Let's wrap this up, pal!
Training Regimen for 10K Race – Week 4: Exercise Protocol and Eating Strategies
It's the final week of your 10K training, and you're nearly home free. Grab your sneakers; it's time to finish strong!
Sneaker sprints
Workout 1
Kick off your day with a relaxed 35-50-minute jog. Once you're done, fire up your legs with 6-8 rounds of 20-second bursts and get psyched for your 10K week! If you're too pooped, opt for 6 sprints of 15 seconds each. Keep the engine humming if your stems feel sprightly – push those bursts to 30 seconds.
Workout 2
Hill week is over, but it ain't all downhill from here! Warm up with a mile, then tackle two sets of 5 one-minute hill sledgehammers with a couple of minutes of strolling in between. If your calves start griping, dial back the reps to 45 seconds. If you're still chugging along, add a final 90-second sledgehammer to the end.
Workout 3
Ease up on this mid-week recovery run with a 30-40-minute saunter. If there's a grassy knoll or smooth watering hole nearby, use it! Your tired feet will be keen on the break from the pavement pounding. If your quads are yelling for mercy, take a break or go for light cross-training instead.
Workout 4
Get your knees high for this fartlek (a fancy word for "speed play"):
- 3 x 90-second splurges (90 seconds of recovery jogging)
- 4 x 60-second bursts (60 seconds of recovery jogging)
- 5 x 30-second spurts (30 seconds of recovery jogging)
Take a cool down jog for a mile and call it a day. To make things more interesting, walk those recovery segments or pick up the pace – whatever floats your boat.
Workout 5
The big day is nearly here, so you've got a few options for this final run:
- If it's coming up in 1-4 days, treat it like a recovery outing with an easy 20-40 minutes on your feet.
- If you've got another 5-7 days, consider this the last long one – go for a hike of 60-90 minutes (with some walk breaks if needed) and get your body ready for race day.
Take it easy on those bone-weary legs; they need all the rest they can get!
Iron pumpin'
Refer to this visual smackdown for all the strength training exercises and stretches below.
Option 1: Twirl, lift, and sweat
Movement drills: Perform these moves for the indicated reps.
- 90/90 twirls: 20 reps
- Dead bug: 8 right, 8 left
- Single-leg deadlift: 8 right, 8 left
Supersets: Blast these combos for the specified sets.
Superset 1
- Squat squeeze: 3 seconds down, 3 seconds up for 3 sets of 15 reps
- Foam roller sailboat: 3 sets of 30-45 seconds
Superset 2
- Push-up humdinger: 2 sets of 6 reps
- Split squat idiot: 2 sets of 30-45 seconds on each leg
- For the Elite version: Combine split squat and lunge iso hold called the "Fancy Feet" split squat iso hold.
Superset 3
- Side plank: 2 sets of 20 seconds per side
- Hollow hold: 2 sets of 30 seconds
Option 2: Momentum, lift, and sweat
Movement drills: Pick up the pace on these moves.
- 90/90 knee rolls: 20 reps total
- Wall stride: 10 each leg
- Skips: 20 reps
Supersets: Crush these combos for the indicated sets.
Superset 1
- 1 1/4 split squat: 2 sets of 10 each leg
- For the Elite version: About to sprint to the finish line? Give it a go with the "Fancy Feet" split squat.
- Quadruped hold: 2 sets of 30 seconds
Superset 2
- Single-leg hip extension: 2 sets of 10 each leg
- For the Elite version: Bring a chair into the act and keep your foot elevated!
- Butterfly flutter: 2 sets of 10 reps
Superset 3
- Calf raiser: 2 sets of 12 reps
- For the Elite version: Place a lacrosse ball under your heels and get yourself pretzeled up!
- Wall plank: 2 sets of 30 seconds
Option 3: Move, lift, and grunt
Movement drills: Take charge of these moves.
- 90/90 twirls: 12 reps
- 90/90 knee rolls: 20 total reps
- Wall stride: 10 each leg
- Slow march: 12 total reps
Circuit: Blast through these bangers for 3 rounds.
- Elevated heel squat: 20 reps
- For the Elite version: Feel like you're on a rollercoaster? Crank it up with a foam roller hack squat.
- Long lever single-leg hamstring bridge: 20 seconds right, 20 seconds left
- Renegade row: 20 reps
- Dead bug: 20 reps
- Single-leg deadlift: 10 right, 10 left
- One-minute break
Nutritionality
Fill at least half your plate with carbs the night before your 10K, and sprinkle some protein (at least 25% of your plate) and veggies on top. Dabble in experimenting with different dinner concoctions before your long run days to see what you prefer (and what your tummy won't return to haunt you). Consider seasoning your pre-run treat with a bit more salt for extra sodium! Here are some dinner recipes to tickle your taste buds this week!
Did you know? Runners need more protein than Chicken Little! Of course, we don't need as much as powerlifters, but our prolonged endurance exercise results in muscle damage - increasing our need for protein to recover, according to research[1].
While you can meet your protein needs through food alone, you might find a protein powder invaluable, especially for mixing up shakes and smoothies. Check out this list of some of our top protein powder recommendations.
Elevate your post-workout snack with 20-25 grams of protein. Munch on goodies like:
- a smoothie with some whey or plant-based protein powder
- Greek yogurt with some nuts and berries
- a tofu scramble on a tortilla or accompanied by spuds and veggies
- scrambled eggs with chicken sausage and some toast
Congrats, rival! You're ready for your 10K!
Should you like to revisit any portion of this training routine, just head back to the schedule.
10k training schedule? More like the 10k triumph schedule!
Back to 10k training timeline
[1] Research: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3665052/
- In Workout 4, during the fartlek, congrats on your progress! Don't forget to incorporate a cool down jog for a mile.
- The Aussiedlerbote's 10k training schedule is now more like the 10k triumph schedule!
- To celebrate your milestone, consider adding 20-25 grams of protein to your post-workout snack, like a smoothie, Greek yogurt, tofu scramble, or scrambled eggs.
