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An 8-Week Beginner's Training Schedule to Build Distance

by Jesslyn Cummings
for About.com

Created: November 9, 2005

About.com Health's Disease and Condition content is reviewed by our Medical Review Board

created on November 9, 2005

This training schedule takes you from running 30 minutes at 5/1 ratios (run 5 minutes, walk 1 minute) to running 60 minutes at 5/1 ratios in 8 weeks.

Prerequisites

Before you start this training schedule, you need to: or
  • Be able to complete a 30 minute run (with at least 5 min run/1 min walk ratios)
  • Be able to run 3 days a week
With this training schedule you can pick any 3 days of the week to run. You can even move them around each week to fit your schedule. On your rest days, you can crosstrain or rest. I suggest one to two days of resting and two to three days of crosstraining. A nice leisurely stroll, a fun unstrenuous aerobics class, or a relaxing yoga routine are all wonderful options.

You also need to understand the annotations for the table below. 5/1 x5 =30 means five minutes of running followed by one minute of walking is repeated five times for a total of thirty minutes. A 10-minute warm up and cool down are assumed. Don't forget to do them and stretch (if desired)!

And now, without further ado:

Beginner's Training - Distance

Week Day 1 Day 2 Day 3
1 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x5 =30
2 5/1 x6 =36 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x5 =30
3 5/1 x7 =42 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36
4 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36
5 5/1 x8 =48 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36
6 5/1 x9 =54 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36
7 5/1 x9 =54 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36
8 5/1 x10 =60 5/1 x5 =30 5/1 x6 =36

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