12 WEEKS TO FITNESS: FIRST TIMER'S 10K TRAINING PLAN
Running your first 10K is a daunting prospect, but if you get the preparation right you'll be surprised at how easy it can be.
We've teamed up with Brooks and expert PT Graeme Hilditch of GH Training to put together a 12-week training schedule designed specifically to help you build towards running your first 10K.
Training should be challenging, even for regular runners, but not so challenging that it drains you of every last ounce of energy, it shouldn't just be long runs. Above all training should be fun – so with that in mind we’ve kept technical jargon to a minimum, but in order to get the most out of the plan you will have to understand how to gauge your rate of perceived exertion, or RPE.
Rate of perceived exertion
One of the most common questions runners ask when training for an event is how fast they should be running each training session. The trouble is, how do you define “fast?” A fast pace for one person, may well be a slow pace for another. This is where RPE comes in handy as it lets people define their own pace by gauging how hard they feel they are working. Put simply, when applied to a training programme, RPE is a scale of exertion, in this case from 0 - 10.
RPE | Effort level
1 Sitting down chilling
2 Sunday stroll walk
3 Brisk walk
4 Very gentle jog
5 Steady jogging pace
6 Tempo pace - quick jog
7 Quick but sustainable pace
8 Tough going
9 Running away from zombies
10 Usain Bolt pace
The Plan
Week 1
Monday: 30 min quick walk/ Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 4-5), walk 1K (x2)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 4-5), walk 2 min (x4)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 2K (RPE 5), walk if necessary
Week 2
Monday: 30 min quick walk, Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 4-5), walk 1K (x2)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 mins (RPE 4-5), walk 2 mins (x5)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 2-3K (RPE 5), walk if necessary
Week 3
Monday: 30 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 4-5), walk 1K (x2)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 5), walk 1 min (4)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 2-3K (RPE 5)
Week 4
Monday: 30 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 5), walk 1K (x2)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 5), Walk 1 min (x5)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 3-4K (RPE 5)
Week 5
Monday: 40 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 5), walk 1K (x3)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 6)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 4-5K (RPE 5)
Week 6
Monday: 40 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 5), walk 1K (x3)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 6), walk 2 min (x5)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 5-6K (RPE 5)
Week 7
Monday: 40 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 6), walk 1K (x3)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 7), walk 2 min (x4)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 5-6K (RPE 5)
Week 8
Monday: 50 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 6), walk 1K (x3)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 5 min (RPE 7), walk 2 min (x5)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 6-7K (RPE 5)
Week 9
Monday: 50min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 6-7), walk 1K (x4)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Run 3 min (RPE 7-8)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 6-7K (RPE 5)
Week 10
Monday: 50 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 6-7), walk 1K (x4)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Run 3 min (RPE 7-8, walk 2 min (x6)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Jog 7-8K (RPE 5)
Week 11
Monday: 40 min quick walk / Rest
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 1K (RPE 6-7), walk 1K (x4)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Run 3 min (RPE 7-8), walk 2 min (x6)
Saturday: Rest or 45 min quick walk
Sunday: Jog 7-8K (RPE 5)
Week 12
Monday: 30 min quick walk
Tuesday: Rest
Wednesday: Jog 2-3K (RPE 4-5)
Thursday: Rest
Friday: Jog 2-3K (RPE 4-5)
Saturday: Rest
Sunday: Run 10K!
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