Ready to Race a Mile?
In true fashion, I’ve waited until the last possible month to try and hit my yearly goal.
As some of you know, I try and break 5 minutes in the mile each calendar year. I’ve waited until December to make my second attempt and if all goes well, I will only need two attempts this year.
I’m a long way away from being a competitive Masters (qualifying for, and running in Master’s Nationals) runner at any distance, but my long-term goal is to be in the mix once I turn 40 (in a year in a half). That means I need to continue doing the things that keep me healthy: strength training, sleeping, and eating well.
On top of that, I’ll need to continue focusing on speed work as that’s the best way for any athlete to be competitive these days.
So while I’ve done a really good job of kicking it into gear the last 2 months, I really need to be consistent throughout the year.
I wanted to share with you some of the miler-specific workouts I’ve done that have set me up to break 5 minutes. Now, just because my goal is sub-5 doesn’t mean these workouts aren’t designed for anyone else - you’d just have to input your own paces and possibly adjust the amount of work.
Oh and by the way, if you want to come cheer and/or run, here are the details:
📍Cooper River Park track
⏰10 am race, 9 am warmup
📌 Sunday 12/4
All faces & paces welcome
All that said, here are the workouts I did leading up to this Sunday’s Time Trial attempt.
October 6: 10 min tempo, 4 x 400 at 5k pace, 2 x 200
October 10: 10 x 125m quick w/ 1 min jog
October 18: 12 x 400 at threshold
October 27: short threshold reps + hill sprints
November 3: 1 x 1k at threshold, 3 x 500 at threshold, 5 x 200 w/200 jog
November 17: 3x3 minutes at threshold, 6 x 400 5k pace, 5 x 150 FAST
November 23: 1 x 800 at threshold, 9 x 300 at 5k pace
These aren’t elaborate or busy workouts, but they were effective. I coupled them with long runs that ranged from 8-10 miles + 2 races (a 10k and a 1 mile race). You can adapt any of these workouts as a standalone workout or string them together for a fast mile of your own.
If you want to know what pace you should run, use a pace calculator, like the one I made. You can get your copy here.
Do you have questions about the workouts I did? Want me to set up a training program for you? Reply to this email and we can chat about getting started.
Friday’s Action Plan
Cycle through all phases of training throughout the year: from pure speed to endurance base building.
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Quote of the Week:
Don’t believe what your weaknesses whisper to you. They don’t know the depths of your strength.
How to Connect with Me:
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