How to Beat Your Personal Best Time for a 10K Race

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Taking part in the 10K race is one thing, but completing it in a decent time is a completely different challenge altogether. By following the Kiqplan 10K training program designed specifically for you, there’s nothing stopping you from beating your personal best and impressing your friends and family in the process. Here are a few tips for racing your best 10K ever.

Work On Your Speed

It is not enough to simply be fit if you’re attempting your best ever time for the 10K race. You will also need to speed up your natural pace, which will involve interval training and high-tempo runs. During your training runs, try to build up your speed by running in two-minute intervals. This means you might start at an intensity of one on a scale of one to five. So, between minutes eight and ten, you should be running at an intensity of five using the same scale.

Tempo runs involve pushing your lactic acid levels as far as you can. During rigorous exercise, your muscles create lactic acid, which is flushed out of your body naturally. However, if you’re producing it faster than it can be flushed out, the lactic acid in your muscles (particularly in your legs) will start to burn. You should train your body to deal with this more efficiently by gradually running faster for longer.

Incorporate Hill Runs

Chances are that your 10K race will include both uphill and downhill stretches, so you need to train your muscles to deal with these different conditions. Hill running will strengthen your legs, improve your technique and build your aerobic capacity, all of which will help you to shave vital seconds off your best ever 10K time.

Perform Resistance Training

In order to improve your running technique, remain balanced during your 10K and build power in your legs, you should perform a resistance training workout at least twice a week. It is important, however, that you don’t build muscle mass too quickly. You also need to make sure you’re performing the types of weight training that will benefit your running. You can get the advice you need from a personal trainer or a running expert. Strong and conditioned leg muscles will usually result in improved speed.

Control Your Weight

The easiest way to run faster if you’re carrying a few extra pounds is to lose weight. The act of training for your 10K might help you to shed a few of those pounds, but you will need to eat correctly and reach your optimum weight as quickly as possible if you’re going to squeeze a little extra performance out of yourself. Devising a diet that fuels your body for training yet helps you to shed weight is a highly complex process, which is why you might want to use the Kiqplan 10K app. This digital coach will monitor your net calorie consumption and provide you with tasty and nutritious recipes that should help you on your way to a leaner, fitter body in readiness for the big race.

Build Up Your Distances During Training

Make no mistake: 10K is quite a distance to run, so you need to be certain that you’re capable of it before race day finally arrives. However, you shouldn’t force yourself to run distances you’re simply not ready for, so try to increase the distance you cover during training by 10 percent every week. Ideally, you should be able to run eight miles (or 12.8 km) by the time your race event takes place.

Prepare Some Race Tactics

Your tactics should begin on the morning of your 10K. Eat a light breakfast around two hours before you run, and make sure it is rich in carbohydrates. Go over the course in your mind, and try to identify stretches for pushing and stretches for taking things a little easier. Remember, you’ll need to pace yourself in order to complete the course in the fastest possible time. Warm up fully during the 30 minutes before the start of your race, as the slightest of muscles strains will probably make running a personal best time virtually impossible.

Do you use a training schedule or app to help push you to be your 10K best? —Erin