Build your running plan
Pick a goal and a few details for a full periodised plan: base, build, peak and taper, with easy, long, tempo and interval runs at your own paces, plus runner-specific strength and cross-training. Novice base to elite mileage. Editable, downloadable.
Can’t yet run 20 minutes non-stop? Start with the Couch-to-5K plan →
At this level you run by effort, not target paces.
Steady / tempo: short phrases only, "comfortably hard".
Hard / intervals: a few words, breathing hard.
If you can’t hold a conversation on an easy run, you’re going too fast.
Coloured tags = harder sessions · everything else is easy.
| Week | Phase | km/wk | Long run | Key sessions | Strength |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Base | 15 | 5 | Easy run + 6-8 × 100m strides | 2× |
| 2 | Base | 16 | 6 | Easy run + 6-8 × 100m strides | 2× |
| 3 | Base | 17 | 6 | Easy run + hill sprints 8-10 × 15s | 2× |
| 4 | Build cutback | 11 | 4 | 5 × 1km hard, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 5 | Build | 19 | 7 | 6 × 1km hard, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 6 | Build | 20 | 7 | 6 × 1km hard, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 7 | Peak | 21 | 7 | 6 × 1km at 5K pace, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 8 | Peak cutback | 14 | 5 | 6 × 1km at 5K pace, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 9 | Peak | 22 | 8 | 6 × 1km at 5K pace, 2-3 min jog | 1× |
| 10 | Taper | 12 | 4 | 4 × 400m fast + 4 strides | 1× |
Cutback weeks (tinted) drop volume but hold the hard sessions. Only add volume next block if the last one finished strong.
Bars = weekly volume · line = long run.
Strength for runners
Bodyweight to light loads, good form, never to failure. Lift after runs, never the day before your long run.
Build phase doses. Heavier, lower reps.
Session A
Squat-led
- Goblet Squat3 × 8-10
- Glute Bridge3 × 10-12
- Split Squat2-3 × 8-10 / leg
- Calf Raise3 × 10-12
- Plank + Side Plank3 × 30-45s
Session B
Hinge-led
- Step-up3 × 8-10 / leg
- Romanian Deadlift (light dumbbells)3 × 8-10
- Single-leg Balance / Low HopsBalance + 20-30 low hops
- Suitcase Carry3 × 20-30 m / side
- Dead Bug3 × 8-10 / side
Two strength days: do A and B. One: alternate them week to week.
Cross-training
Swap an easy run for low-impact aerobic work with + Cross-training day above. Keep quality sessions as running; never below 3 runs a week for a performance goal.
Your plan stays on your device.
Built on an 80/20 easy-to-hard balance, periodised base to build to peak to taper, with conservative volume progression and paces from an established race-time model. Volume, paces and progression are population starting points; your real numbers shift with sleep, stress, terrain, age and history, so autoregulate by feel. General training information, not medical advice. If you’re injured, have a condition, or are returning from one, check with a professional first.
Want this built around you?
The same method I use with runners. A coach sets your paces off real testing, shapes each week around your life, terrain and niggles, and adjusts the load off how you actually pull up.