Hey guys. Ive been getting ready for track as many of you know, and yesterday I did 3.5 miles(Woo Hoo). Found out today that distance running is either 2 miles or 1 mile(mid-distance). So Im thinking, great, I can do that now. But, kids are doing 4-5 minute mile runs 8-9 minute 2 mile runs. Yesterday it took me 35 minutes to run 3.5 miles. Thats 10 minutes a mile. Is there anything special I should do to get faster?
Right now im going out to pick up a stop watch and Im gonna start timing myself. Im gonna see how hard its gonna be to do a 5 minute mile :D .

If kids are doing 1 mile in 4-5 mins that is bloody fast so dont worry about trying to catch them because unless you have talent you wont.

My boss is an ex olympic athelete and in the 50s he was only the second person ever to break the 4 min mile. So if kids are running close to that they are bloody fit.

Dont worry about running a mile in 10 mins because you will quckly improve as your body adjusts. I run a 3.8km run, and when I first ran it I did it in 23mins. After only 4 weeks I was running 18 mins. And now the progress has slowed to 16mins. Youll be surprised at how fast your body adapts and improves.

One thing I have learnt though when trying to improve your fitness dont run the distance (eg. my 3.8kms) everytime as hard as you can because you wont improve. I've found that by running a slow 7.6kms, I can now run the 3.8 faster. Of course you still want to practice at the distance you will be competing in but also train at longer distances to get quicker improvements in fitness. A guy I kind of know who is ranked about 100 in the world in triathlon told me that and its really helped.

Marcus :tucool:

Thanks.

I was able to do 1 mile in 7 minutes. Im going to keep on working on my endurance instead though; running slower for longer.

You will need to work on speed and endurance both, you'll need to be in great shape to crank out a 5 minute mile. The thing that makes the mile a tough distance is that it's just long enough that you cannot sprint the entire distance. I'd look for some books on running. A friend of my wife loaned me a book on running that included analysis and programs to train for many different distances. I recommend you look for a book like this to help you train. You'll probably learn a lot from it as well about how to take care of yourself.

One popular method for training for leg strength and speed is to sprint for a certain distance and then jog for another, back and forth, much like HIIT.

Ill just keep doing what Im doing for now. Im guessing the track coach will have a little advice for me :p . Ill look into books on running eventually though :tu:

This is going back about 7-8 yrs (wow, I actually felt old for a second) but when I was on track in Middle School, I GREATLY increased my mile time. I started the season around a mid-high 7 minutes and by the season's end I was at under 6. I think the exact time was 5:56 if I remember correctly. So I shaved off about 1.5-2 mins, and that was without taking it "too" seriously. With hard work and dedication, you can certainly get closer to your goal. Just realize as mentioned, a 5 minute mile is EXCEPTIONAL and takes a special talent most people don't have. Set a more realistic goal first, then work your way down.

I was in track in high school and started out at a 7 min mile. My fastest time in a meet ended up with a 5:06. It just takes time. The hardest part for me was being able to pace myself. If you start out too fast, you poop out too soon. If you don't start out fast enough, you might be giving up too much. The only way to tell how fast to run at any given point is practice practice practice.

Also, it might also help to have a partner that's faster than you. When I ran, I was always on the second heat with the slower guys. I was always in the lead pack of the slower group and had a hard time getting into a rhythm. At one meet I was put in with the faster heat and my times picked up a lot because the other guys knew how to pace themselves and I could follow along and try to keep up. I was never exceptional by any stretch of the imagination, but I did OK.

Hope this helps.

Hi Fudgam,

It has been a long time since I was in high school, but I recall the same experience. I started out at around an 8 minute mile and was able to get it down to 5:05. On a few good meets I was able to get down into the 4:50's.

What worked for me was interval training. Ask your coach about that. Also running with people who were faster than me helped me push further. Plan on running year round if you don't want to lose your conditioning. I ran cross-country in the fall, winter (indoor) track, spring track, and then continued training in the summer. I noticed a big difference when September came and I was already in decent condition for cross-country.

Also set some realistic goals. After school I gave up on running because I thought I sucked. Now I'd be psyched to be back to 150 lbs and running 5 minute miles. I really wish I had kept it up. Don't get discouraged. Compare your performance to your yourself and see how well you improve. Good luck!

:tucool:

Kevinp