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I live in a village just outside of a large (ish) town, I have only ever seen a handful of runners in the town and nobody from my village, however when I attend the weekly parkrun there is recognisable faces from all around, so maybe they only run on Saturdays for the social aspect or competition?

Sussex Runner, from what I can gather from reading his first post and title, I think he does not wan't to do a half, instead he has experience with 5k but would like to move on to 10k? and only using a treadmill?.

This to me kinda seems like you are shooting yourself in the foot George, 99% of 10k's that you will race will not be on a treadmill.. so when you decide you are fit enough for the 10k you may be in for a shock because running on a treadmill is easier than running in the outdoors. 

As suggested before I recoommend finding a 5k to 10k plan and trying to stick with that, is there any reason you do not run outside? or just preference. Running on the treadmill inside in the warm will do you good, but in my opinion there is no substitute for running in harsh conditions to really harden yourself up and prepare you for race day.

Thanks for the quick replies and great advice, I think you hit the nail on the head Stevie, I would love to be a "contender" locally and realise that much higher than that is most probably unachievable, due to my circumstances and late start. 

Joining a club is right at the top of my list of things to do, and I am looking in to which one would be best for me.

Once again guys really appreciate the tips!

Hey guys, 

I come to you with a question, I picked up running about 4 months ago now and have seen rapid improvments in how I feel and my actual running ability.

I started from nothing, not even being able to run 100 meters without getting out of breath, and now I am sub 30 on my weekly parkruns. 

I would like to know, if you think it is possible for me to achieve a level of fitness where I could be a top contender in my local races and also to achieve greater things beyond that. And also how long you think is a realistic time goal for me to achieve that. 

I am willing to work my butt off, 7 days a week if thats what is needed. My life is not busy, I am working part time and still have time to train any day I please for any amount of time.

I know this probably looks like another "I will make it to the olympics in 4 years time" thread, and I know I am not kidding myself. It will be a long road, but I want to achieve my goals. I'm not aiming that high, as thats silly. I would have needed to start way younger or have been a child prodigy. 

I am still relatively young (19) so I guess my body could take a beating and still be ok. 

What resources would I need if I where to undergo this journey? Off the top of my head is probably a coach and regular visits to a track?

My aim is to race 5000m and 10000m simply because I feel that those are the most realistic distances for me to become "semi-elite" in. 

I appreciate any advice given, from anyone, I just hope tht people don't come in and say "you can;t do that" because I can.

Cheers

What Ghostrider has already said is good advice.

I also started with a Couch to 5k Program and made very fast progress so I am sure you will too!, I started outside and really struggled to get in to it on my first couple of runs, I was struggling so much. 

Then I realised that I was going way too fast, the days of school cross country fresh in my mind . I had a bit of an ache here and there, as is expected when starting something new or after a long absense but I kept to it and now, im under 30 mins on 5k and going for under 60 mins for the 10k! 

Running is great John and I wish you the best of luck, the best part is that you are doing it!, I had friends who laughed at me when I started because of my laziness, which I admit is true, I still am a lazy git, but I am a lazy git who wakes up every other morning and does more that any other non runner I know!

As for a treadmill, I have been told that to simulate the outdoors it is wise to set it at a 3% incline. My advice is to go at a comfortable pace, where you could hold a conversation, but only with 2 or 3 word bursts, confusing but I hope you get what I mean

My BIGGEST piece of advice though, is to follow the programs advice regarding warm up and cool downs, and then stretch well after the run. There is nothing worse than finding that you love something and then being told by your body to take a break, However if you do need to take a day off then don't be ashamed, I missed a few days of my C25K but I managed to get there in the end.

Best of luck John and please keep us posted!