The decision to run in a 10K race is not one that people make lightly; after all, although running is a very popular past time for many, the percentage of the general public who can run 6.2 miles is very small. There are many reasons why people chose the 10K distance event; sometimes they are runners who have previously participated in 5K races and they want to push themselves to new achievements.

Sometimes a 10K is being held to raise funds for a charity that they are particularly devoted to. Other times people are working their way up to the long-distance marathon, and the 10K is a good way to establish a pace time for yourself to work with. Whatever your level of fitness and experience, there is a 10K training schedule available that will help you to achieve your goal.

Beginner

A 10K race is a perfect distance for a beginning runner or a runner who has successfully completed a 5K race and who has proper running form and who now wants to push their limits a bit.

The best way to approach training for a 10K is with a beginner schedule, which provides eight weeks of preparation, insuring that you are more than ready and able to reach your goal.

An eight week beginning runner program will include three to four days of running every week, a couple of days of rest and recovery, and a couple of days of cross training to make sure that you are strengthening other muscles to support your endurance.

The program will generally assume that you are already capable of running two miles without stopping, and will generally provide increasing distances, going up to a maximum of about five miles the week before your actual run.

If you follow this type of plan faithfully, you will find that the additional mile on race day will be easy because you will be in good shape and the adrenaline of the race environment will carry you the extra distance. A good training schedule will also provide you with valuable information about stretching, cooling down and nutrition.

Advanced

Just as there are training schedules that are specifically designed for people who are running their first 10K, there are also advanced marathon training programme that are designed to help people who are trying to improve their running technique so that they can achieve new personal record times.

These schedules are designed for people who are already able to run six miles easily and who are able to run five days a week, incorporating different running styles and routines in order to enhance their speed. The typical schedule for an advanced runner includes one or two days off from running.

These should be spent on aerobic cross-training that builds your endurance but rests your joints, as well as at least fifteen to twenty minutes of strength training that focuses on your core.

The advanced schedule will include hill repeats for strength and speed, tempo runs to build up your anaerobic threshold, and interval workouts, which are running at your desired race pace for a short distance, then jogging to recover for a short period.  

An advanced schedule will also include one day, usually a weekend day, that is devoted to a long run at an easy pace. No matter how much you want to improve your time, it is essential that you follow the plan in terms of rest days or else you will be cheating your body out of recovery time, which is essential for you to be able to advance to your top potential.