Goal of sub 20 5k (Read 13664 times)

evtish


    Does anyone else have this goal? I'm a new runner, so I realize this may be aggressive. My first goal is to not get injured, my second is to run 7 mm in the 5k by April, then to break 20 minutes before my 1 yr running anniversary in October. Then in year 2 I'll shoot for 5:30 mm. I"m looking for other people to enter the breaking 20 contest to keep the motivation up. No sandbaggers that are already fast. Tom


    Lazy idiot

      Tom, Good luck with your goal. I've thought about setting my sights that high, but I'm not sure at this point I'm ready to think about concrete goals at any distance (I did this last year, and despite reaching all my goals in good time I was a little hurt towards the end of the year). There is a 5k training group here at RA: http://www.runningahead.com/groups/faster5k. I think I might join once I get my miles up to a more regular level. Let us know how you progress! Drew

      Tick tock

        Sub 20 is my current goal. I'm going to try for it this spring. Y'all should definitely join the 5K user group.
        UpNorth


          I've set my sights on sub-20 this year. Last year I wanted to break 21 and managed a 20:27 on my last 5k, so I feel like its in my grasp if I can stay healthy and consistent.
            How much running experience do you have, prior to getting started this year? How much are you willing to run? My first year of running, I went from around a 27 min 5k to around a 23 min. Last year I went from 23 min to 20:12. So if you are already running around 23:00, you may be able to break 20, but you'll probably need to put in a fair amount of mileage (25-30 miles per week) to get there. I kept getting nagging injuries cropping up every time I'd hit 25 miles per week, I thinking mostly because I was concentrating too hard on speedwork and times and not enough on easy runs to build my mileage base. So this year I am starting by building a big base at low effort levels, and hope to increase the intensity later in the year. You may want to consider doing similar if you are a 'new' runner. I think you should see how long/hard it is to get to your 7 mm 5k goal, and then decide how to progress. Without more of a running history, it is hard to tell how you'll do. You can make sub-20 your goal, but don't try to put a time frame on it until you get an idea of how you respond to the training. I'll be shooting for sub-20 this year, so you won't be the only one aiming for that milestone. Good luck!
              Yeah. I want to do -20 in the 5k this year, in june/july. Though it's a goal, I'm not sure how much specific 5k training I want to do. I really prefer the Marathon. I'll be running Miami this coming weekend. I'm thinking about running Charlottsville, VA in April. In mid-May, after a nice tapper, I'll put in some more speed work. Hopefully I'll run a good 5K prior to starting my fall marathon training in July. Even without a whole lot of specific training, I think I can run sub 20. I ran three 5Ks in 07, all of which were 20Tight lippedx. Good luck.


              The voice of mile 18

                I'm in. haven't been that fast in a while and couldn't get there last year.

                 Tri Rule #1 of Triathlon Training/Racing - If Momma ain't happy nobody is happy 

                AmoresPerros


                Options,Account, Forums

                  > Does anyone else have this goal? Along with the previous positive responses, myself as well Smile Good luck and injury free racing to all of us!

                  It's a 5k. It hurt like hell...then I tried to pick it up. The end.

                  jeffdonahue


                    I'm in. My PR last year was 21:00 and I am shooting for sub-20 by the summertime.
                      I'm hoping to get under 20:00, I don't know if it's realistic or not. It would be 40 seconds off my PR, and last race season taking two seconds off my PR was a b*tch. I have a great training plan for your races, they're called races. That's right, use this week's race to prepare for next week's PR. The Good Times Series runs every Tuesday night starting in April, and you could just hop on 495 (or maybe 110 from Methuen?) and make your way to beautiful downtown Lowell. It's around 18 5K races over a 20 (or so) week period. Have a beer (or two...) at Hookslide Kelly's after, and get your big ol' series PR "medal" (in genuine PVC). Good stuff. www.goodtimesrun.com I also started a Good Times group, it's pretty quiet at the moment (now there's an understatement) but with the season's mudslinging and ribbing camaraderie it should pick up. RA Good Times 5K user group

                      E.J.
                      Greater Lowell Road Runners
                      Cry havoc and let slip the dawgs of war!

                      May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your SPF30, may the rains fall soft upon your sweat-wicking hat, and until you hit the finish line may The Flying Spaghetti Monster hold you in the hollow of His Noodly Appendage.

                      Teresadfp


                      One day at a time

                        DS15's goal is sub-17 at this point. His PR is 17:06. Grr.
                          I'm hoping to get under 20:00, I don't know if it's realistic or not. It would be 40 seconds off my PR, and last race season taking two seconds off my PR was a b*tch.
                          You can get there without a doubt if you are willing to do a little more. First thing would be to run on at least one of those days you take off each week. Compared to several I see posting here your mileage is ok, but it's still not a lot. The next thing would be to a add a weekly track workout. It doesn't have to be a ****buster either...I'd say that 5 x 1K at about 8-10 seconds per mile slower than your current 5k race would do just fine. Take a half lap recovery jog between each rep. If you are real consistent, religiously doing them every week, you will see measurable results. You can rotate between those, 800's, and 1200's if you want. Just do about 3 miles worth of each. A lot of people will tell you to run them harder, do 400's and a lot of other stuff, but I can tell by your PR's that endurance/threshold work is what you need most at this stage. Running your intervals a little slower and taking a short recovery will boost your lactate threshold if you keep doing them. You should also be able to recover from them quite easily. So that's it...run an extra day or 2 each week, and throw in those intervals. There are other things you can do but this is enough to get you to your goal. I see that you have been doing some nice long runs, so that's good. I picked on you because you're easy...if you've run 20:40 off of what you've been doing it's not going to take drastic measures to get your sub-20. I would say to everyone else who has posted here that the best thing you can do is increase your mileage. Don't think that because 5k is a short race that you don't need lots of endurance to run it well. That's a very common misconception.
                          Age 60 plus best times: 5k 19:00, 10k 38:35, 10m 1:05:30, HM 1:24:09, 30k 2:04:33
                          Len


                          Damn Yankee

                            There is a race on July 4th that I totally blew up in last year. I want to break 20 in it this year. It will require a 90 second improvement on my current PR, but my training has picked up and I believe I can do it. MTA- Jim feel free to pick on me, I'm easy too...

                            Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending. Carl Bard

                              There is a race on July 4th that I totally blew up in last year. I want to break 20 in it this year. It will require a 90 second improvement on my current PR, but my training has picked up and I believe I can do it.
                              Hey Len, hire Jim as your coach and you shouldn't have a problem. Check out his PR entries, he knows of which he speaks. And Jim, before you go posting any more helpful stuff like that, please check the user's profile for location. If they are from Massachusetts, DO NOT help them. Especially Trentman359, do not help Trentman359 under any circumstances. If the young lad beats me up in Lowell, he will be IMPOSSIBLE to deal with. Clowning around I can't wait for April.

                              E.J.
                              Greater Lowell Road Runners
                              Cry havoc and let slip the dawgs of war!

                              May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your SPF30, may the rains fall soft upon your sweat-wicking hat, and until you hit the finish line may The Flying Spaghetti Monster hold you in the hollow of His Noodly Appendage.

                              evtish


                                Drew, thanks for the user group info, I just joined that one. BadDawg, thanks for the Goodtimes link, I have been looking at that and thinking of running in them. Problem is Tuesday is my golf league night, so I have a dilemma. I'm actually thinking of forgoing my golf league this year so I can run those. Hookslide's a great bar too! Because I don't want to get injured from too much too soon, I did that in November already, I've been doing a spinning class on T and Th. I know it's not running, but I'm hoping it still helps my aerobic capacity a bit. Once I get more comfortable, I'll up my running days from 4/wk to 5/wk. Running background: Nothing competitive. Every few years I'd start running for a few months and end up injuring myself and switch over to something else. My priority was always lifting at a gym 4 days/wk so aerobic stuff was just to stay in shape. I have taken spinning classes 2x/wk consistently over the last 2-3 yrs, so I'm not coming off the couch, but I don't have my running legs yet either.