During the hill sessions, you will complete 30- to 45-second "cruise repeats." These early season hill repeats should be moderate intensity. Hill work is disguised speed training so adding these sessions to your plan can improve strength, speed and endurance.
Here is example of an alternating schedule:
- Week 1: 15-minute tempo run
- Week 2: 5 x 30 second hill repeats
- Week 3: 18-minute tempo run
- Week 4: 45 minute aerobic run
- Week 5: 7 x 30-second hill repeats
- Week 6: 21-minute tempo run
- Week 7: 9 x 30-second hill repeats
- Week 8: 45-minute aerobic run
Mid-Season: Tempo runs now have a pace goal. The traditional tempo pace is your 10K-race pace effort. Find out your 10K pace by using this website.
Tempo runs will still progressively increase in volume every other week and will alternate with the hill repeats. Every fourth week drop the volume.
Hill repeats will progressively increase in interval time or length. Be aware of your previous week's volume so you can make minor adjustments to the current workout. You will run the hill interval at a controlled hard pace. The goal is to start at a manageable pace and increase each repetition's speed.
Here is an example of this type of schedule:
(Using the 5K runner from above, we now have a 43:58 10K runner, which calculates to 7:04 minute/mile)
- Week 1: 24-minute tempo run at 7:04 pace
- Week 2: 5 x 60 second hill repeats
- Week 3: 27-minute tempo run at 7:04 pace
- Week 4: 45-minute aerobic run
- Week 5: 7 x 60-second hill repeats
- Week 6: 30-minute tempo run at 7:00 pace
- Week 7: 5 x 90-second hill repeats
- Week 8: 45-minute aerobic run
By week six, this runner will now run 7:00 minute/mile pace. With consistent training and recovery, this should be very manageable for this runner to achieve.
You should notice a slight increase in volume for both training sessions. Each week progressively builds from the following workout. We add just enough training stimulus to overreach, but not too much to over train.
Find your next race.