The quest to improve

[markbrom]

So it goes on my quest towards 10k. Another 6.5k notched up this morning so heading in the right direction. Could have gone on but decided not to just because. Reckon I could just pootle slowly on now but conscious of the recommendation I saw somewhere on here to only go up by 10% a week, is that right? And a photo just because I will be back in UK next week and it might not be as sunny 😎

[Frenc Graduate10 60minGraduate]

Oh lucky you, what a great pic. Are you on holiday? Well done on a great run towards your 10k 😊😊😊.

[markbrom in reply to Frenc]

I have a home in France and have been down here for a couple months now we can

[apatsyf Graduate10]

Oooo, that does look very lovely. I'm very jealous, but maybe a bit warm for me to run🌞! Is lovely and sunny here at the monent but not sure about next week!! Yes, 10% is correct - I expect you have seen Juju's "magic plan" which gives you timings to 60mins or distances to get to 10k over a number of weeks? Sounds like you are on the right track 🐌🐌🐌.

[markbrom in reply to apatsyf]

If I’m back before 9am it’s ok. This morning was 18C. Can’t leave it any later though or cooking occurs.

[apatsyf Graduate10 in reply to markbrom]

🥵 🍅🌶, beetroot and radish emojiis!! I know the feeling well. 14° is the perfect temp or my neighbours start to worry 🌶🥵!!

[swissfish Graduate10]

Sounds like a good run Mark, well done. I'm also working up to 10k, following the Magic Plan. I should manage it in 3 weeks from now.Good luck with your quest!

John

[Ian5K Graduate10]

It’s a very crude rule of thumb. Obviously, a fit 20something and an unfit 50something will cope very differently with 10%. You have to be your own judge, really.

Also bear in mind that the further you run, the greater the 10% increase will be. It may be safer to think of adding half kilometres after 5k, and a kilometre after reaching 10k.

It’s also dependent on how fast you go at it. If you deliberately reduce the pace you’ve run at previously, you can (probably) go further in distance without much more effort, so you build towards the goal safely.

[nowster Graduate10 in reply to Ian5K]

10% per week is an exponential growth, something we've heard a lot about in the last 18 months. It's a doubling approximately every eight weeks.

Theoretically you could go from 5km to 10km in 8 weeks, from 10km to a Half Marathon in 8 weeks, and from a Half Marathon to a Full Marathon in another 8 weeks. Nobody sensible would advise that, though.

The 10% rule is a recommendation, not a law. It's possible to exceed it a little occasionally but to be safe it's best to be under it most of the time.

Many plans (the Magic Plan included) round to the nearest whole number and in doing so slightly exceed the 10% rule. They usually follow that with a week of consolidation at the new time/distance.

In addition to what Ian5K notes, there's a saying "Go slower to go faster." Doing longer runs at a slower pace can lead to you gradually gaining speed without straining.