are alternatives to the distances, rather than targets.You should be running them as fast yet evenly as you can; roughly between 5K and 10K pace.Week Nine (36M)Mon RestTue 6M of 1M jog and strides, 10 x 90 seconds up hill, jog back. The 1M jog at end of session

with her Garmin Forerunner 405 over the past few weeks and is now starting to prepare herself for the schedule in the New Year. Hopefully, in addition to working towards her sub-5:00 marathon target, she can also do serious damage on her 5K, 10K and half

This particular runner doesn’t know the Penguin. A struggling back-of-the-packer, he’s puffing through a 5K on aching legs, and doesn’t recognise the trademark waddle of the man ahead of him. That man is John Bingham, the man they call the Penguin

effort during hard runs was lower - they found it easier to run quickly - and, on average, they improved their 5K times by 30 seconds. Joe Beer - the man behind our triathlon schedule and a coach to top cyclists including Graeme Obree, the former One Hour

, but quality builds you up." Next time you go to the track, instead of doing a typical workout – such as six 800-metre repeats at your 5K race pace with a two-minute rest – do Favor-Hamilton's two 800s with a 15-minute rest. Run the first 800m at your one

's example and build up to a 5k using our beginner schedules.If you already run, set yourself a more challenging target. Kirsten Lodge only ran occasionally but signing up to a half marathon and upping her training helped her lose 15 pounds over six months

's a motivator, perhaps more so than anything else in running. A race gives you a reason to train, to eat correctly, to lose a few pounds, to get fit, to get fast. Best of all, if you can run (or run/walk) for 30 minutes, you can complete a 5K race

the stage on which the rest of the race is acted out. If you fly away at the start, lactic acid will flood your legs. Research suggests that the optimal pacing strategy is either 50-50 or 51-49 (ie the first 5K occupies 51 per cent of the total time

things, like camaraderie, are what keep me running.d)They're very important. I like how running makes me look and feel, and it's a great way to keep my weight in check. You're a minute slower for a 5K than you were last year. What do you do about it? a

, “It was just fantastic. I’m going on another one, I liked it so much,” she says. “We did an easy 5K, a threshold session and a long run, and there were lots of informative talks.” But one of the best aspects of the camp for Neale was having people