Help me reach 4:20 in 4 months?

Hey man, good luck breaking 4:20. You’re faster than me so I don’t really have any advice to offer.

Would u be willing to talk about your progression from 10th to 11th grade and how you pulled off that improvement? I’m a freshmen who ran times pretty similar to your sophomore ones and I’m working towards a time drop like you had

IndoorSznn wrote:

Hey man, good luck breaking 4:20. You’re faster than me so I don’t really have any advice to offer.

Would u be willing to talk about your progression from 10th to 11th grade and how you pulled off that improvement? I’m a freshmen who ran times pretty similar to your sophomore ones and I’m working towards a time drop like you had

From grade 10 to 11, I doubled for a few weeks over preseason to get back into aerobic shape after traveling for a month, began running at least the same mileage as the fastest guy on the team during easy runs, suddenly added a 10 mile run on my own every Sunday (became a progressive run when I felt good), added tempo runs/fartleks of 4-6 miles on my own, lifted more consistently again, increased my protein consumption to ~120 g/day, slept more, and always finished my workouts to the last or extra reps. I looked for opportunities to add more training when I could, such as strides or hill sprints after workouts.

Yeah same. My Mile PR is 4:39 (recently) and my goal for this season is to break 4:20.

I'd appreciate any advice, too, whether it's personal experience, a book suggestion, sports science studies, etc.

the work you are putting in looks good. you just need to get faster. your 400/800 times aren't cutting it for a 4:20 mile. Though im sure those times will get better this year. If your 400 gets down to 55 range and your 800 down close to 2:00, you have a fighting chance.

There's no need to take Saturdays off and try adding 20+ miles to your mpw. You should lengthen your intervals to as far as doing repeat 1600s.

If 59 is a true indication of your top end speed, 4:20 might be a bridge too far.

Your training looks good.

I'd keep doing the same things you have been.

high school xc coach wrote:

the work you are putting in looks good. you just need to get faster. your 400/800 times aren't cutting it for a 4:20 mile. Though im sure those times will get better this year. If your 400 gets down to 55 range and your 800 down close to 2:00, you have a fighting chance.

How would you recommend going about improving my 400/800 times?

have the 400's and 800's really been at the max

A 1:58.00 would be like a 4:21.2 or something. So the faster and more economical you are at short speeds the better you'll be in the mile.

Though I don't have the best 400 advice the other guys might.

ryandawkins wrote:

I'd appreciate any advice, too, whether it's personal experience, a book suggestion, sports science studies, etc.

Relentless by Tim Grover is a good read. It’s about mentality and is a little extreme but al the talk about getting in the zone and not thinking when it comes down to it is pretty good. Has a slight basketball focus but it’s applicable to every sport.

I read it because i knew i wasn’t performing to the level i was capable of and that it was a mental problem, not a physical one. If you got the mental game down and you’re a beast in the zone then don’t bother reading it.

ryandawkins wrote:

high school xc coach wrote:

the work you are putting in looks good. you just need to get faster. your 400/800 times aren't cutting it for a 4:20 mile. Though im sure those times will get better this year. If your 400 gets down to 55 range and your 800 down close to 2:00, you have a fighting chance.

How would you recommend going about improving my 400/800 times?

something like close to full speed 50s, flying 30s, etc. though you are already doing 3 workouts per week, so tough to fit in.

I prefer a 2 week cycle. 1 week is just not enough time to work all systems to maximum affect. Over the two weeks, V02 max workout, mile pace workout, 800 pace workout, 400 pace workout, and a day of pure flat out speed. maybe fit in a tempo as well, or on some weeks doing your long run at an uptempo speed, and skip the shorter tempo day.

you do not need a 1:58 to hit a 4:20. 2:02 or 2:03 though is probably needed.

high school xc coach wrote:

ryandawkins wrote:

How would you recommend going about improving my 400/800 times?

something like close to full speed 50s, flying 30s, etc. though you are already doing 3 workouts per week, so tough to fit in.

I prefer a 2 week cycle. 1 week is just not enough time to work all systems to maximum affect. Over the two weeks, V02 max workout, mile pace workout, 800 pace workout, 400 pace workout, and a day of pure flat out speed. maybe fit in a tempo as well, or on some weeks doing your long run at an uptempo speed, and skip the shorter tempo day.

Ah, makes sense. Pure speed has been a weakness of mine. Thanks!

IndoorSznn wrote:

ryandawkins wrote:

I'd appreciate any advice, too, whether it's personal experience, a book suggestion, sports science studies, etc.

Relentless by Tim Grover is a good read. It’s about mentality and is a little extreme but al the talk about getting in the zone and not thinking when it comes down to it is pretty good. Has a slight basketball focus but it’s applicable to every sport.

I read it because i knew i wasn’t performing to the level i was capable of and that it was a mental problem, not a physical one. If you got the mental game down and you’re a beast in the zone then don’t bother reading it.

Hmm, interesting, I'll check it out--reminds me of Endure: Mind, Body, and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance (Alex Hutchinson).