Training for an 18 minute 5k?

Question

My cross country season is starting and I would really like to get down somewhere in the 18 minute range for a 5k. My PR last year was a 20:42. We run about 6 miles at practice everyday. Is there some extra training I could do to increase my chances of getting down there(without injuring myself)?

Answer 1

Don't do any extra training unless you talk to your coach about it first. It would probably be a lot more beneficial to you to increase your speed and endurance at the daily practices instead of doing extra training on your own, especially because that puts you at risk for injury and that could seriously mess up your entire season if you overtrain. Discuss your goal with your coach and he/she can help you put in the necessary training for you to potentially reach it, because 2 minutes is a lot to drop in a 5K. Don't give up, and good luck!

Answer 2

Take it seriously my freshman year my pr was 19:26 and i got it down to 17:55 during my sophomore year its not impossible. Just take it seriously take thhe workouts seriously, push yourself. talk to your coach about increasing miles on distance days, and the number of repeats/intervals on workout days. If he says no it means he doesnt think your ready and if thats the cause just keep running. do long runs on the weekends, sit ups/pushups after runs, and streching is about the only things you can do within reason.

hope it helped good luck with it.