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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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