Is Sub-40 a Realistic 10k Goal for Me?

by Brent
(Vancouver, BC)

I have been running (jogging) to keep fit for about 20 years barring injury and/or bouts of lethargy. In the last 10 years I have run one 10k race annually. I have never really done any type of training before other than logging maybe 35km per week, until last year.

I am 43 years old, 6" tall and currently about 180lbs, which is slightly above my ideal weight. I'd like to be 5 or so lbs lighter.

With no proper training and carrying a bit of extra weight (up to 185 lbs) I was consistently able to run just under 45 minutes.

One year I dropped ten pounds and my time went to 43:40.

This year I did some speed/interval training once per week on a treadmill, as well as some hills and tempo runs. I upped my mileage a bit with the addition of a 12k long run. The result was 42:47.

I felt better during the run than any other, but still was carrying 5 extra pounds, and messed up my pacing at the beginning a bit.

I feel that with some proper dedication and training that I could run faster, and want to explore this potential.

Is sub-40 a realistic goal?


Answer by Dominique:

Hi Brent,
Thanks for your 10k question.

Someone once said on a running forum that anyone should be able to do sub-40, provided they do the training.

I am not sure if I am 100% on board with that idea.

I think the writer wanted to provoke something rather than making an intelligent statement.

But let's work out what the training looks like to enable a sub-40 10k, as follows:

1. Higher mileage
2. Adding quality
3. Testing yourself on other distances

Higher Mileage

Your basic training is there. You are running pretty consistently . You are doing a 12k long run. You are doing intervals, hills and tempo work. This is an excellent start.

Sub-40 could be within your sights given that on this training you are running sub-43. Improvement is possible, no doubt about it.

Firstly, running 40 minutes or thereabouts at relatively high speed requires you to have a great endurance. The way you build that endurance is through higher mileage and longer long runs.

A 12k long run is a great start. But I'd like you to build that up to 20k (at least). Do it slowly and easily over time using the information on this increasing mileage safely page. When you are able to do a consistent 20k long run you are really boosting that stamina of yours. It will simply mean you can go faster for longer.

In addition to the longer long runs, your weekly mileage should increase as well. Keep in mind that as you are increasing your mileage, you are increasing your risk of injury. So, you'd do well to focus on running injury prevention.

Adding Quality

I like that you started doing some intervals, hills and tempos. They are excellent ways to add some speed into your legs. In addition to this I'd recommend:

Strides
A much overlooked little addition to some of your easy runs, strides are an "easy way to run hard". You want to keep the effort light and relaxed and focus on fast turnover of the legs. Also see my page about running strides.

Goal Pace
Closer to race day, you will want your running to look more and more like the race you are training for. The way to do that is to start adding some goal pace workouts to your training, basically intervals at your projected race pace.

They will help you get used to race pace and can also prevent you going out too fast. I used to run before GPS watches were a thing. You don't want to know how many races I have blown in the past by going out way too fast! Suddenly you'd be at the 1k marker, you'd look at your watch and go "Oh, a bit fast. Hmm, maybe I am just incredibly strong today....". It wouldn't take long for that positivity to turn into despair! Going out at the proper pace can save you minutes.

The last benefit of the quality workouts is that this will not only provide you with speed and strength, but also provide you with that mental challenge. The 10k is a great distance, but mentally tough as you need to go uncomfortably fast for a long time.

Testing Yourself on Other Distances

You say you are doing one race a year, this particular 10k. That is fine, but when you really want to race a 10k, there are benefits to racing more.

For one, races are hard. Pushing yourself to the limit is tough. Doing it multiple times per year gives you more experience, which is helpful when it comes to your main race.

Additionally, running a few 5k races (for example) across the year, will give you something more immediate to train for rather than this once-a-year big goal. And the great thing about 5k races is that you don't need a lot of recovery time afterwards. Take it easy for a couple of days, and you can generally get back into your normal training.

Lastly, doing a few races will help you gauge your progress towards your sub-40 10k goal. Using my race conversion calculator you can work out that some equivalent performances of a sub-40 10k are:

5k in 19:11
3k in 11:09
1 mile in 5:46
1k in 3:29

Doing some other races over different race distances over the year can provide some good reality checks on where you are at and how far away you are from your sub-40 10k goal.

Hope this helps. Despite of what that forum poster said, there are not that many people that can run sub-40. It is a great goal to have and there is no doubt in my mind that with some tweaks in your training, upping the mileage and racing more often, you can improve upon your current performance. Get after it!

Kind regards,
Dominique