Your Speed/Distance Training Zones: 20 minute 5k
| Pace per Mile / Km | Treadmill Pace | 400m / 800m Splits | 5km Race Pace |
|---|---|---|---|
| 06:25 / 04:00 | 9.3 mph / 15.0 km/h | 96s / 3:12 | 20min 00s |
Your sub 20 5k training plan
| Day | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Rec. Week |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | 30min easy | 30min easy | 30min easy | Rest/Cross-train |
| Tuesday | Reps@4:00 per km/ 6:25p/m (90s rec.) | Reps@93s per 400m/ 6:15p/m (60s rec.) | Examples | Rest/Cross-train |
| Wednesday | 30min easy | 30min easy | Fartlek Examples | inc. 3m @6:40 p/m |
| Thursday | Reps@3:12 per 800 / 6:25p/m (200m rec.) | Examples | Reps@4:00 per km/ 6:25p/m (90s rec.) | Rest/Cross-train |
| Friday | Rest/Cross-train | Rest | Rest/Cross-train | 30min easy |
| Saturday | 30min easy | Reps@3:12 per 800 / 6:25p/m (200m rec.) | 30min easy | Rest/Cross-train |
| Sunday | Long run | Long run | Long run | Rest/Cross-train |
Sub 5k Training Plan Components
Breakeven Sessions – Sub 20 5k training plan
These sessions are used for maintaining fitness & recovery. Preparing you for breakthrough sessions:
- Easy/ Steady Run – this run should be according to how you feel, don't worry about the time, make sure it's no quicker than 08:25 p/m. Concentrate on recovery and form.
- Long Run – slow & steady run, this should be less than 1 hour.
- Fartlek – unstructured training. Example Fartlek sessions.
Breakthrough Sessions – Sub 20 5k training plan
These sessions are meant to be challenging intense efforts, treat them as mini-milestones towards your target:
- 400m Reps – these need to be at 6:15 p/m pace (93s per lap) with a 60sec standing recovery.
- 800m Reps – should be reps at 6:25p/m pace (3:12 per 800m) with a 200m jogged recovery.
- 1km Intervals – hit 6:25p/m pace (4:00 per km) with a 90sec jogged recovery.
- Hills: Kenyans/ Hill Sprints – alternate between Kenyans and Hill Sprints to get a balance of power and endurance training. Example Hill Training Sessions.
About this Sub 20 minute 5k Training Plan
Remember that to consider following this sub 20 minute 5k plan you should already be able to run at a target race pace of 6:25 for at least a mile (3:59p/km) and/or have a PB under 22 minutes.
The core work for the sub 20 5k training plan is set over a 3-week period with the addition of 1 week’s recovery. At the end of the first 4-week cycle you can repeat and/or tailor the plan to your individual needs to focus on your particular 5k event.
It is recommended that after three months following the sub 20 5k 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.
My PB is 23:16, I hope to one day get sub 20 in the 5k.
Hi, Matt!
At which pace should I run 5km test? My PB is 21:54, but actually I don’t know if I can run the 5km sub20.
I’m struggling to get sub 4/km pace at 400/800/1km, is the 5km run (to see where I’m at) necessary?
There is any consideration of which pace should I run to test? I’m afraid to run at certain pace and then have to stop,
Thanks!
I finally got under 20!! 19:41!! I started my first cycle of your plan in July this year. Did one cycle, had a horrible and hot 5k attempt, then took a week to recoup, did another cycle, then recouped for four weeks only doing one speed session per week, then did one more cycle than ended yesterday with my last 5k sub 20 attempt of this year and I’m happy to say it went great. Your plan was instrumental. I started with a PR of 20:26 which was in February this year. I had two prs in the 20 teens in Sept and October. Best advice is to stick with it. Like everyone says the workouts do get easier. By my third cycle it wasn’t a question of whether or not I would get the necessary times in the workouts with jogs for rests, whereas when I started in July I had to modify the rests to be longer, and I wasn’t hitting all the times. Stick with it and keep plugging away. I also didn’t know how valuable fartleks were! I feel they really helped to increase speed. I tried to not miss any days but in each cycle I did have to miss 1-2 easy recovery days. Thanks again from this old 40 plus year old guy who has had a dream of breaking 20 minutes for over 20 years!
I can do the 5 x 1km intervals at a 3:50km pace but for whatever reason can’t do the 800m workout.. I also obliterate the 400m in 72 seconds and feel like I can do more sets. I am assuming its all mental.. any advice or ideas on this? The 800m workout feels like the hardest and I always give up after the 3rd or 4th rep.
Hi Matt – do you have feelings either way regarding indoor/outdoor running? I live in the mountains and we tend to lean towards treadmills in the winter months. And on that note, any thoughts on tweaks for elevation? My 5k PR is 22:12 at sea level…I’m training at 10k’ and intend to race at about 6k’. Any feedback would be appreciated!
Hi Matt, I have just run my first 5k of 20.17 with no training apart from football on Wednesdays. I really want to take at least 1min of this time, if I don’t have access to an athletics track do you have any tips for the interval/ speed training? And how long do you reckon it will take to cut 1min off.
Many thanks
Henry
Hi Henry,
I also don’t have access to an athletics track so I have had to improvise and find something locally, best bet is go out for a run and track it with Strava (or similar). This gives you an idea of distances of estate loops or landmarks near you which you can use as a reference point. For example a few weeks ago I realised a loop of part of the estate where I live is exactly half a mile, (800m) so I run this loop on my interval sessions. It’s obviously not as good as using a running track and there are variables to consider but I find it easier doing the sessions this way than on normal pavement/road runs. On Strava you can also create your own segments which can be really helpful.
With reference to taking a minute off your time, if you haven’t consistently run before I would recommend doing 3 cycles of the sub 20 to get your body used to the mileage and consistency of running. It should take 2/3 cycles for it to get used to recovering in a short period of time rather than having a whole week (like you would when recovering from football). Don’t be afraid to utilise rest days instead of running the 30min easy if you feel you need it – running 5/6 times a week isn’t always easy. You will probably find the pacing quite easy come the end but it’s more getting used to the volume of training. After this have a week or two of just easy/recovery runs (easy meaning you could hold a conversation when running if you had to). Then run a test 5k to see what your best is and take it from there. If you are getting towards 19.00 then take a look at the sub 18 plan, if that looks too daunting find a happy medium between the sub 20 & sub 18 (this is what I will be doing after I finish this cycle).
I hope this helps and if you have any questions then let me know!
Callum
My PB is 21.15 – haven’t started this training plan, I attempted a fast 1 km to finish my latest slower 5km (23.59) and ran the last 1 km in 3.51. Seems like a huge difference between 21.15 and 19.59.