I used to do cross country running back in high school. I also ran the 3000 metre in track and field. I was always a distance runner. I enjoyed the challenge of building up my endurance to run long distances. When I started doing CrossFit last year, I started running again because some of the workouts included a running component. Since I haven’t done it in a while, I wasn’t able to run continuously for the duration of the workout. From time to time, I would stop and walk. I wanted to improve my endurance and times in the CrossFit workouts otherwise known as a WOD (workout of the day). So, I set a goal to run a mile (or 1600 metres) in under 10 minutes. I thought it was a good place to start, since it’s considered a middle-distance. I’ve also heard that running a mile under 10 minutes is a decent pace for a recreational runner.
I started working up to it by doing walk/run intervals. I would go on the treadmill and walk for two minutes, then run for two minutes. I would repeat this for 20 minutes. I did this a couple times a week. Eventually, I started running for longer intervals and walking for shorter intervals. For example, I would run for three minutes and then walk for a minute and a half. Next time, I would aim to run for four minutes and walk for a minute. I didn’t increase my running interval time every session. Although, as I continued showing up, I noticed that I was gradually able to run for longer periods of time without feeling as tired as I used to feel. I was seeing progress! Oh progress, you are truly a great motivator.
After about a month, I wanted to test my mile time to see where I was at. I ran it in 11 minutes. Not bad, I thought. Although I knew that cutting down a whole minute on my mile time wouldn’t be easy, I let myself celebrate the progress that I’ve made so far.
Even though there’s always more to learn and improve on, it’s important to celebrate how far you’ve already come and the progress that you’ve made so far.
Throughout the rest of the summer, I kept coming to the gym and training my intervals on the treadmill. In the second week of August, I decided to test my mile again. I started the run calm and composed. I felt fairly comfortable running at the 10 minute mile pace for the first 800 metres. At the halfway point, I started to get tired. I remember wanting to slow down or even stop. In that moment, I reminded myself that it’s just as important to have my mental strength dialed in as it is for my physical strength to be. So I continued running at the same pace and once I reached the last 400 metres, I decided it was time to pick up the pace. I started running a little faster. Almost there! At this point, I could feel the lactic acid building up in my legs because they felt so tired. With only 150 metres left, I started sprinting. I knew that I could finish the run in under 10 minutes if I could just hang on a little longer. I looked at the treadmill screen and it read one mile with a time of nine minutes and 36 seconds. Success! I achieved my goal of running a mile in under 10 minutes and it felt amazing.
If you’d like to run a sub-10 minute mile, here’s what I’d suggest:
- Start with doing walk/run intervals. A couple minutes for each is a great place to start.
- Gradually increase your running interval times while decreasing your walking interval times.
- Work on breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth. It’s important to keep your breathing steady throughout the run, especially once you start to get tired.
- Celebrate your progress, no matter how small.
- Make sure your mental strength is dialed in. When it gets tough, find words of encouragement to tell yourself.
I wish you luck on your journey to the sub-10 minute mile. Feel free to leave a comment below with your best mile time or mention another running goal that you’re working toward!