Honest question from a writer/very informal runner about human potential for a mile

These are great numbers to compare to. It it hitting reality how fast anything under 5 is. But how about fits place in the 45-49 category? 4:20, that's pretty amazing. Thanks!

thanks for the optimism! At the time of the 5:24 I was training for my first Marathon, so I was running a lot, but none of it was tailored to the mile. I think I followed a pretty generic Runner's World type training plan, and was about two months out of four into it. I was also 20 years old so that probably didn't hurt. I did dome interval training but the lengths I'm sure were way longer, and I would admit I didn't have the best structure or discipline. I appreciate the recommendation on specific workouts. I'm gong to try them out. I'm excited to do some practice runs and see what happens, to establish the baseline, and go from there. Cheers!

You have a better chance of becoming a billionaire in six months than reaching 4:00 for the MILE. You can marry someone who has 2 billion net worth in a common law state with no prenup. Maybe go to China? You actually have to run 4 x 402.335 meters in 60 secs with no rest.

514 Americans have broken the hallowed 4:00 barrier.

https://www.trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/archivemenu/13-lists/1476-tafn-us-sub-400-milers

560 Billionaires live in the USA.

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-many-billionaires-world-billionaires-2017-10

duly noted

Maybe to the ignorant masses you could say your goal is a 4 minute mile, but to anyone who runs, especially those who are serious runners, you just sound like a fool saying that. An ignorant fool. I suppose you want to try and sell this story so you want that tag line, but why do you want to fail so badly by setting a ridiculous goal that any rational person would know is totally unattainable for you. Would you want to train for 6 months with a goal to do a 9 foot high jump? People with no knowledge would say “good for you” but to everyone else you would just sound like a fool.

Pick a reasonable goal, which probably should just be the fastest mile you can run. It won’t take you very long to figure out where you are and where you can hope to be. It certainly isn’t anywhere close to 4 minutes. Setting arbitrary unattainable goals to sell a story... just sounds like a total waste of everyone’s time.

I'm a 36-year-old hobby jogger, 6'2" and 175 lbs. I run about 30 mpw, including an interval session 1x per week.

About five years ago, I set the following goals: sub-60 400m, sub-5:00 mile, and sub-40:00 10k (not sure how equivalent these times are). I accomplished #1 and #3, but despite running a bunch of road and track miles the fastest time I posted was 5:09.

I'd be very impressed if you break 5:15, let alone 5:00, after six months of training. But go for it, and keep updating the thread!

SlowDad wrote:

About five years ago, I set the following goals: sub-60 400m, sub-5:00 mile, and sub-40:00 10k (not sure how equivalent these times are). I accomplished #1 and #3, but despite running a bunch of road and track miles the fastest time I posted was 5:09.

A sub 5 is equivalent to a 57 400 and a 36 minute 10K. Source:

Don’t be ridiculous. wrote:

to anyone who runs, especially those who are serious runners, you just sound like a fool saying that. An ignorant fool.

Hey it's all good man, I'm not an ignorant fool for posing a question to more experienced runners. You don't have to berate me like that. I never said that I had the stated goal of running a four minute mile. I said: "I had an idea for an article about how fast of a mile I could run, using modern training techniques across all areas of life."

I also said: "I just think it would be interesting to see what could happen with total focus and modern mental and physical training methods"

Sometimes people want to push their limits. Not all of them are "ignorant fools." I hope you have a great day though.

Possible to break 5 in six months. Impossible to break 4:30 in same time.

It takes 5 years (for mere mortals) to acclimate the body to attain physical peak fitness in running. Anything over 27 is a fight against Father Time and Mother nature. They are both undefeated.

Good luck, but be prepared for the realization that you're far from those extremely gifted (genetics) and talented runners (along with hard work and good coaching) who come close to the four minute mile.

M.A.G.A.

Try breaking 6 first

this is a common type of question here. write about it. chart your progress. it would be linked to a lot if you get serious and stay dedicated - no matter the outcome.

my experience for the mile is trail runs are only good for your easy miles. you really have to get your body used to mile speed - not effort.

me? in my late 30s I did 30-50mpw for months. then 40-50mpw for 5 months of structured mile work. 5:40 to 5:25. my conclusion was wtf is the point? go hit trails.

go make a blog out of this. post it on this forum. good to see you got thick skin.

write about it wrote:

go make a blog out of this. post it on this forum. good to see you got thick skin.

Yes, a thick skin is good. I don’t think people are being overly harsh, I think they are trying to strongly instill how impossible it would be to even get back to your PB as a 20 year old in only 6 months of training. But, all this realism will make you feel better when you find out just how hard it will be, and the truth is you won’t feel like such a failure. If everyone lied and told you that you should be able to get close to 4, you would be feeling pretty crappy when you didn’t even get to 5:20. So, I’d take it all as a bit of tough love here, which will only help you feel better about yourself with whatever results you end up a achieving. I’d be surprised if you got anywhere near 5.

(Mentioning a 4 minute mile did rightfully earn you some grief.)

I believe the OP said for was a 'dream', not a 'goal'. If I understand correctly, the OP's goal is to see what improvement is possible for a fit (but not specifically a previously trained runner) guy to make over 6 months.

To the OP: I agree with others that much sub 5 may take more than 6 months. It may be that you max out at around 5, or that you have a boatload of previously untapped talent, and continue after 6 months to become an animal as a master - I hope you do!

I'm not a miler or a coach, but daniels running formula contains a 24 week programme for 1500m running, which might be worth a look as a starting point. You'll possibly receive advice more specifically tailored to your situation on here, but drf will at least give you a frame of reference.

These well-documented campaigns can be fun to follow. Good luck with it and keep posting.

Edit to say "OP said sub-four was a 'dream' not a 'goal'

You have a better chance of joining the NBA than legitimately breaking 4:00. But you might come close in a downhill mile. Ideally 200-250 feet of steady downhill. You probably already have some decent downhill training from running in the mountains.

I still think breaking 4:00 on a 4% downgrade will be a very tough accomplishment, but you can see how close you get, and teach your audience know about the legend of Big Wave.

8/10 for all the legit responses you received, well done.

Again I envy you, for having the trails to get out on. Ain't no reason to give up those for the sheer joy of it, the suggestion I made was a way you can focus on the goal - but you don't need to run that way every time you go out! Running wouldn't running without something like what you described.

FWIW, when I was 20, after months out with Achilles problems, I started back running that same 40min I told you about. I was not a very good runner, but between that and pool running (5-6 days a week, 1 session of each several of those days ) I found my running form and fitness returned over a period of 2-3 months, and I was able to do that last week (4x9 tempo/1min jog) at down to sub530 mile pace. And it helped me get under 120 for a half-marathon. Then, when I started running with my uni team over the next couple years, I was able to build up to what I what I felt was my sweet spot of mileage - 6 days a week, total 65-70ish mpw (1 long run + doubles 3-4 days/week with tempos + progressions + intervals) to get me to my best times.

I tried this same thing again in my 30s, the last time I was able to run regularly, after several years of non-running, and it helped again (combined with biking/elliptical) - got me to joggerishly reasonable 10km times(sub 6-min/mile), on lower mileage.

So while I do think this could be a way to get you running faster and build up the pace to run a faster mile, see if it works well for you and how you respond. I hope that others out there can provide other approaches for you to try

FWIalsoW - I meant while I was injured I was doing pool runs consistently, then when I was able to start back jogging I did both many days. The pool-running actually improved my fitness, believe it or not.

Modern training techniques across all areas of life won't make much difference to what's possible. At 34 you're at an age where age makes a difference in a negative way to mile race times. Your potential at the mile is mostly down to genetics (talent). Your 'recent' half marathon time of 1:26 would need to be 1:22 to show potential to break 5 minutes, 1:10 to break 4:30 if you're a slow twitch distance runner type with not much natural speed. Something like under 4:50 would be a huge achievement and very impressive coming from where you are now.