Does marathon training slow your 5k performance?

Provided you've trained properly for the marathon, it shouldn't affect your 5K time that much. I ran my road 5K PR two weeks before running my 2nd fastest marathon; 5 weeks after that marathon, I ran my track 5000 PR.

A 3:15 is slow relative to a 16:42 5K. Perhaps you aren't as fit now as you were when you ran 16:42.

I ran a PR in the 5k right in the middle of my marathon training, granted only a 6 second PR. So it is possible to improve 5k time

A)if you have natural leg speed and you aerobic base was low

B)If your 5k time just sucked to begin with like mine

That must have been a hell of a 5K field if 12 year olds were running sub 18. I'm assuming that's a bit of an embellishment.

Seriously, though, 16:42 + a year of good marathon traing should not equal 3:15. No wonder you felt fresh at the end. A 16:42 is about a 5:20 pace, and a 3:15 marathon is about a 7:30 pace. That's way too wide. It's not like you didn't do any marathon specific training. You should be pushing the 2:50 barrier with that 5K time.

I wouldn't expect to run a fast 5K after not doing any speedwork for a year. If I could pick 1 workout to get you ready for a 5K - it would be hard 1000, 1200, or mile repeats. At least you should do some type of workout at 5K goal pace.

I have run some of my best 5K times during the middle of marathon training, but my marathon training (like most) includes speedwork.

Does marathon training slow your 5k performance?

1. No.

2. Fuck no.

3. You need to get a better grasp of periodization. You ran a shitty 5K because you were neither sharp nor fresh.

Out.

That marathon training should have provided you with a solid base. During marathon training, you didn't do any VO2 Max workouts, which is good. That aspect of your body isn't important for a thon. for the 5K on the other hand, VO2 Max is very important. So it's not so much that marathon training has slowed you down, it's that you haven't added VO2 Max workouts to your training.

So if a 315 marathon is slow compared to a 1642...what should my marathon time (ideologically of course) be?

I remember seeing these charts that show indicators of performance based on certain PRs...can anyone help post that? I searched with no success.

This should help:

Many people run a 5k PR while training for a marathon or after one just because marathon training makes them crank the mileage and get in better shape than they ever were training for the 5k.

However, the marathon and 5k do require different strengths. If you REALLY are properly trained for one, you will not run the other as fast as if you were properly trained for it.

I disagree that VO2 Max work is not important for a marathon. What's the WR in the marathon? Its 2:05:55 I think, which is 4:46 pace, which is 14:50 or so 5k pace (but of course for 8 or so 5ks... straight). To tell me that Terga doesn't do V02 Max work is crazy talk.

That's like saying you don't need to do anerobic speed work for the 10k. However, Bekele and Geb run 60s and 100s in practice and close in low 50... seems like they do anaerobic work to me.

Speed, VO2 Max, Threshold... they're all important for every distance greater than 400. The fast you are, the easier it is to run a fast pace, the longer you can run that pace, etc.

[quote]Conto wrote:

I disagree that VO2 Max work is not important for a marathon. What's the WR in the marathon? Its 2:05:55 I think, which is 4:46 pace, quote]

It's 2455 or something like that...Khannouchi ran 2538 which was the record i think until Tergat and some other guy broke it by a lot last year?. Tergat actualy would ahve gone faster but he went the wrong way during part of the race and had to go back, and he still crushed the record but almost lost.

On many easier days, Terget will run 4:50 pace for 10 or so miles as one session. You have to be kidding yourself if you think 14:50 5k pace is anywhere near his v02 max. Of course for you and me to run a 14:50, we would need to work v02 stuff, but for him, it's an easily sustainable pace. It's all relevant.

OK, let me rephrase, VO2 Max is not AS important as LT for marathon training. Yes, Tergat definitely does some VO2 Max work. And those 10K guys do incorporate anaerobic training into their regimens. But as the distance of the race goes up, LT becomes more important and VO2 Max becomes less important(that was the general point that I was trying to make). For a 3:15 marathoner, if they want to do a workout, their time is much better spent doing an LT workout than a VO2 Max workout. And then if this guy wants a better 5K, it sounds like he has a good base. It's time to start incorporating some VO2 Max workouts.

YES!

Thanks for the website.

Since we are on the topic of Vo2 max...having followed the guidelines from "Advanced Marathoning" by Pete Pfitzinger (sp?), he does incorporate several Vo2 Max workouts into his training which also includes a run from 5-9 miles afterwards. He stresses in order to run faster for the marathon, at some point, you have to be able to run intervals to train your legs to get used to that speed. He mentions it is important, but not as important as LT runs.

Thanks for the help guys.

Uh, ah fer one would jus' plain ignore ol' boy Kilgore there (it's been a tough year fer him so far. Bless 'is socks.)

Ah ain't never see'd old Geb sayin', "Ah gots me a 5k comin' up, guess ah'll git me some marathon-trainin' done to git good n' ready!"

XCpotential wrote:

OK, let me rephrase, VO2 Max is not AS important as LT for marathon training. Yes, Tergat definitely does some VO2 Max work. And those 10K guys do incorporate anaerobic training into their regimens. But as the distance of the race goes up, LT becomes more important and VO2 Max becomes less important(that was the general point that I was trying to make). For a 3:15 marathoner, if they want to do a workout, their time is much better spent doing an LT workout than a VO2 Max workout. And then if this guy wants a better 5K, it sounds like he has a good base. It's time to start incorporating some VO2 Max workouts.

That has it about right.

You need to do some work on your VO2 Max to run a good marathon, but not as much as to run a good 5k.

However, the 5k still taps into your aerobic system. For many runners the overall boost to aerobic fitness that marathon training has given them may overcome the relative lack of VO2 Max work.

If you want to race well at both distances, the 5km ins and outs session--alternating a lap at marathon pace with a lap at 5km pace for 12 laps--gets you working at both race paces. It makes marathon pace feel easier as it is the recovery from 5km pace. And you run your 5km speed off little recovery.