Running · 12 weeks

12-week 5k training plan

A 12-week 5k training plan takes a runner on 30 km a week with a 55-minute 10 km from where they are to race day in 13 weeks, building to 44 km in the biggest week. It spends 5 weeks in base, 5 weeks in build, 2 weeks in peak, with 2 lighter weeks to absorb the work, on 6 days a week.

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Is 12 weeks enough?

12 weeks is a comfortable length for a 5k. There is room for a proper base before the harder work, lighter weeks to absorb it, and a taper that leaves you fresh rather than flat.

What the weeks are for

Base	5 weeks — aerobic volume, mostly easy, the foundation everything else stands on
Build	5 weeks — the harder sessions arrive and volume keeps climbing
Peak	2 weeks — the biggest, most race-specific weeks
Lighter weeks	2, roughly every fourth week
Total	428 km, 68 hours

The 13 weeks

Generated for a runner on 30 km a week with a 55-minute 10 km.

Week	Phase	Volume	Load
1	Base	30 km	188
2	Base	32 km	198
3	Base	34 km	207
4	Base · down	23 km	147
5	Base	36 km	222
6	Build	36 km	224
7	Build	38 km	232
8	Build · down	25 km	159
9	Build	38 km	249
10	Build	40 km	258
11	Peak	42 km	267
12	Peak	44 km	279
13	Race · race	10 km	77

The biggest week, session by session

Week 12, peak phase — the heaviest week of the block.

Monday	Easy run — 0h48, 6.4 km
Tuesday	Threshold — 2 × 9 min — 0h42, 5.8 km
Tuesday	Strength — lower body — 0h27
Wednesday	Easy run — 0h48, 6.4 km
Friday	Intervals — 5 × 3 min — 0h48, 7 km
Saturday	Easy run — 0h48, 6.4 km
Sunday	Long run — 1h26, 12 km

The paces

Pace band	Per kilometre
Easy — the ceiling, not the target	6:40
Marathon pace	6:00
Threshold	5:40
Interval (VO₂max)	5:08

Computed from VDOT 35.8, derived from that time trial using Jack Daniels' model. Your own numbers will differ — the plan builds these from a time trial you enter.

What this plan says out loud

Worth knowing

Some sessions have been cut to fit the time you said you have — 50 minutes on a weekday and 90 at the weekend. That is a real constraint and the plan respects it, but be aware the long session is the one that matters most: if you can find more time anywhere, find it on the weekend.

Worth knowing

On 6 days a week there is nowhere to put 18 km without prescribing runs nobody should be doing. The plan caps individual easy runs at 14 km and carries less volume than your target as a result. More days would do more for you than longer runs.

Worth knowing

Race day looks like about 26:29 on today's fitness — Run 26 min. Assumes a flat course, reasonable conditions and a sensible first half.

Common questions

Is 12 weeks enough for a 5k?

Yes, for most people who already exercise. We would choose at least 8 weeks, and this is 12.

How many days a week does it train?

6, on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday in this example. You tell the plan which days you actually have, and it never puts two hard days back to back.

What is the longest session?

Long run, about 1h26 and 12 km. It is capped by share of the week, by absolute length, and by the time you say you have.

Can I use this if I train at altitude?

Yes, and you should say so when you build it. Paces and power are corrected for the difference between where you tested and where you train — in Johannesburg that is roughly 8%, or about 26 seconds a kilometre on an easy run for a 20-minute 5 km runner.

Other 5k plans

Goal times

Worth reading

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