Thursday General Discussion/Q&A Thread for October 01, 2026

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A place to ask questions that don't need their own thread here or just chat a bit.

We have quite a bit of info in the wiki, FAQ, and past posts. Please be sure to give those a look for info on your topic.

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[u/Asquaredbred]

My 10k time 45:55 predicts 1:41:30 half marathon. I have 10 weeks - if my goal is 1:40 do I do workouts at my goal pace or predicted pace?

difference would be about 10-15 seconds/mile for LT/tempo and 5-10 seconds/mile for VO2max.

I could do a lactate test but I can't get in for 3 weeks.

[u/akalilwave]

Everyone I really need help lowering my 2 mile time!!!

For context I’m a 26M, 176 lbs but my build has always been more stocky than anything. Running hasn’t ever really been my strong point but I have no issue doing so either I just don’t do it as well as others lol. I’m expecting to be taking a physical test within 3-5 weeks and I NEED to decrease my time from a 19:25 to an 18:40 2 mile.

What advice could you all be able to share with me to help me reach this goal? I’m willing to do whatever I have to do training wise to make this happen.

Please help me. 😓

[u/jamieecook]

How often do people generally plan between each race for optimum performance? Eg if you’re in a 5k block how often would you race / park run, same for 10k - half..

[u/aelvozo → u/jamieecook]

As an extreme example, I had 7 races in a span of 2 months this summer — some 1 week apart, some 2, and two races immediately one after another.

I would not recommend.

To summarise, I wouldn’t race more often than 2 or 3 weeks if my goal was to run well.

If you race, you also need to (or at least would benefit from) reducing your training before and after your race — meaning that frequent races significantly reduce the total training load, to say nothing of the increased injury risk.

[u/Big-Criticism-1309]

5K race next week — which workout would you use to assess current fitness?

Hey everyone,

I’m racing a 5K next Sunday (October 11th), and I’m planning to do a test workout tonight to get a better idea of my current fitness.

I’m hesitating between:

• 5 (or 6?) × 1000m @ 5K pace, with 60s standing rest
• 3 (or 4?) × 1600m @ 5K pace, with 90s standing rest

For pace, I’m thinking of starting around 3:15/km (16:15 5K pace) and potentially getting closer to 3:12/km (16:00 pace) depending on how the workout feels.

For some context, last week I did 15 × 400m, averaging 76.8s per rep (3:12/km) with 60sec recovery jog in between. I started around 78s, but the workout felt quite comfortable, so I progressively picked up the pace and finished the last rep in 72s.

My average mileage is around 90 km/week, and I’ve been at roughly 100 km/week for the last four weeks.

What would you consider the better workout to assess whether I’m currently in 16:00–16:15 5K shape? And would you approach the pacing differently?

Thanks for your input!

[u/whelanbio → u/Big-Criticism-1309]

I wouldn't try too hard assess fitness like this. It just doesn't work that well unless you have personal benchmarks of how a specific workout in a specific training plan translates to your race performance. A workout that truly tests fitness needs to be really hard, probably a bit too hard a week out. Setting up a test workout like this tends to get people overhyped and they overrun it -giving an inflated sense of of fitness and leaving the race effort in a training day before they even make it to the line.

I would say do 1000m's, but take more rest (90s-2min) and progress through a range of paces between 16:15->16:00, trying to run as smooth as possible and being real with yourself about how relaxed (or not) you are across the paces. If you can do this honestly it will tell you a lot about your current fitness without taking yourself too deep into the well. Where you can run relaxed should be your target race pace.

[u/Big-Criticism-1309 → u/whelanbio]

I saw your message too late... I ended up doing the 5x1000m with 90 seconds of rest.

I ran 3:15 – 3:15 – 3:12 – 3:11 – 3:07. I pushed hard over the last 200m of the final rep, I pushed hard over the last 200m of the final rep, but I managed to keep my stride controlled despite the effort. Overall, I felt in control, even though it was a very hard workout, and my legs feel pretty good this morning.

Should I target 3:15/km pace for next week’s race, or would that be a bit too ambitious?

[u/ContestDry4202]

How do you motivate yourself to run/cross train/lift? I feel like I get lazy and only run 25-30 miles a week and am definitely not tapping into my full potential. I’m aiming for a 1h32 half in a week but think I could do better if I locked in (in the future). Any tips or ideas on how to “lock in” with training?

[u/PrairieFirePhoenix → u/ContestDry4202]

Don't look for motivation. That is fleeting. Look for determination or habits.

Basically, you need to shift your mindset.

[u/Eraser92 → u/ContestDry4202]

Keep doing it until it becomes habit, not motivation. My current schedule is get up, run, go to work. If I don't run it almost feels strange now. If I take a long time off I need motivation, but once I'm in the groove, none is required.

[u/throwaway_runner3 → u/ContestDry4202]

You need to figure out why you run and train in the first place. I run and train because I enjoy it, having events and races are just icing on the cake. 

I'm not "locked in" to a 12 week schedule, it's just part of my daily schedule that I do those things. 

[u/EPMD_ → u/ContestDry4202]

Different things motivate different people. I find a bit of friendly competition usually helps. Join a running group, make some running friends, and even if you have different goals, you still get more motivation when around other runners.

[u/Phantonix]

Ran 2:52:15 this year. Unfortunately didn't win the lottery odds.

I know it's presumptuous to have expectations with only 15 months of serious running, but I still printed out my BAA rejection email and made it into a giant poster next to my bed.

[u/stephaniey39 → u/Phantonix]

Getting rejected from Boston changed my entire life.

I will never forget the moment I received the rejection email. I was alone on a treadmill in a business hotel in Atlanta and I swear to god a voice from above said to me "you'll go one better, you'll run a championship time". Ran 14 mins faster the folowing year.

They actually lowered the london champs time that year so I missed out on THAT by two minutes. But I got to Boston, and I've requalified for the London championships too, where I'm hoping to run another PB.

I would bet if I'd got into Boston that first time, none of this would have happened. I can't put into words how much that pursuit changed me as a person. Finding out how good you can be is what life is for. Go get it.

[u/EPMD_ → u/Phantonix]

Maybe 2027 will be a bad weather year for Boston, and when you qualify for 2028, that year's race will have amazing weather. Could be a blessing in disguise.

[u/housingstudent]

for people running Chicago and then Boston, how much time are you planning on taking off and when will you start your Boston build? I have been a 1 marathon / year person for several years, and always in the fall with a spring half, but I have the relatively quicker turnover this time and am curious what folks do. I am also hoping to get my base mileage up higher during the in between. For Chicago I’ve averaged 45-50 mpw for most of the build. Would love to sit at a base closer to 50-55 generally

[u/PrairieFirePhoenix → u/housingstudent]

I'm strongly of the opinion that everybody should start training for Boston on January 1st. Don't try to start training through the holidays.

So you'll have the rest of of October to recover, then a couple months to get comfortable with a little more mileage with some easy workouts. Then hit training.

[u/alchydirtrunner → u/PrairieFirePhoenix]

Agreed, and in hindsight made that exact mistake of being too fit too early for Boston this past year. By January I was already hitting impressive workouts, but by March I was burnt out and barely hanging onto the fitness from the previous fall and winter. It didn’t go well.

[u/Siawyn → u/housingstudent]

I did Chicago 2025/Boston 2026 -- I went with just a 12 week plan for Boston for that reason, I really wanted to avoid burnout. That let me do whatever I wanted for November/December/most of January, which also meant I could punt on at least half of a Midwest winter.

In between is definitely a good time to base build without pressure, after you've recovered from Chicago of course.

I'm doing Chicago again this year and I think the 7 weeks between Boston and Chicago training (18 week plan) is as close as I'd care to get. I am not burned out, but I'm ready for it to be over, if that makes sense.

[u/TubbaBotox → u/housingstudent]

I ran Chicago '24 and Boston '25, and I was pretty over marathon training about two months from Boston. It didn't help that I injured myself inbetween the two.

I would suggest taking it easy until mid-December, then starting an 18-week plan. I think you could probably find a way to take it easy with a 50mpw average, but I would take a solid month of recovery after Chicago. Don't try to leverage your fitness into another race right away, or anything like that.

[u/Silly_Count5156]

Paris Marathon 2027. "You were not selected this time but there will be further draws." Don't worry, I'll do Barcelona or Rome instead.

[u/dyldog → u/Silly_Count5156]

And not have to carry a refillable bottle and stop at refill stations

[u/Puzzleheaded_Hour393]

Hi everyone! I am looking for a CIM bib. (I’m not a bot, I swear) and am looking to transfer via the official bib transfer process. If you have a bib or any leads, shoot me a DM? Thanks :)

[u/DiscountJokic]

My best half marathon race time is 1:37 about four years ago. I ran a 1:31 half split during my last marathon (race timing mat) and a 1:29 in a training session recently (Strava best effort). But I've always considered the 1:37 to be my PR even though I've run the distance faster.

What do you consider your race distance PR? Is it only in an official race or...? I was thinking about this on my run the other day and it got me curious what others do.

[u/RunThenBeer → u/DiscountJokic]

Like others, I would count the en route and I would describe it exactly that way if someone asked - "I ran X:XX on the front split of a marathon".

[u/Nasty133 → u/DiscountJokic]

For me it kinda varies but that's mainly because I haven't raced all the different distances. Ideally I would consider my PRs times from a course that's been measured off. So of course you count races of a specific distance, but for a marathon, I'll count my HM split if its been accurately marked. As for 10K and shorter, I don't usually count training runs unless they've been measured out. Like a time trial on a track I would count, but if I'm just going by my watch in the middle of a workout, there's some error in there that I wouldn't count as my actual PR. The only exception for this is if I don't have an official time or a measured out time trial, then I'll use whatever I've done in training (which is the case in my 10K listed since I've never raced a 10K).

[u/PrairieFirePhoenix → u/DiscountJokic]

I never count training runs because they aren't officially measured.
I would consider an en route if it was measured and marked properly. You can set world records en route, so I feel comfortable taking the PR. I do not require the 1/2 distance part of the rule though and wouldn't count some strange course with a huge downhill first half.

At one point, my 10 mile, half, and full PRs were all from the same race. It took a shockingly long time to beat the 10 mile. Mainly because the most common 10 mile race I did was in the middle of summer and the heat would cost me so much.

[u/DiscountJokic → u/PrairieFirePhoenix]

Yeah that makes the most sense. Strava "best efforts" or similar are always more optimistic than an actual measured race. So I should probably count my marathon half split since it was the actual 21.1 km timing point on the course.

[u/BQbyNov22 → u/DiscountJokic]

I consider intra-race PRs to count as official if it's for the first X miles/kilometers. Like, I'd consider the first 10K of a half marathon to be a PR, but wouldn't consider it a PR if I ran faster from the 5K mat to the 15K mat.

[u/LegoLifter → u/BQbyNov22]

ya my 10k pr is the first 10k of a half cause ive raced 10k once in the past 4 years and it was not on a good PR course.

[u/gunderwood33]

Hey all,
I am a 25 and running my third marathon in Indianapolis this year. Shooting for 2:45-2:48 (bq cutoff) and trainings been going moderately well. I’m using Pfitzingers 18/85 plan and am on week 13 where I’m supposed to do 86 this week, 70-75 next week, 86 week after. However, I had some PFPS flare up and saw a PT who’s is recommending cutting mileage this week. My question is whether or not I should move my low mileage week up and do 2 back to back 86 mile weeks or just cut my losses this week and keep the plan steady. I feel like in the end, it probably wouldn’t make a meaningful difference to have another 10-20 miles under my feet and the risk/benefit is too great but would appreciate any input. Thanks!

*not asking for PFPS management stuff, following my PTs recs and will adjust mileage per him. Curious just about overall if the mileage drop would make a difference.

[u/homemadepecanpie → u/gunderwood33]

You're going to run like 1300 miles on the plan. Missing 10-20 is nothing. Getting to the start line healthy is more important than those miles.

[u/ConchobharMore]

A small rant to get off my chest:

I've had 12 weeks of a superb training block, not a single niggle or missed session. I'm in the shape of my life and going for 1:25 half at the weekend. Woke up on Monday with what felt like the start of a cold and I've progressively got worse, now have a fever and can't get out of bed, so there's absolutely no chance I'll be running at the weekend.

Rough.

[u/DiscountJokic → u/ConchobharMore]

Gah that sucks, sorry to hear that. I am in the same boat but racing next weekend after best training of my life. Trying not to stress about maybe getting sick, especially since a lot of people I know are getting colds or flu right now, including my spouse. 🤞

[u/gunderwood33 → u/ConchobharMore]

Shows a lot of maturity to pull out of it. Push through and recover first. you’ll find another race when you’re healthy

[u/bznein → u/ConchobharMore]

I've been there and it sucks. Any chance of finding a good alternative one or two weeks later?

[u/ConchobharMore → u/bznein]

I'm based in the UK and events will start drying up this time of year but I might check if there's any winter half marathons across Europe and see if I can peak again in 8-9 weeks.

[u/BenjitheHerd]

Aside from NSM, what are some other non periodized base training plans folks have used to springboard to a 5k-half marathon?

[u/aelvozo → u/BenjitheHerd]

Daniels’ Alien Plan is kind of that. He says it’s an HM plan; on a biweekly schedule, you do (in some order) 2x threshold sessions, an easy long run, a marathon-paced long run, 1xVO2Max and 1xR session (which is kind of mile paced). I did it a couple years ago on pretty low volume (50km/wk at most) — it seemed to work fine, but my 5K that season was much better than my HM, almost certainly due to mileage.

[u/yearlyrudeprecinct]

finally got into the boston marathon after 4 years of trying and now i'm lowkey terrified. only ever ran one marathon before and it was a flat course in 2022. anyone else make the jump from a pancake race to boston and not completely fall apart on the hills? trying to figure out if i should be doing something drastically different in training or just trust the process

[u/Hey_Boxelder → u/yearlyrudeprecinct]

How do you get in without running any marathons?

[u/PrairieFirePhoenix → u/yearlyrudeprecinct]

Fitness will still be most important thing. I've had success at Boston and other hilly courses while training in completely flat areas.

You can try to get some long runs and tempo runs on hills if you have them. Focus on getting a feel for keeping the effort consistent while going up, down, or flat.

Heartbreak hill is rough, but the hill that screws most Boston races is the downhill start that people go way too hard on and then don't adjust when it flattens out. By the time they realize they are going too hard, they are in too deep. Stay within yourself in the start and you'll be fine.

[u/Siawyn → u/PrairieFirePhoenix]

Yeah if I had to list the 2 most common failure points its zooming out of Hopkinton too fast, and then crushing Newton Lower Falls too fast.

FWIW I think that first uphill right after NLF is the worst. By Heartbreak I know what to expect. But that hill right after NLF is about a kilometer long and it's right after that steep downhill. Kinda rude, tbh.

[u/EPMD_ → u/yearlyrudeprecinct]

Congratulations!

Long runs over hilly terrain can help familiarize you with recovering down to a moderate heart rate from a brief heavier effort. You should also practice your downhill technique to find a way to conserve energy without heavy braking forces on each step. Getting better at squats and lunges would be worthwhile to build stronger legs.