For many, a 10k run is the natural progression from a 5k. Maybe you’re a Parkrun regular and are seeing positive steps in your fitness or maybe you want to set yourself a challenge!

For our local community, the Eastleigh 10k is a perfect race! It’s impeccably organised, a really nice flat course and falls at a great time of the year weather wise, although we have had snow one year and a scorcher another year, so you never know!

It can be a little daunting, doubling your distance if you’re used to doing 5k. But with the right training and preparation, you can be ready physically and mentally.

1. Build endurance, time & distance Give yourself time to train and build up to the 10k. Look at increasing the distance of your longer runs and overall weekly mileage. Increase mileage gradually. You can tackle this by adding an extra run in the week or adding a mile to each run every few weeks. There are lot’s of training plans out there online that will help guide you depending on when your 10k is and what your current distance is.
2. Vary your training – think speed, hills & terrain. It’s important to not only work on your time and distance, but to also bring some variety to your training. This can be in the shape of doing some speed work, so integrating some sprints into your runs, or you could try hills.
3. Train your strength, it really does help running. It’s more obvious to work on strengthening your legs, hips, glutes, and calves. But don’t forget your arms and core. Having a stronger upper body can help with running form and your core can help with stability. If you have access to a gym, building up resistance and weight training is great – but body weight exercises can also work well at home for improving strength. A recent study has just been published that concluded, if you are highly compliant with strength training, you can reduce running injury risk by up to 85%. Read the study here.
4. Schedule in recovery and active rest. This is crucial to help ensure your body is fully prepared. It is important to ensure you are resting and have good sleep patterns. Scheduling your runs so that you have ample rest days is really important, but that doesn’t always have to be total rest. You could incorporate some active rest, that includes lighter activity such as swimming, yoga or Pilates. Having a regular deep tissue massage can be really popular too. A sports massage can ease any aches pain or tension and aid recovery in the lead up to the race.
5. Have a race plan. 10k isn’t a distance to be taken lightly. It is a big jump from 5k. Have a strategy for the day, an idea of time and pace. You don’t want to set off too fast or get carried away too much with the excitement of the race. Consciously think about your plan and stick to it. Here’s our top tips to the final race day countdown.

If you’re planning on running a 10k but pain or injury starts to hold you back, it’s good to seek help and the right advice sooner rather than later. With reassurance and guidance and treatment if needed, you can minimise the interruption to your training, helping make sure you stay on track for your run. Just book online or call us on 023 8025 3317 if you need our help.