Can anyone give me a training program to train to run a 4km race in around 20 mins.?

Question

anyone can give me tips or anything so i can be ready to run a 4km race in 20 minutes or less.14 years old,5"9 60kg,male and quite fit.just need to be a champion =)

Answer 1

One of the most important things that you need to figure out when putting together a training program is when the race is.  4km is a relatively short race, coming in at just around 2 1/2 miles.  So, in order to do the race in 20 minutes, you'd have to run each mile in about 8 minutes.  If you are a seasoned runner, this is a relatively easy task.  However, if you don't have much running experience this could be a bit more tough.  

A huge aspect of running is your mentality.  If you can talk yourself up during your run and not be afraid of a fast split time, then you should be fine.  However, there are many people out there who find themselves lost in their head during the run and that brings them down.  Stay positive and always try to catch the person in front of you!

Since I do not know how far away your run is, I'm going to give a brief outline of a 3 week schedule.  I'm also going to assume that this will be your first race of the running season.  

There are five different types of endurance training.  The first is long slow distance where you are running much longer than your race distance (about 40 minutes to an hour and half) but it is at a relatively low intensity (meaning you might only be running at about 60 or 70% of race pace).  This should only be done twice a week, but the week before your race it should only be done once, at least 5 days prior to the race.  The next is tempo training.  This should be done twice a week, but not at all the week before your race.  For tempo training, you would run for about 1 minute at a pace that is faster than your race pace and then take a 2 minute recovery run at about 70% of race pace before going to the 1 minute faster than race pace again.  This should be completed for 20-30 minutes.  The next is interval training, where you will run for about 3 minutes at race pace followed by 3 minutes at 60% of race pace.  This should be done once or twice a week.  Repetition training should be completed once a week where you run for much faster than race pace for  a period of time followed by a long rest duration.  A good way to do this is on a track.  You could run 200m at much faster than race pace followed by 1000m at about 50% of race pace.  This could go on for about 30 minutes.  Finally, there is fartlek training.  This should only be done once a week for about 60 minutes.  It incorporates long slow distance with interval training.  You run at a relatively easy pace (50% race pace) and then take a sprint (70% race pace) up a hill or on the flat, whichever is more convenient.  Your speed bursts should only be about 10 or 20 seconds in length once every 4 minutes or so.

Tapering is huge when it comes to being prepared to race.  You want to start your training with long duration and shorter intensity but as the weeks wind down, you want to transition to shorter duration with higher intensity (much like a race).  But be sure to give yourself a few days of rest right before the race (and by rest I mean go for a run at a relatively slow pace (40% race pace) for 20 minutes or so).

Keep diet in mind, too.  Carbohydrates are very important for runners, as well as protein.  60kg is about 132 lbs so you should be eating about 528g carbs, 105g protein, and 46g fat per day.  HYDRATE HYDRATE HYDRATE!!!  Water is the best but sports drinks are good when you are exercising for more than one hour.  Stay away from drinks that have fructose, it is very bad for your stomach!

Best of luck, I hope this is somewhat helpful!