How to run faster: a plan for 5K and 10K runners

It sounds backward, but the biggest speed gains for newer runners come from simply running more often at an easy pace. Easy running builds your aerobic engine: the heart, blood vessels and muscles that supply energy for any race longer than a sprint.

Studies of well-trained endurance athletes find that about 80% of their sessions are at low intensity and about 20% are hard. You do not need to copy elite athletes. The pattern is still a useful guide. If every run leaves you wrecked, you have no energy left for the one session that should be fast.

Pick one hard session a week, not all four. Strides are the exception. They are short enough to add after easy runs without making you tired.

This assumes you already run three times a week and can run 3.1 miles without stopping. Warm up with 10 minutes of easy jogging before every hard session and cool down with 5 to 10 minutes after.

Record the time trial in the X Challenge app so you have a number to beat next time. If you are doing LOKI, the trial counts toward its 5 km.

Hard intervals are not sprints. You should finish the last one at the same pace as the first. If you slow down a lot by the end, you started too fast.

The CDC talk test helps here too. At a vigorous effort you cannot say more than a few words without pausing for breath. That is where intervals sit. Tempo runs are a step easier: you can say a short phrase. Easy runs are fully conversational.

Pace targets work if you like numbers. Plug a recent 5K into the running pace calculator. Intervals sit near that 5K pace, tempo runs about 20 to 30 seconds per mile slower.

Fast running on cold legs feels awful and strains muscles more easily. A good warm-up takes 15 minutes:

1. 10 minutes of easy jogging, starting slower than your easy pace.
2. A few leg swings, walking lunges and high knees, about a minute in all.
3. Two or three strides, building to the pace of your first interval.

Afterward, jog or walk for 5 to 10 minutes until your breathing settles. Gentle stretching is optional. The stretches after running guide has a short routine.

The 10K rewards a pace you can hold for longer, so the sessions change a little. Once the six-week plan feels comfortable:

• Lengthen the intervals: 4 × 4 minutes or 3 × 6 minutes at a hard but steady effort, with 2 to 3 minutes of easy jogging.
• Use more tempo runs: build from 15 to 25 minutes at a comfortably hard effort.
• Let the long run grow toward 7 or 8 miles, still easy.

Keep to one hard session a week. The 10K guide covers the build from 5K, and how fast your long run should be covers the easy side.

Strength training makes running feel easier at the same speed. A meta-analysis of trained middle- and long-distance runners found that two or three strength sessions a week for 8 to 12 weeks improved running economy, the amount of energy you use at a given pace. Squats, lunges, calf raises and short jumps are the core. The strength training guide for runners has a full routine.

As for form, most changes take care of themselves as you get fitter. Two cues help: run tall, and take quick, light steps rather than long reaching ones.

There is no fixed number. Newer runners usually improve fastest, sometimes by a minute or more on a 5K within two or three months. Gains slow as you get fitter. Sleep, stress, heat and hills all change a single day’s result, so judge progress over several time trials, not one.

Faster 5K fitness carries up. Once your 5K improves, a 10K at an easy pace feels more manageable too. A tracking habit helps you see it: how to track your running progress explains what to log.

• Running every run hard. Your easy days get slower, not faster.
• Two speed sessions in a row. Leave at least 48 hours between hard days.
• Skipping the warm-up. Cold legs are slow and more likely to strain.
• Adding speed and distance in the same week. Change one thing at a time.
• Testing yourself every week. Every four to six weeks is plenty.

• How do I run faster without getting tired? Run your easy days slower, so you have energy for one hard day.
• Will losing weight make me faster? Sometimes, but it is not needed to improve. Training consistently matters more.
• Do I need a GPS watch? No. Intervals can be done by time, and the app records the distance.
• How long until I see results? Many people notice runs feel easier in three or four weeks, and see a faster time trial in six to eight.
• Are hills worth it if my race is flat? Yes. Short hill repeats build strength and power with less pounding than flat sprints, and that carries over to flat ground.

If you have a health condition, are pregnant, or have not exercised in a long time, check with a doctor before you start.

• Seiler S. What is best practice for training intensity and duration distribution in endurance athletes? Int J Sports Physiol Perform, 2010
• How to Measure Physical Activity Intensity, CDC
• Balsalobre-Fernández C. et al. Effects of strength training on running economy in highly trained runners. J Strength Cond Res, 2016