A 12-week 10 km plan on three sessions a week for a 50 minutes finish: every pace given, two down weeks and a specific block.
If one of these is not true, a longer plan will take you further than a short one followed halfway.
Ill, exhausted or in pain, do not run: a plan absorbs a missed session, it does not absorb an injury. Drop the easy run first — it is the least specific. If it is the quality session or the long run that goes, do not move it to another day of the same week; pick the next week up where the plan is, never where you stopped.
| Pace | min/km | What it feels like |
|---|---|---|
| Easy | 6:14 – 6:43 | The pace most of this plan is run at. If you cannot hold a conversation, it is too fast. |
| Long run | 6:20 | In the firm third of the easy band, never outside it. However long it is, a long run is never run quicker than this. |
| 10 km pace | 4:56 | 10 km race pace. The most reliable marker to recalibrate the others against. |
| 5 km pace | 4:44 | 5 km race pace: strong, never maximal. |
| 2 km pace | 4:28 | 2 km race pace, on short repetitions. The quickest work in the plan: sharp and relaxed, never straining. |
Set the rhythm: nothing hard, three runs settle in before any intensity is added. One easy run closes with strides — 20 s quick and relaxed, 40 s of jogging, no watch and no target pace.
Easy run49 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk. Finish with 4 strides.
Easy run40 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run7 km
7 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
First meeting with race-day pace: fifteen continuous minutes. Over 10 km that pace is near enough your threshold — close enough that the table publishes a single row for both.
10 km pace45 min
15 continuous minutes at 10 km pace.
Easy run45 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run8 km
8 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Speed enters: 400 m repetitions at 2 km pace, the one zone in the plan quicker than 5 km pace. Short and relaxed — this trains running economy, not breathing.
Speed50 min
6 × 400 m at 2 km pace, 90 s recovery.
Easy run45 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run9 km
9 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
First down week. The plan has two: that is what twelve weeks allow and eight do not.
10 km pace40 min
10 continuous minutes at 10 km pace.
Easy run35 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run8 km
8 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Repetitions stretch to 800 m and step back to 5 km pace: longer, a little less sharp. The two zones answer each other — speed above, aerobic power just below.
Aerobic power61 min
5 × 800 m at 5 km pace, 150 s recovery.
Easy run50 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run10 km
10 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Eighteen continuous minutes at race-day pace, the longest unbroken block in the plan. The rest of the week stays easy.
10 km pace48 min
18 continuous minutes at 10 km pace.
Easy run50 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run11 km
11 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Second down week, and the fast work fits into 200 m. Short, sharp, almost no volume: enough to keep the legs quick while everything else comes down.
Speed44 min
6 × 200 m at 2 km pace, 90 s recovery.
Easy run40 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run10 km
10 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Repetitions reach 1,000 m. It is the last work faster than the race: from next week everything converges on race-day pace.
Aerobic power66 min
5 × 1000 m at 5 km pace, 150 s recovery.
Easy run50 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run12 km
12 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Specific block. Three six-minute blocks at goal pace, and the long run keeps climbing.
10 km pace54 min
3 × 6 minutes at 10 km pace, 2 min recovery.
Easy run50 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run13 km
13 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
The peak, and it is specific: three eight-minute blocks at race-day pace. That is the most this plan asks outside the day itself.
10 km pace60 min
3 × 8 minutes at 10 km pace, 2 min recovery.
Easy run50 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run14 km
14 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Taper. Twelve minutes at goal pace to keep it in the legs, and the volume comes down.
10 km pace42 min
12 continuous minutes at 10 km pace.
Easy run40 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
Long run9 km
9 comfortable km from start to finish. If it feels hard, it is too fast.
Race week. Maintain, do not build.
10 km pace45 min
3 × 3 minutes at 10 km pace, 2 min recovery.
Easy run25 min
Conversational pace: you should be able to talk.
10 km10 km
Race day.
Stibia exports this plan to your watch, on the days you run, with your long session on the day you choose, and the plan ending on your race date.
Create a free accountThis plan is general training material and does not replace medical advice. If it hurts, stop and see someone.