A very good 16m park runner who was 45 years told me once:
Don't race so much.
Take a break from park run, switch the watch to time only.
Now run 6 days a week once or twice a day just by feel and time (forget pace etc). Run 30-60 minutes, relaxed just by feel.
Do that for 2 weeks, after you can introduce fartlek (1-3 min faster then 3k pace with equal rest) and progression / tempo runs. Do that for a few more weeks. When you feel good once per week run hard again (park run or 5xk lap jog at 5k goal pace)
I have issues with tendinitis and fatigue so I'd never be able to sustain it.
You're burnt out and have plateaued. Short fast tempos of less than 10 minutes mixed with lots of walking - all this for a few months will fix you. And get your mile time quick as stated by the other poster. Also, it does matter 25 or 50 miles - you're fatigued so stick with 25 not counting your walking.
Try and do some 3k time-trials at 10:00 flat place. You'll be running 17:00 to 17:30 by the end of the summer.
This post was edited 4 minutes after it was posted.
Train for the mile and don't stop until you break 4:50. You're welcome.
What does mile training look like?
Phase 1 (4-6 weeks): -One day a week do a long run with 3-8 miles in the middle at marathon pace (6:40-6:45ish). Start with 3 miles at marathon pace and build to 8 miles at marathon pace. Total length of long run: 10-12 miles. After this phase just do a 60-75 min long run. - Another day do 8x200 w/ 200 jog.
Phase 2 (4-6 weeks): - Two sessions a week of 200s, 300s, 400s, and 600s totaling roughly 2400-3000m @ mile pace w/ jog equal rest between reps. - Start with 16x200 and build to something like 2x600, 2x400, 2x300, 1-2x200.
Phase 3 (4-6 weeks): -Two sessions a week: one with 600s, 800s, 1ks repeats w/ equal jog rest and the other with 3-4 x 1 mile threshold with 60-90 sec rest.
Phase 4 (4-6 weeks): - Race as much as you can - Keep doing 200s, 400s, 600s, and 2-3x1 mile at threshold
Train for the mile and don't stop until you break 4:50. You're welcome.
What does mile training look like?
Nineteen posts into this thread and I think we've found the problem and a possible solution.
Go to Amazon or eBay and buy The Complete Guide to Running by Earl Fee. You can buy it for $6 on eBay as I type this.
It will teach you more than you care to know about middle distance racing. Treat it like a reference guide and read the parts that interest you. Read chapter 8 on Training for the 800, 1500, and mile. Go to page 184. Fee lists 16 workouts that helped him set 40+ age group world records as of 20 years ago. He has a lot more now.
There is also a chapter on the 5k. Read it. Do some of the workouts. They are listed on pages 196-197. Notice that there is some overlap between the 5k and 1500m workouts. That should tell you something. Hint: To run faster, you need to do some faster workouts.
I have used Earl Fee's workouts listed in this book to train for the 400 and 800. I'm the current USATF Masters champion in the 400m in my age group and, with my teammates, have set 4 relay world records in the 4x400 and 4x800m relays.
I bragging, of course, but the bottom line is that these workouts work. Fee is still setting world records at M95! Use them.
Sick of being stuck in the low 18s. It doesn't matter if I run 25 or 50 miles a week. I have run 18 minutes maybe 30 to 40 times now.
If this is true you have run 30-40 times in the low 18 min 5 k you must have used the same wrong training every time. Should be easy for me to relatively fast get you sub 18. No problem. With my supereffective The Dancan system you will succeed. I'm so sure that we even can have agreement you get back half fee after one year if you follow exactly what I give you to do in your training and you follow and you still haven't dipp sub 18 min at 5 k. Welcome!
Sick of being stuck in the low 18s. It doesn't matter if I run 25 or 50 miles a week. I have run 18 minutes maybe 30 to 40 times now.
If this is true you have run 30-40 times in the low 18 min 5 k you must have used the same wrong training every time. Should be easy for me to relatively fast get you sub 18. No problem. With my supereffective The Dancan system you will succeed. I'm so sure that we even can have agreement you get back half fee after one year if you follow exactly what I give you to do in your training and you follow and you still haven't dipp sub 18 min at 5 k. Welcome!
The Magic Wizard J.S🇸🇪🧙🏼♂️🇸🇪
Usually it goes magical fast to improve when I'm the coach. 🇸🇪🧙🏼♂️🇸🇪