5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Everything about the training process, including programs, experiences, etc.

sunshine
Percy Williams
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2018 2:08 pm

5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby sunshine » Wed Dec 12, 2018 7:56 pm

Hello all!
I'm new to the forum, but not new to running.
I haven't run daily for several years now, but for the past 6 months now I've been running 5km about once a week. The other 5 days a week I walk 4km and I also was weight training 2-3x a week.
I've signed myself up for a 5k that isn't until May 12th.
Since I already know I can run 5k, my goal for this race is to increase my speed and run 5k in under 30min (current 5k time is 33-34min).
I have a training plan from Jeff Galloway that lays out very clearly how to achieve this. The problem is, it's a 7-week plan and my race is 20 weeks away.
Can anyone help me figure out how to approach this?
Should I do the 7-week plan but repeat each week 3 times (ie do the Week 1 plan for weeks 1, 2 and 3, then move on to week 2 for weeks 4,5, and 6)? Or should complete the whole 7-week plan 3x through? Or should I do something else for the next 13 weeks and then move to the 7-week plan when I'm actually 7 weeks out from the race?

Also, it may or may not be important to note that since we are in the thick of a very snowy and cold winter I have moved my runs and walks to all indoors on a treadmill. I plan to move my runs back outdoors in the spring.

sunshine
Percy Williams
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2018 2:08 pm

Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby sunshine » Wed Dec 12, 2018 8:14 pm

I just had another thought...
Maybe I do the 7week plan to run 5k in 28 min and then do the 7 week plan to run it in 23min....

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Spirit Unleashed
Lynn Williams
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Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby Spirit Unleashed » Wed Dec 12, 2018 9:17 pm

why don't you just try running 3 times a week until 7 weeks before race then do the plan.
Make running a regular part of your life.
Athlete....Maniac 973....Marathon Maniac 6645
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sunshine
Percy Williams
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2018 2:08 pm

Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby sunshine » Wed Dec 12, 2018 10:01 pm

Spirit Unleashed wrote:why don't you just try running 3 times a week until 7 weeks before race then do the plan.
Make running a regular part of your life.


Ya I was thinking about that too.
Is there a certain mileage I should aim to run per week? Or just do 5k 3x a week?

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narr
Tom Longboat
Posts: 253
Joined: Mon Oct 03, 2005 7:19 pm

Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby narr » Thu Dec 13, 2018 5:56 am

sunshine wrote:
Spirit Unleashed wrote:why don't you just try running 3 times a week until 7 weeks before race then do the plan.
Make running a regular part of your life.


sunshine wrote:Ya I was thinking about that too.
Is there a certain mileage I should aim to run per week? Or just do 5k 3x a week?

Hi sunshine,

Please don't go from running 5K a week to running 15K a week abruptly. That is a 300 % increase.

I would suggest spreading your 5K over three days the first week and adding a kilometer or two a week.

How many running days are in the Galloway program? An early goal might be to carve out the time to be able to run that number of days a week. Do some running, and then walk during the rest of the time that you will need later in the program.

I am guessing that the Galloway program has you running much longer than 5K distances at least once a week. Once you spread your mileage over more days, and then really slowly start to increase your mileage, you can start to develop the idea of long slow runs for the longest run and a quicker pace for the shortest runs.

By the time you are 7 weeks out and ready to start the program, you will already be used to running more days and more miles and the program will be easier.

I guess the other thing to mention is to pick a goal based on where you are now, not where you would like to be later. (Train according to your current fitness and see where it takes you.)

I hope this helps,

narr.
narr = not a real runner

Running is a privilege.

sunshine
Percy Williams
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Dec 12, 2018 2:08 pm

Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby sunshine » Thu Dec 13, 2018 8:09 am

Thanks narr (love your username by the way)

The Galloway program is 4 running days a week: 1 long run, 1 speed work, 1 5km and one run that he calls a Magic Mile (actually 6.5km total distance walked/run)

So maybe I start with just running 2x a week, then build up to 3, then 4?

As for distance, the first week of the 7 week program is 21 km total. So I'm thinking I should build up my kms run so that by the time I start that program I can cover at least close to 21km/week?

Dstew
Bill Crothers
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Joined: Wed Aug 10, 2005 7:41 pm

Re: 5k 20 weeks away. Please help me with a training plan!

Postby Dstew » Sat Dec 15, 2018 11:56 pm

I would not really worry about what you are doing between now and when the training program starts with one huge caveat: LISTEN TO YOUR BODY. You could be someone who needs to start with just one more run per week or someone else who can jump to 3 or 4. So add the run and see how it feels. Same with distances of the runs. There is no rule that says you cannot just do 1 K or 2 or 3 and then call it quits. Talk a walk or rest break. The reason for the rule NARR suggested is because there are people that say they "must" or "have" to run "X" times at "Y" distance and "Z" pace and do not listen to their bodies when it is screaming at them to reduce one, two or all three aspects. When I was training to qualify for the first Boston Marathon I qualified for, I might not run for 3 or 4 days because I believed my body needed the extra rest. Where I got into trouble and where I am fighting chronic injuries is being told I have do something different, ignoring my body and then paying the price.


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