RunPackGuides · 7 min read
5K training plan: 8 weeks for beginners, 6 weeks to get faster
Free 5K training plans: 8 weeks from run-walk to running 5K, and 6 weeks to a faster 5K, with how fast to run each session and tips for training with friends.
A 5K is the perfect first race and a great one to get faster at. Below are two simple plans: one to go from run-walk to running the whole distance, and one for runners who can already run 5K and want a quicker time. Both use three runs a week.
Plan 1: 8 weeks, beginner to 5K
Every session starts and ends with 5 minutes of brisk walking. Run slowly enough to talk. Repeat a week if it felt too hard; that’s normal.
| Week | Each of 3 sessions |
|---|---|
| 1 | Run 1 min, walk 2 min × 8 |
| 2 | Run 2 min, walk 2 min × 6 |
| 3 | Run 3 min, walk 2 min × 5 |
| 4 | Run 5 min, walk 2 min × 4 |
| 5 | Run 8 min, walk 2 min × 3 |
| 6 | Run 12 min, walk 2 min × 2 |
| 7 | Run 20 min, walk 2 min, run 5 min |
| 8 | Run 25–30 min, or your first 5K |
More on doing this together in couch to 5K with friends.
Plan 2: 6 weeks to a faster 5K
For runners who can already run 30 minutes. One quality session, one easy run, one longer easy run each week.
| Week | Quality session | Easy run | Long easy run |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 × 400 m at 5K pace, 90 s jog | 25 min | 35 min |
| 2 | 15 min tempo | 25 min | 40 min |
| 3 | 5 × 800 m at 5K pace, 2 min jog | 30 min | 45 min |
| 4 | 20 min tempo | 25 min | 35 min (lighter week) |
| 5 | 4 × 1 km at goal pace, 2 min jog | 30 min | 45 min |
| 6 | 4 × 400 m at goal pace, 2 min jog | 20 min | Race day |
Warm up for 10 minutes before every quality session. More on these sessions in interval training and tempo runs.
How fast is 5K pace?
Your current 5K pace is your recent 5K time divided by five. Goal pace is the pace for the time you’re aiming at; the 5K pace chart lists both per kilometre and per mile. Easy runs should be 60–90 seconds per kilometre slower, at a conversational pace.
Race day
- Nothing new: same shoes, same breakfast as your training days.
- Warm up with 10 minutes of easy jogging.
- Start at goal pace, not faster. Aim for an even or negative split.
- The fourth kilometre is the hard one. Hang on; the last one takes care of itself.
Training with friends
Pick a race together and follow the same plan at your own paces. Do the long easy run together, and share every session. RunPack is our free iPhone app for that: everyone’s runs, from an iPhone, Apple Watch or Garmin, land in a private feed for your crew, and a weekly challenge sets each person a target from their own recent running.
General guidance, not medical advice.