Training Plans

Week 8 – 7th October

Race week is here! If you’re racing on Sunday and doing Kirkstall Hills, suggest only doing a few of the reps hard and skipping quite a few of the hills to keep the overall distance down. Otherwise there’s a short and sharp session to try to keep you fresh for the weekend. Good luck!

Week 7 – 30th September

This week we’ve got a fun session on Thursday which is pick-ups – with 2 minutes at threshold pace (6-7/10) then 2 minutes all out effort. Make sure you leave enough in the tank to accelerate in the 2nd half! It’s progression session this week too, so if you fancy a challenge try going in a higher group on Tuesday.

Week 6 – 23rd September

There a couple of sessions on the plan this coming week – if you’re targeting the Abbey Dash I’d give a harder parkrun a go this week and skip the sunday session. If you’re doing a half mazza, definitely give the session on sunday a try as will really help you get race ready

Week 5 – 16th September

It’s a bit of a quieter week coming up, so take it nice and easy Just the one session to try, which I’ll also be coaching at track this coming Thursday 19th – please do come down to join! Remember if you have any questions just head on over to the HPH training pals Facebook group to ask them there.

Week 4 – 9th September

This week is a big threshold focus which is great training for a speedy half marathon. Threshold running is where you can give 3-4 word answers – it’s hard, but not all out effort. Training at this effort really helps you stay strong in the final third of races. There’s a good video here from Sarah at The Running Channel explaining it here.

As we head into darker evenings, we’re now into Kirkstall Hills – these are a good option if you’re working towards a 10k, but aim for quality over quantity – maybe don’t do all 17 but really focus on 10 good, high speed reps with enough recovery in between.

Week 3 – 2nd September

Here’s this week’s plan – get signed up for track on Thursday if you aren’t already, as we’ll do the fartlek (speedplay) session together

If you’re training towards a half marathon would suggest starting to get some faster efforts into your long runs – the 3 mins off / 3 mins on workout is a great one. If you like listening to music when you run, you can do a song on and then a song off

Week 2 – 26th August

Week 2 of our plan is another opportunity to mix up the paces with your intervals. If you’re targeting a half marathon, I’d also suggest tagging a faster finish onto your long run at the weekend – so picking up the intensity in the last mile. It’ll really help you build endurance for race day. Now’s also a great time to get into a good habit with your strength and conditioning. Why not give this 10 minute core workout for runners a go this week…

Week 1 – 19th August

Welcome to the first week of our new training block! This week is all about getting into a routine with your running and also getting some intervals in. Sign-up to the track session on Spond at 7.30pm on Thursday if you’d like to do the workout together, or you can do the session on any quiet road loop. The sessions work to rate of perceived exertion (RPE), which is a scale out of 10 based on how hard you feel – there’s a handy chart here.

Week 8 – 5th August

It’s the HPH Track Day on Sunday 🎉 This week is about keeping things pretty easy – with the exception of some short intervals on Thursday with a pick up in the last minute – helping you practice pushing the pace when you’re already a bit tired (great for tuning up your finish line sprint for Sunday!)

Week 7 – 29th July

This is our last big week of training before the HPH Track Day on 11th August, so we’re going to be focusing on locking in the target 5k pace you’re going for. Contrary to the plan, Lotherton Hall trail race is on Friday – so if you’re doing it, potentially skip intervals on Thursday for an easy run instead.

Week 6 – 22nd July

This week we’re doing short and sharp efforts to fire up our lactate system, which is used for short bursts of effort. On thursday we’ll be doing short intervals on the track (or there’s a session to do if you can’t make that), then a few hill reps after parkrun. If they’re hideous, just rest assured they won’t last that long…

Week 5 – 15th July

This week we’re playing with picking up the pace, so there’s a Fartlek (speed play) workout on Thursday where you want to be getting faster as the reps get shorter. Then on Saturday, aim to do your last mile / lap at parkrun at your target 5k pace and see if you can hold on! Give it a go and keep me posted with how you get on.

Week 4 – 8th July

This coming week is a deload week, so only one session on Thursday – with choice of track or 2 minute intervals. Have fun, enjoy the R&R!

Week 3 – 1st July

This week we’ve got quite a lot of workouts on the plan BUT, fear not, it’s a rest week the week after, so give it a go!

Our focus is on threshold running – where you can give 3-4 word answers and would be somewhere between your 10k and half marathon pace. It’s hard, but not all out effort. Training at this effort really helps you stay strong in the final third of races. There’s a good video here from Sarah at The Running Channel explaining it here.

It’s Eccup 10 at the weekend. If you’re racing it, don’t do your hill sprints on Saturday, just drop down to an easy parkrun to save your legs!

Week 2 – 24th June

This week we’re going to be working on runs that mix up paces, which is great for developing the different energy systems your body uses for running 🧑‍🔬.

(This includes my fave workout, which is post parkrun hill sprints – great for strength & speed, as well as letting the CoTC queue die down before you get there 😉 ).

I’ll be coaching track on Thursday at Beckett – please do come down and give it a go – it’s set to be a fun session! 

Week 1 – 17th June

Kicking off the plan, week 1 is benchmark week – so you can lay down a time to improve on over the next 8 weeks. There’s the option of the Evensplits 5k at the Brownlee centre on Wednesday or a speedy parkrun on Saturday.

The plan uses rate of perceived exertion (RPE) – which is effort out of 10. You can find a handy explainer for RPE at the bottom of this page.

This is also the first week of the new and improved strength and speed sessions at Woodhouse Moor – be sure to sign up on Spond to join the Thurs session.

Let us know how you’re getting on – feel free to share how you’re doing on the HPH training pals FaceBook page.