Couch To 10K In 10 Weeks

So, you’ve mustered up the courage to get off the couch and run your first 10K?! Great! We’ll guide you through the process. This is a 10-week program in which we will be progressively (and safely!) increasing your running distance from 0 to 10k. 

“Progressively…” Most people run away at the sight of that word! However, it’s a fundamental tool in your training tool box. It’s an easy concept to understand but very hard to apply - I bet you thought you could just jump off the couch and run a 10k, right?

Well, truth is, you can. The human body has an incredible capacity to adapt and with enough determination you could run a 10k without preparation. However, doing this will most likely (and I speak from experience) result in injury and slow down your progress. Running is a high-impact sport and can tax your body if you don’t gradually build up your strength and resistance.
 
In conclusion, if you want to build up a strong foundation for a long and successful running career you’ll need to build up your strength and endurance the right way. Do not rush - be patient.
 
Tip: This is a beginner program. A beginner should be able to complete a 40 minute walk. If you have trouble walking for that long consider starting a shorter distance program first. Consult your doctor before starting any fitness regime.
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RULES
A good plan always has rules. These are your rules:

 1. Before a training session always warm-up. A warm-up can be as simple as moving different body parts in circular motions (your hips, shoulders, knees, ankles and neck for example) or as complex as you want (with specific movement sequences to target specific muscle groups) My suggestions is to keep it simple, don’t overwhelm yourself!
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2.  Always walk for 5 minutes before and after running.

​THE PLAN
I have designed the plan in a way that you will be running three times a week - the first two weeks are a mixture of running and walking. You’ll then increase your running time until you can run the entire session without walking. I have written out the plan below and I have also included some tips. If you want to download the plan template you can find the download link at the bottom of this post. Enough talking! Let’s start, shall we?

WEEK #1
It’s a nice and slow start… remember, don’t get discouraged and don’t overdo it! Monday is rest day. On Tuesday (after warming up) you’ll run for 2 minutes and walk for 3. Repeat this 8 times. Rest on Wednesday and repeat Tuesdays session on Thursday. Rest on Friday. Saturday you’ll run for 2 minutes and walk for 3 and repeat 10x. Rest Sunday.
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WEEK #2
Each week starts with a rest day… isn’t it lovely? Monday = rest. On Tuesday you’ll run for 4 minutes and walk for 2min - repeat 6x. Wednesday is rest. On Tuesday you’ll run for 3min and walk for 2min, repeat this 8x.. Rest on Friday and prepare for the long run on Saturday - run for 5min and walk for 2min - repeat 10x. Rest on Sunday.

 WEEK #3
Hurray, Monday = REST! Tuesday session is the first session where you’ll be running for the entire time. Head out for a 20min easy and slow run - we’ll start building from here. Rest on Wednesday. On Thursday you’ve got another 20min easy run, you’ll then rest on Friday and hit the road on Saturday for a 25 minute run. It’s perfectly OK to walk if you need to but try your best to walk fast enough to keep your heart rate slightly increased.

WEEK #4
As always, Monday is rest day but be ready because on Tuesday you’ll have a 20min slow running session. Rest on Wednesday (this will change soon). On Thursday we’re going to increase your distance but in order to do that safely you will start taking walk breaks again... Run for 10min and walk for 3min - repeat 4x. Rest well on Friday and on Saturday run a slow and steady uninterrupted (if you can) 5k. Rest on Sunday.
 
WEEK #5
Rest on Monday. On Tuesday your workout is to run for 20 straight minutes, slowly. Remember, this plan will help you run 10k - not to break it’s record for fastest time! Rest on Wednesday. On Thursday, run for 20 minutes, walk for 5 minutes and then finish the session off with a 10 minute run.  Rest well on Friday because your workout on Saturday is a 35 minute run! I hope it went well for you. Rest on Sunday.

WEEK #6
 I hope you rested well on Monday! Tuesday starts off with a 30 minute run. You should be able to complete this distance without walking by now. On Wednesday we’re going to take things up a notch.
 
Wednesdays are now STRENGTH workout days. You decide what you want to do but I suggest following along to videos on YouTube - there are hundreds and you can do them right at home! Here’s a good example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioELqxr-Q_w

We continue on Thursday with a 35 minute run. Rest on Friday and push your efforts on Saturday with the following session - run 40 minutes, walk 5 minutes and finish with a 10 minute run. Rest on Sunday.

WEEK #7
After resting on Monday you will complete a 35 minute continuous run on Tuesday. You should be feeling pretty confident in yourself by now. Strength session on Wednesday. Again, you may want to use YouTube for guidance. On Thursday your session includes a 40 minute run, 5 minute walk and 10 minute run. Rest on Friday because we’re finishing the week off with a 50 minute continuous run. Push yourself, you shouldn’t need walk breaks by now. If you feel like you need to stop for a walk then you might be going too fast, consider slowing down a little while running. Rest on Sunday.
 
 
WEEK #8
As usual, rest on Monday. You might want to try foam rolling or using ice baths to recover from hard runs. On Tuesday you have a 40 minute run on the menu. Come Wednesday, complete a strength session - total time is not important right now, just complete a session. On Thursday your workout is a 35 minute run. After resting on Friday, you will run for 50 minutes on Saturday. Rest on Sunday… you’re almost finished! Stay strong!

WEEK #9
I hope your feeling strong after your rest on Monday - we’re almost hitting our target and now is not the time to back down! Complete a 45 minute run on Tuesday and hit the weights on Wednesday (it’s a figure of speech, you don’t need weights! Using your body weight it just fine). On Thursday your plan is to run for 40 minutes - rest on Friday and run 55 minutes on Saturday! Sunday is a rest day.
 
WEEK #10
Last week… woo! Rest on Monday. On Tuesday you will run for 55 minutes. (Some of you faster folk might actually be already running 10k by now). Complete a strength session on Wednesday. On Thursday run for 50 minutes and rest well on Friday… It’s Saturday! OFF YOU GO! You’re physically prepared to run 10k now.

Caution: Ideally, you would continue training and repeating the last 4 weeks of this program to maintain your fitness level. If you feel like 10k is too much for you, you might want to train for the 5k event. If you’re still hungry after the 10k then completing a half-marathon may satiate you! If you’re not sure what to do next, your safest bet is to keep repeating the last 4 weeks of this program until you have a clear goal of what to achieve next.

Do you have any questions? Are you going to attempt the plan? Post your progress in our Running and Race Training Facebook group and let other members and runners motivate and inspire you - join our runners community!
 
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE C210K PLAN
 
(Don’t know how to use our training plan template? Check out our post on how to ‘Build Your Own Training Plan’)

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About the Author

Paulo Piedade is a Certified Track & Field Coach, based in Portugal.
Paulo is the advising Running Coach at the Running and Race Training group.
His Runner Profile - runpage.com/profile/paulo.piedade

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