Volume 1 Article 13
Racing In My First 10K: Hal Higdon Intermediate Plan
Monday June 26, 2023
running
It is that time again, so let’s get ready to race. Usually I will follow a training plan from Runner’s World, but this time I decided to try something new. For my next race I will be running a 10K and using a training plan from Hal Higdon. On Higdon’s website there are multiple plans for runners of all levels and distances. So, after looking at his 10K plans, I decided that the intermediate plan would fit me best since I have run in multiple 5Ks and Half Marathons.
The intermediate plan is 8-weeks long, so stick around to see how I progress throughout the weeks and prepare for race day:
Training Prep
In the past, my training would mostly consist of running at a speed that my body was feeling for the day. I did not include speed or cross training. So, for this plan I am making it a goal to complete the speed and cross training. And following the recommended paces for each run. Hopefully by following along with paces and the different trainings I will be able to increase my speed.
For determining my paces for the different kinds of runs I used a pace calculator from Runner’s World. The calculator requires only two inputs which are the distance and time of your last race. My last race was the BMW Dallas Half Marathon, so after I inputed my information it gave me the paces to use in training.
So for this training, my easy pace runs will be on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Where my target pace will be 11:21 per mile. Every other week on Wednesday, I will alternate between a tempo run (9:30 pace) and speed work (7:57 pace). Lastly on Sunday I will be doing my long run at a pace of 11:21 to 12:45. Fridays will be my rest days and Saturdays for cross training.
Week 1 Update
I have mentioned before that I am new to pacing which has proven to be challenging. Trying to run at an easy pace and holding myself to that pace is no easy task. For my first run I was wanting to go fast but I knew that going faster would only have hurt me in the end. First run is done and trying is under way. I was looking to be around an 11:21 average pace which ended up being slightly slower. Considering this is my first run, I would say that being at 11:29 as my average pace is not too bad. Being plus or minus 10 seconds for my pace is my goal with all these runs.
Having speed training in my training is another new aspect. For this run I found it easier to stay on pace than my easy runs. I was only 6 seconds off on my pace which was great for my first tempo run of my training. Overall this week went well with runs except for not being able to complete an easy and long run.
Week 2 Updates
Picking back up with training after missing two runs due to traveling last week, this week went well and I was able to complete all my runs. Instead of doing 400m sprints, I did the tempo run for week 3, where my time for this run was consistent with last week only being 1 second faster. It felt good being able to run over 4 miles at this pace giving me hope for my 10K pace to be under 9:30.
With being able to complete all runs, I did my long run which was 5 miles this week. Running it during the late morning and early afternoon was hard since it is already heating up in Texas. It has been a warm year so running at the time I did made the run harder. Although the heat made the run difficult, my time was actually good and was in the range I needed to be in. For my long runs, I do not see my time being over 12:00, but we will see how the training progresses.
Week 3 Updates
This week was great because I was able to do my first 400M speed training and completed all my runs on a traveling weekend. I went out of town this weekend, but still made the time to complete my runs. By switching my off day from Friday to Saturday it made it easier for me to carve out time to complete one run instead of two.
Along with making time for all my runs, I also did my first 400M speed training. During this run, I was surprised at how I was able to be under two minutes each 400M. My goal was to be under two minutes each 400M because two minutes is a fourth of eight minutes (my speed time) and 400M is a fourth of a mile. With that most of my times were around 1:51 to 1:52 with my fifth and eighth 400M being sort of outliers. Overall, this week was great with staying on pace, completing all my runs, and traveling on the weekend.
Week 4 Updates
Last week, I decided that with all that I was doing while traveling that pushing myself to hit six miles while exhausted was not worth it. With that it adjusted my long runs and I will not be hitting eight miles by the end of my training. Which is totally fine and normal as it is best to listen to your body. So for long runs, I did two five miles back to back with this week doing the six miles. The run was great and my fastest long run yet.
As for my sprints, I noticed that I was slower this time around compared to my first set. Although I was slower this time around, I was still able to maintain times that were under two minutes.
Now I am official half way through my training and think that I will be able to compete the race at an average pace under 9:30.
Week 5 Updates
It was another week travel, but an another week where I was still able to complete my runs. For the last half of this week’s runs, I was in South Carolina where the running conditions slightly differed. In Dallas, the ground and elevation changes is minimal where it is insignificant to notice. As for South Carolina, there was quite the elevation change which was great practice for the race. I will be racing in Michigan and expect there to be an elevation change.
Although elevation was a factor in my performance overall, it was promising to see that my pace is not too far off from where I want to be come race day. Not only that but being in a racing environment slightly increases your speed and you will run at a faster pace. After these runs, I have high hopes that I will be able to complete my race at or around a 9:30 pace.
Week 6 Updates
Here is another week to show that training will not always be perfect. At the beginning of the week I was feeling great and my easy runs went well. Now fast forward to the middle of the week where I did my 400M sprints and I was feeling sluggish. Getting through the sprints was hard and felt like I was going super slow. Which for some of my sprints, I did go above two minutes which is the slowest so far. It was hard, but I got through the workout and did not let going above two minutes stop me.
Continuing on feeling sluggish and hitting a breaking point in my training. Over the weekend I start to feel bad and over exhausted, which led me to not completing my long run. For the run I was planning on running six miles, but did not have the energy or felt good enough to go through with it. Which it is okay not to complete runs, you have to listen to what your body is telling you because it will do more harm to run then to not.
Week 7 Updates
Still feeling exhausted from the weekend, I decided to skip the long easy run and push the Monday three mile run to Tuesday. So I would only be doing two easy runs this week and the longest would be four miles. Although I decide to eliminate the two longest runs of the week, I was not able to make it to four miles. On Sunday, I ran out of sun light and was only able to make to a 5K.
Along with not being able to do long runs, I was not able to do the full 50 minute tempo run for the week. In Texas, the weather has gotten to a point where in the morning it can be hard to run due to humidity. The day I did my tempo run, the humidity and temperature was awful, making it a difficult run. I tried to do my best to compete the run, but in the end was only able to make it 30 minutes.
Week 8 Updates
My last week of training went decently well. For all my runs I felt well which is a great feeling going into race weekend. I had no issue and felt no exhaustion which was something I had felt the past couple of weeks. Due to my traveling and busy schedule, I was not able to do the last set of 400M sprints, but I am not too worried about it going into the race. All that is left is to have fun and race!
Post- Race Thoughts
I enjoyed the training plan because I was able to stick to my speed training which is something I had not done before. As for the length of the training, I think for a 10K I would have like for a shorter plan, maybe something around six weeks. Having a shorter training plan would have helped a little with the exhaustion that I was feeling during training. Although I was doing a lot, having a shorter plan would have worked better.
The race itself was nice. Going into it I assumed that the course was going to be hiller than the races I have done in Texas. After going through the course and looking back at the statistics I was surprised to see that my elevation change was maybe 30 feet or less than what my elevation was for my runs in Texas. Having the course be comparable to what I run in Texas was nice as I felt like I was not over working myself to get the results that I was wanting to get.
My goal for this race was originally a 9:30 pace because I expected it to be hiller, once I found out the course was flatter than expected, I aimed to have a pace of 9:01 which is the pace I am looking to sustain over a half marathon distance to be sub 2.
If you are looking for a course that is not too crazy with hills and has beautiful views then I would recommend the Bayshore Marathon. This race has three different distances that take you along the lake so that you are never board with the scenery. It it also a fun travel race if you are looking for one!
10K beats studio buds brooks running shoes forerunner 255s Hal Higdon intermediate runner Memorial Day Weekend Michigan out-of-state race running sub 2 half marathon travel