Can I go sub 16?

and?

Pace of your long run?

sub 16 is a state of mind

15:59 is a world away from 16:38. Unless you are a fairly new runner, still on the quick improvement curve.

Not saying you can't do it, but I would be trying to break 16:30 first.

Your 1500 suggest you clearly have the ability to break 16. It also suggests that you have terrible endurance, when looking at your 5k PR.

I would do some longer runs throughout the week instead of four 5/6 and 5/5 doubles. I'd change two of those days to singles of 8-10 miles, making one of them a progression run. Based on your 1500 again, I'd say it's just a matter of time more than anything else.

Long run pace would generally be about 7:00-7:20/ mile

Easy run pace generally 7:10/mile

Tempo would be 5:30 ( 5 mile) to 5:52 (10 mile)

Intervals run around 5k pace usually and track sessions usually around 4-5 miles in volume

That 5k in 16:38 was run Thisbe year after 6 weeks of base training on the road, haven't raced one since

My previous best was 17:07 and this was 20 mins after an 800m race and my stomach was awful for most of the race

Maybe try this on interval day, over 6 weeks - it's a workout plan I have used several times to get me to a new 5k PR goal:

Week 1: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 2:30 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 2: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 2:00 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 3: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:45 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 4: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:30 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 5: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:15 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 6: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:00 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 7 - RACE

If you are unable to complete any of the workouts, do not move on - repeat the same one again the following week.

Nearly sub 16 wrote:

Long run pace would generally be about 7:00-7:20/ mile

Easy run pace generally 7:10/mile

Tempo would be 5:30 ( 5 mile) to 5:52 (10 mile)

Intervals run around 5k pace usually and track sessions usually around 4-5 miles in volume

Looks like sub 16 min 5k to me.

This was my last 3 workouts-

Saturday- 5km hard solo run-16:57

Tuesday- 6 x 1km with 2:15 rest- Avg: 3:12

Friday- 10 mile tempo-58:20

5k splits-19:06-18:03-17:54

lollerama wrote:

Maybe try this on interval day, over 6 weeks - it's a workout plan I have used several times to get me to a new 5k PR goal:

Week 1: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 2:30 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 2: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 2:00 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 3: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:45 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 4: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:30 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 5: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:15 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 6: 5x1000m @ 3:10-11 with 1:00 active recovery (jog 200m)

Week 7 - RACE

If you are unable to complete any of the workouts, do not move on - repeat the same one again the following week.

I would do kilometer reps for a week or two . Then do 2k reps for a week or two. Then do 3k reps. Then do some ladder workout of 1k/2k/3k/3k/2k/1k. Than a week before do a 5k tempo with a few 1k reps.

I.e. on a tues

Week one 1k x 5

Week two 1k x 2 x 2k x 3

Week three 2k x 4

Week four 3k x 3

Week five 1k+2k+3k+3k+2k+1k

Week six 5k temp + 1k x 3

Week seven race

And another day like Thursday of Fri do shorter reps or hill reps. And your long run on Sunday. Plus, do as many easy runs as possible between your workouts.

I like this thread. I'm in a similar boat but trying to break 17, I appreciate the feedback here. My mile time of 4:53 two weeks ago should say I could break it but I didn't this past weekend . Fell apart last mile

I was very similar to you. I could run sub 2 for 800 but barely sub 17 for 5k. That all changed when I did several things:

Tempo. I mean REAL tempo. Start with 5x1000 on the track with 60 sec rest. Then progress to 3x1600. Then 2x2400. Work up to 3 miles at tempo pace. Then 4 miles. Use Daniels tables find your pace.

Keep your long run but scrap one of your double days and do a semi-long run. Your weakness us endurance. Don't feed that weakness by doubling every day.

Make sure your easy days are easy. I'd recommend planning your week so you can take one day off and still maintain your goal know mileage. Rest is important.

I dropped a minute and a half (16:56 to 15:30) in 2 years by adding these pieces to my training.

Plan for this week

Mon- 10 mile easy

Tuesday- 2 x 6 mile easy

Wednesday - 2x 2000m, 2x 1000m, 2x 500m- all at 5km pace

Thursday- 2 x 6 mile easy

Friday- 5 mile easy

Saturday- 6 mile tempo @5:30-5:35

Sunday-15 mile long run

Total-75 miles

Thoughts?

If you can run a 6 mile tempo at 5:30 pace then you will destroy 16 minutes for 5k, especially if you are spiked up on a fast track in a good race.

The only thing I'd recommend is doing 5x15 second strides twice a week after easy runs. And you might want to replace that 2x500 at 5k pace with some 400s/200s at mile/800 pace. Doing work at pace significantly faster than race will make it feel even easier when you try to go out in 5:05 in PR attempt.

When is your goal race?

Not a College Runner wrote:

If you can run a 6 mile tempo at 5:30 pace then you will destroy 16 minutes for 5k, especially if you are spiked up on a fast track in a good race.?

Not necessarily. I know for me, I can't race a 5k much faster than my tempo pace. I know, I know, I know. Before you all say it, I realize that I "should" be able to run a 5k much faster than my tempo pace. But the fact is I can't. I am an 800/1600 guy. The 5k is 3x my ideal race distance and it requires physiological adaptations that I simply don't have without a lot of work. For people like the OP (significantly faster at the mile), the endurance part of equation drops off so quickly that they struggle to maintain their pace over 5k.

LT/Tempo workouts are the key, though. Do them regularly at the correct pace and you will bring your 5k time down. Strides are good, but in your case you have the speed. What you need to dip under 16 is endurance.

My goal race is the end of January, so I still have about 6 weeks

Nearly sub 16 wrote:

Long run pace would generally be about 7:00-7:20/ mile

Easy run pace generally 7:10/mile

Tempo would be 5:30 ( 5 mile) to 5:52 (10 mile)

Intervals run around 5k pace usually and track sessions usually around 4-5 miles in volume

Your 'tempo' times are more impressive than your 5km pb

Tempo paces aren't possibly slightly too fast sometimes, hard to control

Libertarian vegan wrote:

Nearly sub 16 wrote:

Long run pace would generally be about 7:00-7:20/ mile

Easy run pace generally 7:10/mile

Tempo would be 5:30 ( 5 mile) to 5:52 (10 mile)

Intervals run around 5k pace usually and track sessions usually around 4-5 miles in volume

Looks like sub 16 min 5k to me.

Seeing that made me think he is flat out racing and calling it “tempo” or ready to go 15:45-ish