This may sound crazy but I actually find that running a 5K is harder than running a half marathon.
I started off as a long distance runner many years ago and never really knew how to run my fastest or push myself to my max. I only knew how to pace myself for the long distance runs such as half or full marathons. You can really run any race or distant you want, if you train and learn to pace yourself properly.
The past couple of years, I switched gears and started taking “racing” seriously. Now…I haven’t won any medals or anything, but I have improved my 5K time by a whopping 3 minutes and 36 seconds in the past few years and just crushed my 5k PR (personal record) by 20 seconds this past weekend! 20 seconds seems like peanuts but when pacing yourself for a 5K, it’s actually harder than it sounds.
Feeling inspired, I wanted to share with you some tips on how I’ve been able to shave time off of each of the 5K’s I’ve done over the past few years.
The reason I find 5K’s to be harder than longer distances is because I’ve actually been pushing myself to a bit of an uncomfortable point. That’s not to say that you should do the same, you should always read your body, but without really testing yourself and pushing yourself a bit out of your comfort zone, as with anything in life, you won’t see the results that you want. That brings me to my first tip (and tips)…
Here are some tips for crushing that next 5K:
- Be willing to push yourself outside of your comfort zone. You can judge how hard you’ve pushed yourself by how much steam you have at the end. Did you sprint and/or significantly pick up your speed at the finish line? Did you feel like you barely broke a sweat once you finished? If your answer is yes to these questions, then chances are you didn’t push yourself hard enough.
- Incorporate strength and cross training. It will most likely be difficult to improve your time without incorporating strength or cross training. I try and do 2-3 different cross training exercises a week such as weight lifting, HIIT, Pilates, and Yoga. Focusing on exercises that strengthen your core and glutes may help to improve your running, make you faster, as well as prevent injury. Here are some exercises to get you started: 10-essential-strength-exercises-for-runners
- Do Fartlek Training. Fartlek training is similar to interval running where you intermix periods of running fast, at your desired 5K pace, and then recover by running at a slow pace, essentially a jog. Fartleks are a great introduction to doing speed workouts. Here is a good beginner 1:1 fartlek training to get you started: Warm up with half a mile at an easy pace. Repeat 10-15 repetitions of running hard (at 5K race effort or slightly faster) for 1 minute and running easy for 1 minute. Cool down with half a mile of easy running. As you get more advanced, you can shorten your recovery times in between and/or lengthen your speed times. For example, do 2 mins hard, 1 min easy 2:1.
- Pace yourself based on your goal. Learning to pace yourself better by breaking down the race into splits will allow you to better utilize your full capacity during the race. For example, if you are looking to shave off 30 seconds in total, try breaking that out by running 10 seconds per mile faster than your last 5K pace. May sound like common sense but you would be surprised at how often people start off too fast or end faster than they started.
Start working toward your 5K goals by signing up for a race in a few months from now. I like to give myself at least 3 months to work on a new race pace goal.
What are some of your tips for running your best 5K?
