1 Mile Training Plan for a Master's Runner

Monday - 1 mile @ 100%
Tuesday - 1 mile @ 80%
Wednesday - 1 mile @ 90%
Thursday - 1 mile @ 100%
Friday - 1 mile @ 80%
Saturday - 1 mile @ 100%
Sunday - 1 mile @ 80%

unfortunately not a great plan if you only do 1 mile, might want to consider going longer

How well do you deal with mile pace 200s with full rest? Easy, or a killer workout?

bumping my own thread

You could have bumped your thread by answering my question. Also, recent PRs?

Mate. Good luck with the training. Also check out the Masters Training thread . Plenty f people to ask for advice on that one.

Not exactly what you're asking, but my dad is older than you (60+) and has been working on getting his 5k time down for the past couple of years. He does 4 runs per week - 6-7 miles twice per week (7:30-7:45 per mile), harder 8 miles once per week (6:45-7:00 per mile) and hard 5k once per week (currently around 18:45 pace). And in between lots of walking. I reckon if you replicate that and add a speed session (200 or 400 reps) you would be well on your way without overdoing it.

This sounds like a recipe for a breakdown. Especially at his age. I am 47 and do my long runs of 8 miles at 7:30-8:00 pace, tempo runs at 6:20 pace, and can race a 5k in the mid 18s.
OP, my suggestion is to keep your milage and tempo stuff as is, but add some 400 sessions. Start with like 4x400 with 1:30-2:00 rest. See what you can average for 4. Week 2 do 6x400 at your average pace from the first week. Week 3 do 8x400 at that pace. Week 4 try 2x(8,4,4) at that same pace. Week 5 do 3x800. Week 6 do a 1200 ITT. Week 7 and 8 do your racing.
BOOM!

I am 46 and ran a 4:31 off this basic plan ( one long slow run + 2 sharp power intervals with big rest + easy stuff the other days)

Saturday - slow 9 with striders

Sunday - spin on bike one hour at zone 2

monday - run 5 easy

tuesday - 2 x 800 hard with 6 min rest + 4 x 1 min on bike at 440 watts with 3 min rest + 4 x squats 2pm reps @ 225lbs with 5 min rest. U

Wednesday - spin on bike one hour

thursday - slow 6

friday - repeat Tuesday with maybe 400’s on track

When it comes to the mile, I think different things work for different runners.

Some may thrive on a lower mileage/higher intensity/shorter duration type of plan. I tried it (after a very lengthy layoff from hard training) but it didn't work very well for me. I was running 30-40 mpw with short, fast sessions and loosely based my training on the following Richard Stiller article that you may find of interest:

After a couple of disappointing time trials, I said screw it I'm training for 5K. I increased my mileage to 50+ and did conventional 5K type workouts (e.g. 4* 1 mile, 6 * 1/2 mile, etc. all at somewhere between 5K-10K pace). In a couple of months my 5K pace was faster than my previous 1 mile time trial pace.

Probably for me the sweet spot is something in between those plans - train mostly for 5K, then devote a few weeks to mile pace reps before the race.

Consensus is a big ask here.

My suggestion is run walk patterns to allow more running in faster gears. Piling up 100x 400 85 over a 2 -3 week cycle would make a big difference.

A fartlek loop with varied intensity and pace would work well also if you have dirt trail or rolling hills or grass fields around but try it on pavement you’ll be toast —basically you have to get the lead out to have a chance and find a way to do it safely, impact is vastly overrated.

You aren’t going to drop down to 5:40 or faster mile with out getting your 400 back to <70

4:31! wow

5:31 would be amazing for me. My recent workouts are around 700 for tempo work, and 640 pace for faster work.

I am trying to get my mile time down to 5min and I am loosely following this 8-week training plan:

on-running.com

Better Your Mile - the 8-week training plan

The Northeast Track Club share their 8-week training program to get you to your best-ever mile.

Link:www.on-running.com/en-us/articles/bett...

I am adding 3 weights sessions on Wed-Fri-Sun and regular stretching. My long runs are 11-15 miles @7:45-8:15 pace. Easy runs are 6 miles. On Sunday I may do an easy run and 6-8 200s at mile pace with 200m walk rest; this is easy enough not to compromise the Tuesday workout, which is more important, but allows me to stay in touch with faster than mile pace. Cross-training is elliptical machine and sometimes I also substitute an easy run for elliptical or bike. Overall, it is about 40 miles/week with two quality workouts and I feel like I am progressing well so far without getting injured, which is my main concern.

Try two workouts a week- one at mile pace, and another with longer intervals. 1.5-2 miles warm up and cool down for each of these. I like doing the second workout at tempo pace at the beginning of the plan and then getting shorter and faster as it goes on.

4 Weeks:

Tues: 12x200 @ mile pace with 200 jog recovery
Thurs: 3x1 Mile tempo (60-90s walk recovery) + 4x200 (200 jog recovery)

4 Weeks:

Tues: 3x(200/200/400) at mile pace, equal distance recovery

Thurs: 6x800 @ 5K pace (400 m jog recovery) or fartlek of 6x 3 min hard, 2 min easy

Work in some easy runs of 3-5 miles and a longer run on the weekend to keep your total mileage about what you've been doing, and try and do some strides after a couple of your easy days every week.

I don't like long running in the heat either so last spring I tried a mile plan like this, with a little more variety in the workouts, to see what speed I could recapture. Ran a 4:49 1600 for my first sub-five since high school (36 now) with the help of a friend rabbiting the first 800. It's a fun idea for the summer- good luck with it!

I had such a terrible time last year dealing with the heat, that I am thinking that this will give me something to shoot for, give me some more variety in the workouts, and keep me from getting so caught in mileage numbers and keep me motivated.

It's never easy running in the heat, but I find it easier to hit the track than slog through long miles.

I have used the Richard Stiller program (above in the thread) for the past 10 years, and it has worked great for me.

The key for me is having at least one high intensity day/week. Mileage has been less important than intensity for me. I've hit my goals on as little as 16-20 mpw.

In terms of working toward my goal: I usually creep up: 400 at race pace, 600 at race pace, 800 at race pace ... and when I can do 1200 at race pace, then I'm ready for a race/mile time trial.

If you are looking for a consensus, the plans posted here in general include one weekly session of mile-speed or faster-than-mile-speed track repeats, working your way from 400m up to 1200 meters. This session has to be pretty hard, so the rest of the weekly schedule is flexible to allow recovery, but in general it will be easy runs, one longer run and perhaps one longer interval/fartlek/tempo session.

Older guy here, currently running 2:20 for 800m. What's worked best for me is scrapping all of my easy/recovery runs and replacing them with a session on the bike. I do one threshold/tempo day per week, one day of intervals (using hills here saves a little pounding on the legs for a similar level of exertion), and one long run. Recovery days on the bike still gets me the appropriate stimulus, but leaves my legs feeling sharp to maximize the quality efforts.

You are a 6 flat guy running 40 mpw but hate the heat. Sprints, even long sprints are enjoyable in the heat. Why not shake it up more and do some strength training and intervals in the 150-600m range. It would be fun and if you get anywhere close to 60s for 400m, your mile time will improve also.

I ran a 5:06 mile at 58 off of my marathon training and zero intervals. Don't over think it, just being fit at this age goes a long way.

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