Description

A 5K plan calculated from your numbers, not a generic template.

Tell us your recent race times, how much you are running now, your goal, and which days of the week you can train. Your plan is then built around that. The paces, the session lengths and the weekly mileage are all derived from your own performances.

What you get

• A complete week by week plan, 6 to 24 weeks, structured through base, build, peak, sharpen and taper phases
• Seven personalised pace zones, from recovery through to speed reps, each given as a target range
• Varied sessions that rotate week to week, so the training does not become a slog
• Space to log every session, plus notes pages for the whole block
• Your own photo on the cover if you want one
• Delivered as a branded PDF within 24 hours of completing your form

How long should a 5K plan be?

Six weeks is the minimum we will build. Eight to twelve is where most runners see the biggest gains, because it allows two distinct blocks of speed work rather than one rushed one.

An honest word about goals.

If your target is a long way from your current fitness in the weeks available, we will tell you before you start, and show you the time we think is a realistic stretch. You can still choose your original goal, because it is your race. But you will not be quietly sold a plan that was never going to work.

Your paces come as ranges, not single numbers

Every pace in your plan is a range. A hilly route, a headwind, heat, a poor night of sleep or the accumulated fatigue of a hard week will all cost you seconds per mile at exactly the same effort. None of that means the session failed.

On a flat route with fresh legs, aim at the quicker end. On hills, into wind, or late in a heavy week, the slower end is the correct target, not a compromise.

The ranges are wider on easy and recovery runs than on hard sessions, because easy running works across a broad band of paces while threshold work needs a more specific intensity. Your plan explains all of this on its own page, so you always know what a session is actually asking of you.

Your paces progress as you do

Most plans give you one pace table for the whole block, which means by week twelve you are training at the fitness you had in week one.

Yours does not. Week 1 uses your current fitness and race week uses your goal fitness, with every week in between on a curve between the two. Your plan shows both, so you can see exactly where you are heading.

How it works

1. Buy your plan
2. You get an email with a link to a short form: race times, current mileage, goal and available days
3. Complete it, and your plan is written and emailed within 24 hours

What we need from you

One personal best is enough to build your plan. Four (5K, 10K, half and marathon) makes it noticeably better, because a single result tells us how fit you are while four tell us what kind of runner you are, and whether your speed is ahead of your endurance or the other way round. You can also add a result at any other distance from 1500m to 50K.

Who this is not for

If you are carrying an injury, returning from a long layoff with no recent race times, or want someone adjusting your training week to week as life happens, a fixed plan is the wrong purchase. 1:1 coaching is £80/month and does exactly that.

About your coach

I ran 2:24:35 for the marathon while working full time, I’ve been a qualified personal trainer since 2010, and I haven’t missed a day’s running since 30 November 2015. These plans use the same approach I use with my 1:1 athletes: built on your own paces, around the days you actually have, and aimed at getting you to the start line fit rather than broken.