Sub 17 fitness = what workouts?

fellow sub 17 hopeful wrote:

I’m also looking to break 17 in 4 weeks.

My recent workouts have been:

6x800 @ 2:41 w/90s jog

20min tempo avg. 6:11 (under control)

3M continuous alternating 200 @ 40, 200 @ 45

7M progression working from 7:45 down to 6:30.

8x400 at 75 w/60s rest

Long runs approx 15 with an hour at 7 flat avg. to finish.

MPW approx 50

Planning to still hit workouts of:

4x1600 cutdown w/3-3:30 rest starting at 10k finishing faster than 5k pace.

6x1k @ 5k w/90s-2min rest

And 12x200 5k-3k w/200jog week of race.

Will keep similar long run and progression/lighter tempo each week except race week as well.

Good luck!

Those are some great workouts! Good luck to you, as well. Are you racing on a track? Feel free to continue updating in this thread until your race.

Today I did a 3x2 mile tempo with 2.5 min recovery. The goal was to run this at threshold pace and go by feel... A controlled effort and something that I felt like I could hold for an hour.

Splits were 12:12, 11:53. 11:49

I may have run it a touch faster than true threshold pace, but not by much. I felt fairly relaxed and comfortable at 5:55-6:00 pace.

Interested in following both of your progress as well as I'm very closely aligned in workouts with similar goals.

Recent workouts:

25:00 tempo in 5:50, significant tailwind for most and slight net downhill

5x1000 on flat road off 2:00 rest in 3:25 avg

2 mi, 1 mi @ threshold, 2x800, 2x400 @ 5k Ladder, all 2:00 rest, on hilly road: 12:08 2- mile, 5:37 mile (big net downhill), 2:57, 2:48, 80, 84 (felt like crap for most of this)

12 miles averaging 7:03, with 4 in the middle steady uphill avg 6:32

20:00 tempo over rolling hills avg 6:02

mileage 50-55

I think I'm in about 17:10 shape based on the last 2 workouts, maybe 16:50's on a good day.

Charlie Stache wrote:

Interested in following both of your progress as well as I'm very closely aligned in workouts with similar goals.

Recent workouts:

25:00 tempo in 5:50, significant tailwind for most and slight net downhill

5x1000 on flat road off 2:00 rest in 3:25 avg

2 mi, 1 mi @ threshold, 2x800, 2x400 @ 5k Ladder, all 2:00 rest, on hilly road: 12:08 2- mile, 5:37 mile (big net downhill), 2:57, 2:48, 80, 84 (felt like crap for most of this)

12 miles averaging 7:03, with 4 in the middle steady uphill avg 6:32

20:00 tempo over rolling hills avg 6:02

mileage 50-55

I think I'm in about 17:10 shape based on the last 2 workouts, maybe 16:50's on a good day.

Welcome aboard. Those are solid workouts, and it sounds like you fit right in. I'm especially impressed with that 25min tempo @ 5:50 (even if you did have a tailwind). Do you have a race planned? And if so, when?

Thanks, I was astonished by it. And the next day I started getting some achilles pain so I took a week off which just about killed me psychologically. But getting back at it now.

I haven't raced during COVID but ran 17:39 by myself in May. Feel much fitter now. Will probably go for another solo time trial in February. Thanks for asking!

Sub17Hopeful wrote:

Today I did a 3x2 mile tempo with 2.5 min recovery. The goal was to run this at threshold pace and go by feel... A controlled effort and something that I felt like I could hold for an hour.

Splits were 12:12, 11:53. 11:49

I may have run it a touch faster than true threshold pace, but not by much. I felt fairly relaxed and comfortable at 5:55-6:00 pace.

This workout seems bang-on for sub-17:00... like me, your vo2 might need to be sharpened up. Up to you if you want to focus on that at the cost of the marathon in just 2 months but it will probably cost you opportunity-cost wise to do those kinds of workouts which don't yield much for marathon training. I bet you'd be 17:0x on strength alone now based on your earlier workouts.

Last week went very well-

Mon- AM: 6 easy / PM: 5 easy

Tues- AM: 2x4min, 3x3min, 4x2min (all at goal pace of 5:30 with equal parts recovery) / PM 5 easy

Weds- 4 easy

Thurs- AM: 30 min tempo @ 6:00 pace, PM: 5 easy

Fri- 5 easy

Sat- 22 with 5 @ MP (6:15 pace)

Sun- 10 easy

TOTAL- 85 miles w/ 3 big workouts

Very heavy workload, and I was fairly tired at a few points throughout the week. But overall, I'm processing the training well and feeling strong on my workouts. Saturday was a big confidence booster. I'm starting to feel more optimistic about the sub17 attempt.

Some workouts I did the month leading up to my time trial:

14x400, starting at 80 quickly down to 77, 60 sec rest for 12, then 50. Had more in me.

6x800 at 2:41/42 2:00 rest

3200 5:50/53; 2x1600 5:40, 42; 4x200 33ish

3x1600 5:32

Then I tried to tt, went out too fast, and called it halfway through. I was shooting for 16:40, probably could have held on for a sub17.

Good luck.

A couple sharpening workouts I can recall:

1 mile @ Vo2 max- 2-3 min rest, I don’t remember- 1 400 all out

3x1k all out with 2-3 min rest between

Today I ran 5x1000 @ goal 5k pace (3:24) with 2min rest.

It felt far more comfortable than the last time I ran this workout 2 weeks ago, and it gave me some hope that sub17 is doable...

3:28, 3:26, 3:23, 3:21, 3:17

My wife does that workout but only runs 25 minutes.

Dr. Of Doom wrote:

My wife does that workout but only runs 25 minutes.

Damn dude. Your wife and her boyfriend must be pretty fit.

Another solid week. Two noteworthy workouts from last week:

5x1000 @ Goal 5k pace w/ 90sec rest: 3:28, 3:26, 3:23, 3:21, 3:17

-This one felt REALLY good. I did the same workout 3 weeks ago and it was tough. But I felt strong here (even when faster than goal pace)

5 mile tempo starting at 6:20 pace and cutting down 10 sec/mile (6:20-5:40). Splits came out to 6:15, 6:08, 6:02, 5:45, 5:33

-Another really good one. Felt relaxed and controlled in those last 2 miles. It was encouraging to hit goal 5k pace in a tempo run after 4 miles.

I'm racing the 5k this Saturday. Looking like temps will be in the teens, but I'm feeling optimistic.

If you can't break 17 off of that progression run then it was closer to an all-out race effort IMHO.

highhoppingworm wrote:

If you can't break 17 off of that progression run then it was closer to an all-out race effort IMHO.

Assuming you're referring to the 5 mile tempo progression and not the 1k interval progression.

That 5 miler was definitely a tempo effort. Yeah, by the last mile I was working hard, but definitely not racing. I'd say the last half mile of that tempo was at like 85% effort, still fairly controlled.

Sub17Hopeful wrote:

Another solid week. Two noteworthy workouts from last week:

5x1000 @ Goal 5k pace w/ 90sec rest: 3:28, 3:26, 3:23, 3:21, 3:17

-This one felt REALLY good. I did the same workout 3 weeks ago and it was tough. But I felt strong here (even when faster than goal pace)

5 mile tempo starting at 6:20 pace and cutting down 10 sec/mile (6:20-5:40). Splits came out to 6:15, 6:08, 6:02, 5:45, 5:33

-Another really good one. Felt relaxed and controlled in those last 2 miles. It was encouraging to hit goal 5k pace in a tempo run after 4 miles.

I'm racing the 5k this Saturday. Looking like temps will be in the teens, but I'm feeling optimistic.

Thanks for keeping this up - in my opinion, you're there.

about a month ago I did 6x1000 off 2:00 rest and went 3:23, 25, 26, 24, 27, 25. No way I could have hit those last two splits off the shorter rest even if I dropped the 6th rep. I thought I was in 17:10 shape or so (i.e., I think this workout is indicative of actual 5k pace).

but the last progression run shows you're ready to smash it - you might want to target 16:40. I don't think I could do that progression run right now and I think I'm right at 17:00. I battled some tendinitis 3 weeks ago so my training has had some gaps of late.

A few more recent workouts for me:

1/12 - 5x5:00 threshold off 1:00, averaged about 5:57/mi pace for the intervals

1/16 - 12x400m off 1:00, averaged 75

1/19 - 20:00 tempo, rolling hills, averaged 5:58

Mileage is only around 50/wk right now b/c i'm building back from the injury.

I was really pumped about the 12x400m but it zapped my legs for the tempo 3 days later and I was really feeling it there. I am planning another big workout tomorrow. plan to go for a TT this weekend and then taper back for some more attempts through mid-february.

keep me posted - again, i think you should set your sights higher based on recent workouts.

Charlie, those are great workouts. Sounds like you're very close, so hopefully things go well for us this weekend.

In the last couple weeks, as my fitness has seen a nice jump, I've wondered if I should aim for faster than 17:00. I think I'm going to feel out the first mile at 5:25-5:30 and see how that goes. Hopefully I feel strong enough after that first mile that I can push a bit in the 2nd and 3rd mile.

I'd rather have a big negative split and strong finish than go for 16:40 only to blow up and fade out.

These workouts look to me like you can do it!

for me, the times i've come up short in 5k TT's (have run several over the last 10 months of this covid debacle) it's because I didn't attack the race in the first mile. i waited for the race to come to me but found it's psychologically hard to have to nail two more even splits in a 5k when it feels like you're redlining after 1 or 1.5 miles.

that said, if you can get out in 5:25 i think you'll feel like you're ready to attack. surge hard at 1.5 miles and again at 2 miles and you're gonna have it in the bag.