Can I run low 4 in the mile off of 60-70 MPW?

Here's my advice, lets say you want to peak 2x a year (february and august, adjust accordingly.) Keep mileage high (60-70) most of the year, down weeks for races. You should do 3 workouts a week. Keep in mind this is for a 1500/5000 type, and it's what has worked for me. Workouts should consist of:

Sept-Oct: 2 solid threshold workouts + alternate 1 hill / short rep speed 5k down to 1500 pace workout

Nov - Dec: 1 threshold session + alternate 1 5k pace session/threshold session + alternate 1 hill / short rep speed sessions. 5k/10k test somewhere in december

Jan: 1 threshold session + 1 hard mile pace session + alternate 5k/800 pace session. Try to get a rust buster race in.

Feb: Get into some good races, time to run fast! If not racing: 1 hard mile pace session, 1 moderate 800 session, 1 easy aerobic maintenance (5k to threshold pace) session a week. Race week: just an easy mile pace session + race.

week or 2 easy, then repeat this cycle from March-August.

I improved my 1500 from 5.17 aged 16 to 4.18 aged 34 to 4.00 aged 43.

And I have no speed. So your advice is pretty much worthless.

Let’s talk a little more and I can definitely write you a plan that’s built around your job commitments etc. to maximise your potential.

If your 800m or is 1:52, your 5k is going to have to be like 13:40 or better to break 4:00.

What’s your 400m best? You should be working to get below 1:50 for 800m while also lowering your 5000m best.

Anyone can be a sub 4:00 miler if they just run enough? There is hope for me at age 59 to get that elusive 3:59:xx that I covet? Awesome!!!

I ran 4:12 off 30 miles a week - three workouts a week and usually a meet on the weekends.

As many have stated, you are not going to do it with this Runner’s World Couch-to-5K™ training plan.

Why is it that anyone who runs events longer than 2 minutes long has this mentality?

100m - Train to run as fast as possible for 100m

200m - Train to run as fast as possible for 200m

400m - Train to run as fast as possible for 400m

800m - Train to run as fast as possible for 800m

Anything longer - Run as many miles as possible as slowly as possible. Do strides 4x a week. Hope for the best.

O.P., if you posted to brag about your performances as a young man, you have good performances.

Let's dig down deeper. You will need to set a p.r. while training for sub-4 mile in 800m &/or set a p.r. in 5000m. You can focus on 800m if you like. You need to improve your 800m p.r. by 3.5% AND/OR you need to improve your 5000m by 7.5% in order to run a sub-4 mile. You are not going to part-time this. A guy I know who used to belong to the same golf country club, he wanted to make the pro tour. He knew he had to take a year off from work. I assume you set your one mile p.b. as a man in your early twenties. To go for 4:12.xx one mile at 22 to 3:59.99 one mile at (28 to 30) is a commitment. The person I know who took a year off attempting to be a pro golfer knew there was a huge upside potential. These aren't the 1960's. You're not going to get an invite on Tonight Show if you race a sub-4 one mile at age (28 to 30). It is possible but you will have to make a serious 30 month commitment.

This is like almost exactly what my initial post was brother.

I'm not braging at all. I was just stating the facts, bro. That's what I've run, those are my times. I'm not taking a year off to be a dip$%^& wanna-be hobby jogger who makes no money and runs twice a day for this pissing contest of a lower time for zero money. What a waste. Commitment? I'm committed to running once a day. If you didn't read that in the initial post. You can go commit yourself to F#$ing right off.

That's okay, I'll save the $100.

Hope is not a strategy.

Cussing at me? Is that how they're teaching you to behave in your PhD program?

Some super talented guys who can sprint low-47 400m while training as a 1500/5000 guy can part-time it. You won't train part-time and run sub-4 mile.

I would rather train the top 2 800m women for a sub-4 mile attempt; I would rather train a few women in (3:51.xx to 3:53.xx) range for a sub-4 mile attempt.

Ok, troll. Time for bed.

If serious, I feel bad for you. You have an attitude and it’s not the kind that will pull you through the rough times that you would need to in order to even get to 4:05.

Here you go for my suggestion - you have zero chance of doing this with the schedule you proposed. You have to run fast, faster and fastest. You might break 4 for 1500, but probably not.

The odds are long but you don't have to get angry with everyone that states that fact. I have coached for several decades and nothing in your college PRs indicates sub-4 potential. Your 800 best indicates a lack of leg speed and your 5000 shows a lack of aerobic development. You may not have trained with the proper methods or focus when you ran those times, but I stand by my assessment of your abilities based on the data provided. I think that you have a better shot at running a high quality 5K considering your work schedule, limited training time, and age. The mile is a young man's game that requires talent, risk, hard work, and luck in equal proportions.

I wish you luck, but your angry replies indicate that you already have serious doubts about your chances. LRC isn't about empty platitudes and pep talks. Go watch some shoetubers or hit up Reddit if you want a bunch of affirmations.

You can do it. You need to do 8x400 once oer week. Start at 62 with 60 seconds rest and word down to 59 after 4 weeks. It is a sure fire strategy that I have used with many guys to get to 3:56-4:03.

Not really, this is 3 workouts a week within your constraint of 60mpw. Yours had 2 workouts and no periodization. That’s I believe is the key here, focusing on one element of training at a time and building on the last one.

It’s a high level overview of what got me to sub 4 in the winter and then a faster 1500 equivalent in the summer

This correct. It is easy to run 4 flat. Just do this workout once per week for 4 weeks.

This correct. It is easy to run 4 flat. Just do this workout once per week for 4 weeks.