Improving my 2-mile run time

widowson

OK.

Bottom line up front: I'm in the military (Army) and always max my pushups and situps on our physical fitness test, but never can do very well on the 2-mile run; usually low to mid 15s which is only 85 points or so when I'd like to be around a 13:30.

My old plan was just a lot of running (15 miles a week) but that started to hurt and I heard that sprints were better anyways so I cam up with this:

TUE: 3.3 miles; sprint 1 minute, jog 2 until completed

THR: 3.3 miles; sprint 1 minute, jog 2 until completed

SAT: Normal run of 4.5 miles

MON, WED, FRI are gym days to keep up my pushup-situp score.

Thoughts?

Kakodaimonos

That's basically the right idea. You need to start doing interval work or fartleks.

So your 1 mile goal pace is 6:45. 1/2 mile pace is 3:22, 1/4 mile is 1:41, 1/8 mile is 51 seconds.

Twice a week:

Repeat 3-4 times
Run 1/2-mile at goal pace
Walk or jog 1/4-mile

Repeat 4-6 times
Run 1/4-mile at goal pace
Walk or jog 1/8 of a mile

Repeat 4-6 times
Run 1/8-mile at goal pace
Walk or jog 100 yds

And do 2 days a week of 3-5 mile slower pace duration run.

Ultimanecat

Interval training like you're suggesting can help acclimate your body to working better anaerobically, but what you're looking to do is increase your pace, and the only sure-fire way to do that is to increase your pace. Do a bit of sprinting but also focus on running below a sprint but above your comfortable standard pace. Start with just a quarter mile of this after you've already run some and then maybe extend this by another quarter mile or so every week or two.

Also, sprinting for a minute straight can be tough if you're just starting this out. You may want to reduce that figure by 15 or even 30 seconds depending on your fitness level.

BlochWave

Here's probably more technical information than you care to know:

http://www.thinkmuscle.com/articles/staley/endurance-training.htm

and a site that has helped me during marathon and 5-10k season, http://www.exrx.net/Aerobic.html

It's probably getting about time to revise your workout plan though because:

http://www.army.mil/-news/2011/02/28/52548-tradoc-revises-army-physical-fitness-test/

I think that's probably a good thing, doing a bunch of push-ups isn't going to help you slap on 40 pounds of gear and drag Johnny across a hellacious battlefield.

And God help you if you have that Sergeant from Modern Warfare 2. He'll make you go rescue Johnny with a ceremonial bat'leth.

Blake T

I would also suggest increasing your pace.

Try track running (it's boring but the point is that it has easily spotted distances) give yourself xx seconds to cover yy distance. It will help let your body know what your groove is for your target times.

Lilnoobs

What are you running on? A track? Treadmill? Other?

Pace yourself every quarter mile. There's 8 quarter miles and you want to hit 13:30. 60 seconds a quarter would give you an 8 minute 2 mile. To hit 13 minutes, you can lax that pace about 60% or 6 seconds every quarter mile. Your goal would then be to hit 66 seconds or lower every quarter.

I understand this interval training and all that, but if your goal is just to beat a time in a 2 mile, the best way is to just run the 2 miles during your workout days while pacing your quarter miles.


edit: It's early my math might be off so double check. Basically though, find out what your average needs to be per quarter mile in order to reach your target time, then pace yourself with that average as your goal.

Hoz

Do you really need three days to keep up your push up and sit up scores? It seems like you could cut that down to two and easily maintain your upper body and core strength.

Also, whatever interval workout you pick don't do it back to back even if it's one day apart. Do your interval workout TUE and SAT and your easy long distance THR.

Oh, and work in hill intervals into your workout every other week. It's a great workout but at the same time there's not as much impact on your legs running up a hill so there's less worry about getting any kind of injuries.

Edit: 66 seconds every quarter mile for intervals, are you serious? No, for someone doing 15+ on a 2 mile run that is an awful idea. For 400m intervals he should be aiming between 1:30 and 1:40 for a consistent workout.

Lilnoobs

Hoz wrote: »

Do you really need three days to keep up your push up and sit up scores? It seems like you could cut that down to two and easily maintain your upper body and core strength.

Also, whatever interval workout you pick don't do it back to back even if it's one day apart. Do your interval workout TUE and SAT and your easy long distance THR.

Oh, and work in hill intervals into your workout every other week. It's a great workout but at the same time there's not as much impact on your legs running up a hill so there's less worry about getting any kind of injuries.

Edit: 66 seconds every quarter mile for intervals, are you serious? No, for someone doing 15+ on a 2 mile run that is an awful idea. For 400m intervals he should be aiming between 1:30 and 1:40 for a consistent workout.

I added 6% instead of 60%. I did put a disclaimer but thanks for not reading it.

Taranis

I increased my PT score by doing push-ups (regular, wide arm, and close hand) every other night and sit-ups (as well as crunches, flutter kicks, supine bicycle, v ups, and oblique) every night, while running 4-5 times a week.

Scoring high on a PT test isn't only influenced by your physical fitness. If you you're smart about how you take it, you can greatly improve your score. My strategy on the run was to find someone who consistently came in a minute sooner than me and I kept pace with them until the turn around point. Then I would try to pass them if possible, while increasing my pace only slightly. I would then sprint for the last 200 meters. When I felt like I needed to slow down, I would call cadence in my head, and do my best to stay at the same pace.

Chances are that you can already run the 2 mile in less than 15 minutes, but it can be hard to know what pace to run without tiring yourself out prematurely. If you're taking the PT test alone, then you might want to try running on a treadmill at your desired pace to get an idea of how fast to run. Remember, if you're not light headed, and if you don't feel like you're going to pass out at the end, then you probably could have run faster. Also, make sure you stretch before you run, and never run in PT pants.

widowson

Hoz wrote: »

Do you really need three days to keep up your push up and sit up scores? It seems like you could cut that down to two and easily maintain your upper body and core strength.
Also, whatever interval workout you pick don't do it back to back even if it's one day apart. Do your interval workout TUE and SAT and your easy long distance THR.

Oh, and work in hill intervals into your workout every other week. It's a great workout but at the same time there's not as much impact on your legs running up a hill so there's less worry about getting any kind of injuries.

Edit: 66 seconds every quarter mile for intervals, are you serious? No, for someone doing 15+ on a 2 mile run that is an awful idea. For 400m intervals he should be aiming between 1:30 and 1:40 for a consistent workout.

Here's the reason for that.

My 4-mile per mile (7:15ish) time is faster than my 2-mile per mile (7:45) run time....which shouldn't happen.

The Army PT test is, in order, pushups, situps, run. I can max the first 2 events, but I get up and feel a little like a "baby giraffe"; a bit wobbly so I thought that was impacting my times.

I have no "ass or mass" so, to use the geek reference, I think I'm failing CON checks so I need to up it. If the first 2 events don't wear me out as much I should have more gas for the run.

widowson

BlochWave wrote: »

Here's probably more technical information than you care to know:

http://www.thinkmuscle.com/articles/staley/endurance-training.htm

and a site that has helped me during marathon and 5-10k season, http://www.exrx.net/Aerobic.html

It's probably getting about time to revise your workout plan though because:

http://www.army.mil/-news/2011/02/28/52548-tradoc-revises-army-physical-fitness-test/

I think that's probably a good thing, doing a bunch of push-ups isn't going to help you slap on 40 pounds of gear and drag Johnny across a hellacious battlefield.

And God help you if you have that Sergeant from Modern Warfare 2. He'll make you go rescue Johnny with a ceremonial bat'leth.

Wow, that new PT test looks.....stupid as hell. I can tell it was designed by committee. That is way too complex to be workable for most units and most NCOs don't have the knowledge to know what exercises to do to prepare for this either.

Once again, the USMC has us beat with a more "simple but effective" approach to stuff.

For God's sake just pay Tony Horton whatever the fuck his agent asks and be done with it...

OK, lemme go over these suggestions and create a new routine.

Hoz

widowson wrote: »

My 4-mile per mile (7:15ish) time is faster than my 2-mile per mile (7:45) run time....which shouldn't happen.

The Army PT test is, in order, pushups, situps, run. I can max the first 2 events, but I get up and feel a little like a "baby giraffe"; a bit wobbly so I thought that was impacting my times.

Sounds like to me like you don't do a good warm up before your PT test.

My suggestion is on one of your training days to simulate PT test conditions for yourself with the exact events and timed breaks between them but before you do the PT test do a 1/1.5 mile easy jog as a warm up. It should hurt you on the push ups and sit ups but help you on the run.

And don't sit down to rest between the events, walk around and keep the blood flowing.

Taranis

Hoz wrote: »

And don't sit down to rest between the events, walk around and keep the blood flowing.

This.

As soon as you're done with one event, you should be stretching for the next.

kedinik

I recommend pace miles.

Run a single mile and push yourself enough to hit your desired 2-mile pace, but absolutely no faster than that! Be precise, hit your splits. Take a break for exactly 2 minutes, then run another mile at that pace.

As it gets easier to hit your goal pace, start shaving time off the 2 minute break in between miles.

This basically trains your legs and your lungs to automatically strike your goal pace over the course of 2 miles, even if you're not quite in aerobic shape for the 2 full miles in a row yet.

You'll get there if you're consistent with your training, good luck man.