I am looking for a good plan to prep for XTERRA Nationals at the end of September. I have a decent running base, but I need to speed up a TON before I get there.
Anyone know of a good 12 week training plan for a really hilly 10K?
If I don’t have something written, I have a MAJOR tendancy to slack off…so I’d like to get the schedule written, ready to go for next weeks start.
Thanks everyone!
No responses in 12 hours? Come on guys, a little help?
I’m not a coach… but this is what I’d do (“good base”: I assume you can handle 60mpw).
day 1: find a really hilly 10k course, run it twice at an aerobic pace (you can talk in short sentences, but would prefer not to).
day 2: see day 1
day 3: see day 1
day 4: off
day 5: see day 1
day 6: see day 1
day 7: off
The hills will provide you with enough “speed” work.
*A hilly tempo run once a week. Start at 20 minutes. Build to 30-40 minutes in 11 weeks.
*A hilly long run once a week. Hit your peak mileage in 6 weeks, then cut back by 20%.
*4x4minutes, 2 minutes jog. Build to 6 or 7 over the next 6 weeks.
Weeks 7-11 replace with 4 minute HARD hill repeats.
Week 12, taper.
Fill in the rest with easy running.
Here is a link to a training plan used for the Grden of the Gods 10 miler by CTS.
http://www.gardentenmile.com/training.htm
Click on the course link to see how nasty this run is. I PRed the course with this.
paw
day 1: find a really hilly 10k course, run it twice at an aerobic pace (you can talk in short sentences, but would prefer not to).
day 2: see day 1
day 3: see day 1
day 4: off
day 5: see day 1
day 6: see day 1
day 7: off
It may seem sarcastic, but it’s not too far off. Over the years I have learned that running more hills in training = faster and more effcient running at all speeds and distances.
I say this here regularly, but it’s worth repeating again - very few people are running that fast in triathlons these days, off-road or otherwise. It’s one area of the race that can yield substantial improvements with relativly minor gains in fitness. Unfortunately those gains in running fitness do not come easily nor over night.
It may seem sarcastic, but it’s not too far off.
I wasn’t being sarcastic. I think a lot of people concentrate on that final 20% too much (peaking/tapering/x% at Y heart rate/vo2max intervals/etc…), and miss that big 80% chunk of low-hanging fruit. Just by running a hilly course you’re working on your power uphill & turnover downhill, all heart rates, and with 60mpw your endurance/stamina is pretty much covered.
But I like to keep it simple and not overthink it too much. JFR.
Don’t forget to practice cresting hills in your training. Most people have a natural tendency to slow down or catch their breath and the top of a hill. Keep your PE the same all the way up and over the hill and settle into your pace right away. Good way to pass or gap someone.
paw
60 mpw is a bit high for me (I tend to get injured over 35 or so) but your plan actually sounds fine to me. Run hills, repeat. No need to make it harder than it is.
So maybe I’ll find a 3, 4, and 5 mile hilly loops around here. Run the 3 mile 2-3x/day for aerobic a 3 days per week, the 4 miler hard 1-2x per week, and 5 miler hard 1x per week. That will give me 31-35 or so miles per week. Should help me a ton!
Thanks!
I’d do 4x9m if you could handle it.
And skip the others? Or replace the 1x4m I had stated?
But I like to keep it simple and not overthink it too much. JFR.
Absolutly. It’s not that complicated.
5K & 10K are my preferences and I live in a hilly area, so here is what I do:
Figure time and distance based on knowledge of your body / fitness.
Over the course of one week - ten days:
A long modest paced run, hitting as many hills as possible (repeat some if necessary), but maintain the same pace throughout.Long run with as many hills as possible, hit the hills hard (usually try to sprint them), recover (walk if necessary) after each hill.Hill repeats – use treadmill or find a hill that takes you about 2 - 4 minutes to finish, run at full speed uphill, walk/recover as you go back down, repeat, repeat, etc. start with 4 - 6 repeats, build up to 8 - 12, with speed increasing each week/set.Short run with hills – hit route with as many hills as possible, sprint all hills for a total of about 2 minutes if the hill is not long enough, sprint the flats in between hills, easy recovery between each sprint.Make sure you do one midish easy run each week… Repeat workouts above as deemed necessary.
or to sum up: run hills as much as you can…keep it simple.