The 10K is a great measure of endurance and perseverance. For most runners, this distance will take around an hour to complete. With each step, your body will experience forces of two to three times your bodyweight, so you’ll want to be well prepared to handle all that load.
You should only start this program if you can comfortably run for 20 to 30 minutes. If you’re completely new to running, I suggest setting a 5K race as your target and begin with a walk-run program.
This schedule has you running three days per week and doing up to three days of cross-training per week.Cross-training refers to any aerobic activity such as cycling, swimming, riding the elliptical machine, etc.
Each week has at least one rest day on Fridays. Other days can be taken off as necessary as listed in the schedule.
I’m a firm proponent that runners should also be strength training. With this program, you can include one to two days of strength training per week.
Intensity of each run or workout is based on the Rating of Perceived Exertion Scale ranging from 1–10 as outlined in the chart shown below.
Each steady state run and long run should start with five minutes of easy running to warm-up and finish with five minutes of easy running as a cool-down.
RPE Scale (Rating of Perceived Exertion)
10K Training Plan – 12 Weeks
