If you are not quite ready then take a look at the 50 minute 10k training plan instead and then come back to this one once you are in a position to run at this pace.
Other 10k training plans: Sub 60 min 10k training plan|| 55 minute 10k || 50 minute 10k || 45 minute 10k || 40 minute 10k || 35 minute 10k
Please read before starting a training plan:
Frequently Asked Questions | Signs of Overtraining
Your Speed/Distance Training Zones: 45 minute 10k
| Pace per Mile | Treadmill Pace | 400m / 800m Splits | 1km Pace | 5km Race Pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07:15 | 8.2 mph/ 13.3 km/h | 1:48 / 3:36 | 04:30 secs | 22:30 min |
45 minute 10k Training Plan
| Day | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | 4 (rec week) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 45mins easy | Rest/ cross-train | 30mins easy | Rest/ cross-train |
| Tuesday | 30mins easy | Rest/ cross-train | ||
| Wednesday | Rest/ cross-train | 30mins easy | Rest/ cross-train | Rest/ cross-train |
| Thursday | @7:15 p/m (4:30 p/km) 2 min Rec | Aim for 22:30 | @7:15 p/mile (3:36 p/800m) 90s Rec | Rest/ cross-train |
| Friday | Rest/ cross-train | Rest/ cross-train | Rest/ cross-train | 45mins easy |
| Saturday | 45mins easy | @7:15 p/m (4:30 p/km) 90s Rec | 45mins easy | Rest/ cross-train |
| Sunday | Long run, gentle pace: 60-75 mins | 45mins easy | Long run, gentle pace: 60-75 mins | Rest/ cross-train |
55 Minute 10k Training Plan Components
Breakeven Sessions – 45 minute 10k
These sessions are used for maintaining fitness & recovery. Preparing you for breakthrough sessions:
- Easy Run – this should be no quicker than 09:15-09:45 p/mile.
- Long Run – this doesn't need to be any longer than 75 minutes.
Breakthrough Sessions – 45 minute 10k
These sessions are meant to be challenging intense efforts, treat them as mini-milestones towards your target:
- Tempo Run – hard but sustainable effort, usually about 30 mins in total and aim for 07:45 p/mile pace for 3 miles with a 1 mile warm up/down either side.
- 800m Reps – should be reps at 07:15 p/m pace (3:36 per 800m) with a 90sec jogged recovery.
- 1km Intervals – 07:15 p/m pace (4:30 per km) with a 90sec jogged recovery.
- 2km Intervals – 07:15 p/m pace (4:30 per km) with a 2min jogged recovery.
- 5km Time Effort – run a 5k race/training run at your maximum, try and aim for a sub 22:30.
Notes on the 55 Minute 10k Training Plan
The 45 minute 10k plan has been put together so it is cyclical and can be used over a period of weeks until you feel you are ready for your 10k event. At the end of each cycle you can repeat from the beginning or tweak the plan to suit your current ability and time commitments etc. As you improve you'll maybe want to incorporate some sessions from our other 10k training plans.
If, after a couple of rotations you want to make the plan harder, you could slowly increase the number of reps for the breakthrough speed sessions. Introduce changes slowly and over a few weeks, i.e., Week 1 = 3x2km Reps, Week 5 = 4x2km Reps, Week 8 = 5x2km reps, etc. Obviously there is only so far you can go with this, there would be no point in extending these way beyond the 10k distance. The other way of making the plan harder is to adjust the pace slightly and run faster!
It is recommended that after three months of using the 45 minute 10k plan that you reduce your training for a period of one to two weeks to allow your body time to recover from the impact of running. This should mean more time cross-training with a couple of nice easy runs every few days to keep the legs ticking over.
To realise improvements it’s worth remembering that training is cumulative and it takes time and dedication to follow any training plan and achieve the results you want.
I am building back a base again this year (currently at 10-15 mpw for a month). For the year I wanted to
1. Finish a half marathon (got to 11 miles last year but then had IT band problems)
2. Sub 45 minute 10k (47:50 PR from a 7 mile run, can def drop substantially lower in a race)
3. Sub 20 minutes 5k (Recent 21:05 minute PR)
4. Sub 6 minute mile (6:15 PR last year, no recent attempt)
I set my goals so the longer distance goals should be easier and can do in the summer and then with a larger base start some intervals to give the faster paced 5k a shot in Fall and hopefully get the mile along the way.
It seems by my current 5k time, the 45 minute 10k should be doable by just upping long runs and doing a weekly tempo and strides, which was my general base building strategy. Do you think it would be worth doing something like this cycle instead? Seems like a lot more fast sessions which might increase injury risk, and that is the main barrier for the half.
The plan mentions 10-12 hours of weekly workload. However, even with warm and cool down total time is around 5-6 hours. Can you please elaborate what is expected in remaining hours.