anyones definition this is an unrealistic target for a newbie. Only a small proportion of runners, newbie or otherwise will ever run under 40 Minutes for a 10K.

50 Minutes would be a more realistic general target for someone new to running with a couple of months preperation, unless they had a very good base line fitness from another sport already. Although of course there are exceptions to every rule and generalisation.

aoa321 · 21-04-2007 11:34pm

Hi all,

Well done to the experienced athletes on your fantastic times, and congratulations to the newbies on completing your races.

I was running just inside 45 minutes for 10K last year and just over 21 minutes for 5K. In the last couple of weeks I scraped inside 20 minutes for 5K for the first time. All my training times are a good bit faster than last year and I have a 10K race next weekend that I will hopefully compete in, I'm hoping to do about 42 minutes.

For all the athletes in this thread who are running around or just under 40 minutes (my dream) - how many kilomteres per week are you all running? Do you go on really long runs or keep to the distances you will be competing over? Do you do any other sort of training such as weights?

Last year I nearly slogged myself to death, most of my training runs were over an hour and a half, this year I have dropped the distances dramatically, usually about 10K runs and I mostly get out about 4 times a week. I do the runs now with more intensity (faster) and I have been more consistent over a longer period, it's more structured, it feels easier and my times do seem to be coming down, next week will be the test.

At the moment I'm losing some enthusiasm, I've been on the go since Christmas so after my 10K next week I will be sitting back and having a think about what to do next. I'd be interested to hear a little about all your training schedules and how you achieve such great times.

aoa321 · 21-04-2007 11:34pm

ZiggyStardust · 22-04-2007 11:48am

Hi aoa,
I'm no expert, but I don't think it is the amount of km's people run in a week. I think you should start doing some speed work once or even twice a week. Add this to one tempo run and a longish run on a Sunday. Since I added speed work to my training again, i dropped 5km and 10km times dramatically.
Best of luck....

hunnymonster · 22-04-2007 12:43pm

one session that is useful to include is
5 min warm up
a:10 mins fast
b:5 mins slow jog (make sure HR comes back down < 65%)
repeat a & b a further two times.
5 min cool down and lots of stretches.
It sounds ok but it is a very hard session. Don't do it more than once a week. You may not be able to hold the full 10 mins t first.

Other useful things are hill reps, just find a hill and run up it, walk down it and repeat 6-8 times.

Also maybe try some running drills

Fartlek is fun, It means speed play and essentially mean when you're out running, every so often pick up the pace. For example, pick a tree 150 m in the distance and pick up the pace until you reach it.

TimG · 23-04-2007 2:11pm

Hi aoa.
At the moment I only doing about 3 or 4 40min runs a week (15mile/25km a wk), and i feel that that isn't really enough, but its keeping me active. When i finish college (in 2 months), I'll be back up to about 40miles a wk, and i expect that knock a min or so off my 10k time.

One thing that I do, and i don't know if its good or bad, is lots of races. I do a proper race on average every 10days, mainly 3 to 5k with my local club (fit4life races), and when the mountain running kicks off, it will be a race every wk. I find that this keeps me race prepared for the bigger races. i basically treat these race as my fartlet or tempo runs.

jazzieb · 25-04-2007 12:29pm

Sorry back to the newbie person times .. I was a total newbie - mid 30s, female, for my first mini-marathon .. I did a ten week training course off coolrunning.com and the mini-marathon was my first 10k and I did it in 59:56 .. I've been running a few years now on and off and my PB is 55mins ..

I do agree with whoever said it's about your fitness base and it's also about your motivation .. I do it for general fitness and the pleasure of running outside and clearing my head .. I've no plans to do any greater distance than 10k and while it's a challenge to do races and motivates me to keep improving my time, I'm not aiming to be a sub-45 10k-er ..

Jazzie

girvtheswerve · 26-04-2007 7:09pm

hey, ran the bupa run. it was my first so i was real nervous. good experience i have to say. hills were very tough and the heat didnt help but i did enjoy it. did it in 58 minutes which i was happy with really cause i only started runnin two months before. think ive got the bug now though. lookin forward to my next race!!

Prep for 10k run

Comments