Summer of Speed – a faster 5k and 10k

Last weekend I ran the Regent’s Park 10k. It’s one of my favourite races, partly because it’s held every month throughout the year, so I know that I can turn up when I think I’m in good shape and I want to have a crack at racing a 10k. I wanted to see how my recent marathon training had translated to my 10k time.

So that’s what I did. I turned up, took a deep breath and ran as fast as I could. Because this summer I want to work on my 10k time, and the first step was to see where I am right now. If you want to join me in this mission, read on.

My PBs are 5k 21:21 and 10k 45:16. (I just had to look that one as I couldn’t remember.) I’m not as fast as this right now, but my aim is to get closer to these times.

Regent’s Park 10k

I’d decided not to look at my watch and to run on feel at a pace that was ‘comfortably hard’. The course is three laps, so I knew that if I wanted a time beginning with 45, each time I passed the finish clock it should read 15 and 30 something.

I don’t remember much of the race. I know the clock was on 15:30 the first time I went past (I started quite far forward). I know it was over 31 mins the second time and I was sure I had missed the sub-46. And I remember the point on the last lap where I decided to overtake a group I’d been sat behind and started to push for home.

On the home straight the clock was approaching 46 minutes and I had no idea how much leaway I had. I crossed the line too exhausted to immediately look at my watch. It was 45:54 as an email later would confirm (and 8th woman). I was very happy.

Summer of speed

A lot of newer runners move through the race distances from their first 5k up towards a half marathon and marathon, collecting medals as they go. But distance isn’t the only way to gauge progress. If you don’t fancy building up to a half marathon or you’ve recently run longer distances and fancy a change, concentrating on your 5k or 10k time can be a good focus.

I’ve launched a new Training Guide How to Run Faster at 5k and 10k which is for runners who’d like to improve their 5k or 10k times. It includes four training plans and is based on some of the session that my Improvers Groups do on a Tuesday night. Take a look and join me in the quest to run faster this summer.

I ran Pride 10k last summer as a first proper race since having my son. I was really happy with (and a bit surprised by) my time (46:34). Last week I ran 45:54 which I’m very happy with. But now my goal is to run faster. How much faster remains to be seen.

As the Regent’s Park 10k happens every month (and is my PB course), this will probably be where I do my racing. Though I’m also signing up for the Pride 10k again as it’s my favourite race of the year.

If you want to join me in training for some faster running this summer, grab a copy of my new Training Guide – How to Run Faster at 5k and 10k or your own training plan. We can be virtual training buddies. Come find me on Facebook or Instagram and let me know what race you’re aiming for.