The Best 10K Runner Workouts

However, if you are looking to improve your time, or aiming for a particular finishing time, then choosing the best 10K workouts will make all the difference.

Choosing the right workouts is the difference between training, and training smart. If you are committed to running regularly, chances are you are already putting in the miles, but there is a big difference between simply going out and running, and doing targeted workouts that have a particular purpose behind them.

Talk to almost any coach and they will tell you the same thing, successful 10K running requires a combination of

- Intervals
- Tempo runs
- Hill training
- Distance work

Well look at each in turn and see what they can add to your training programme.

Intervals:

Interval training involves alternating high intensity running with short recovery periods. It first came to the attention of the public in the 1950s when it was revealed that Olympic runners were using this revolutionary method to improve their speed.

It has since been adopted by athletes all over the world, and is quite simply, the most effective way to run fast.

Intervals can be run on the track, on a grassy field, through the woods, on the street it doesnt matter where you are, you can adapt the basic principles to make it work for you.

Indeed, playing with the parameters is an established principle of interval training it is also known by the wonderful name fartlek, which is Swedish for speed play, and reflects the fact that there are endless ways to alternate these periods of faster and slower running.

Heres what you need to know:

- Always warm up first, at least ten minutes of easy running
- Alternate bursts of fast running (intervals) with slower (recovery)
- Your recovery can be either walking or slow jogging, and should be around the same length as the interval you have just run
- Either run a set distance (e.g. 400 metres) or a time (e.g. 30 seconds)
- The longer your interval is, the slower you will go
- For 10k runners, typical intervals are between 30 seconds to 2 minutes
- Do between four and ten intervals
- Cool down with five minutes easy running

Your pace should be one that allows you to complete your set of intervals without noticeably slowing down on the last few sets.

Intervals should be performed no more than twice per week, and always followed by an easy day or a rest day.

Tempo runs:

These are steady paced runs that are done just a little slower than your race pace, around 15 to 20 seconds slower than race pace.

The typical distance is two to four miles. When you are new to these, start out with shorter distances, gradually building up as you get more comfortable holding this pace.

A beginners tempo workout might be 2 X five minutes at 20 seconds above race pace, with a five-minute recovery between the two tempo sections.

Once you get more comfortable, you can increase the length of the tempo, eventually building up to a single, four-mile tempo section at race pace plus 10 seconds.

This is a great way to monitor your fitness, and prepare your body for the race itself by running at close to race pace for an extended period.

Hill Training:

Hill training should be part of every runners programme, whether they are training for a hilly race or not. There are several benefits to hill training:

- It increases your mental strength
- It builds a stronger leg push-off
- It increases your hip flexibility

Like intervals, these are tough workouts, do them once a week. Always warm up first, then choose a hill that takes you from 1 to 4 minutes to run up.

To get the best out of hill training you should keep a good tempo all the way to the top, this means you need to lean forward slightly and pump your arms, and keep your leg speed reasonably high. When you reach the top, turn around and slowly jog back down, then repeat.

If you dont usually run hills, you may find even one or two of these tough, but you will soon get used to it. Simply add one hill repeat per week to a maximum of eight.

Distance Work:

In their quest for speed, many 10K runners forget distance work. However, if you look at it logically, you can already run at 10K pace, just not for long enough!

Therefore, along with your speed work, you also need to work on distance. And unlike your other runs, this needs to be done slowly. Long slow distance (LSD) helps to optimise the energy delivery systems to your muscles, a crucial component of running distance.

Thus, once per week you should be running slowly, at distances up to, and beyond 10K. By doing this you are training both your body and your mind, come race day, simply running 10K will be easy, and you can focus on going as fast as possible.

Putting it all together:

So how do you fit all these workouts into a week? There answer is that there are different times when each are more effective.

In particular, hill training and distance work should be a big part of your early season training, helping you to lay down a base of strength and endurance for the speed work that follows.

As you get closer to the race, ease off on the hill running, cut back the distance, and concentrate more on the tempo runs and intervals.

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