Sub 40 Minute 10K

by Steve
(England)

Hi, I am confused about all these running calculators :-( My lifetime goal is to run a sub 40 minute 10k, so far I am down to 43 mins. I weigh 184 pounds and I am 5-10 in height...

My recent times are:

200m - 29
400m - 1:08
1 mile - 5:55
5k - 21:31
10k - 43:00

Can you help with a training programme to achieve this, ie, mileage type of speed sessions etc.
I think I have basic speed but lack endurance.

Cheers

Steve


Answer by Dominique:
Hi Steve,
Thanks for your running training question. And thanks for providing your race times, that makes it possible to do some analysis.

I'll cover off my answer as follows:

1. Analysis of race times
2. Diagnosis
3. Training Needed to Run a Sub-40 10k

Analysis of Race Times

The first thing I always do when I receive race times is to plug them into my Race Conversion Calculator. How it works that you enter your time for one race (e.g. 1 mile in 5:55) and then request the time for another race (e.g. a 10K). The outcome will be presented as the time you could run (if you were properly trained).

Note that short anaerobic races like 200 and 400 metres are not the best indicators of long distance runs. E.g. Just because Olympic 100m runners run a 100 metres in less than 10 seconds, it does not mean they can run a marathon 1 hour and 38 minutes. They are fundamentally different races.

So when you provided your race times, I quickly entered all of those in the calculator to work out what your 10k time would be.
When you'd do the same you'd see the following results:

Based on your 200m result: 30 min 33 sec.

Based on your 400m result: 34 min 22 sec.

Based on your 1 mile result: 41 min 00 sec.

Based on your 5k result: 44 min 51 sec.

Your actual 10k time is 43 minutes.

Diagnosis

Now, what does all this tell us?

I think this tells us a few things:

1) Your basic speed is there. Your 200m and 400m times are pretty fast, although not that indicative of your 10k race time.

2) You run out of breath quickly. Your mile time is already too slow to make it to sub40. Your 5k time is way off.

3) Interestingly enough your 10k time is better than your 5k time would suggest. Your 5k time is exactly half of your 10k time. This possibly means that it has been a while since you have run your last 5k, maybe your 5k PB was set when running your 10k race? If you'd run a 5k now, based on a 10k time of 43 mins my running calculator suggests you would run it in 20 min 37 secs.

Training Needed for a Sub-40 10k

First and foremost, your endurance is an issue. You need a stronger base. Don't get me wrong, your times are pretty good. But chopping 3+ minutes of a 10k is massive. You'll need to be able to run ~20 seconds / km (~32 seconds / mile) faster.

You have got the basic speed to do that. Your 200m and 400m are really fast. But your mile, a mostly aerobic race, is already somewhat too slow to match up to a sub-40 10k. Therefore I'd recommend increasing your mileage.

You haven't provided details on your current training. But I'd hazard a guess that you'll need to run more times per week and longer distance in the runs. You need a decent and consistent long run that goes well beyond 10k. It would likely need to be in the 12-15 mile range.

Not immediately (especially if your current long run is way shorter). But that's something you want to build up to.

Secondly, you want to maintain your speed. A fast 10k benefits a lot from tempo sessions. Tempo pace is close to 10k pace and also builds your endurance. Together with more mileage, tempo runs will help you create the stronger foundation you need.

Closer to a 10k I'd focus more heavily on interval running and goal pace sessions.

Of course, if you are after a complete training program and personalised support, also check out my running coaching services.

Hope this helps.
Kind regards,
Dominique