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1-mile running max; what's realistic?

darrennixdarrennix
in General Training Discussions

I'm currently at a 5:48 1-mile personal best.  For all you speedy runners out there, I'm wondering if 5:00 is attainable and how long of a training period (with 200m, 400m, 800m intervals) would you reasonably expect to do it?   Are we talking about a multi-season endeavour or three months of concentrated training?

Given 5:00 as the ultimate goal, would you recommend training for 5:30, then 5:15, etc., or immediately training for 5:00?

I'm M33, 5'11", 155lbs, no athletics background, but I love to run and have been getting steadily faster each season since I started running three years ago for triathlon.

Comments

  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

    At your age and size, there's every reason to believe you can improve your 1 mile time to 5 min or below. You might want to check out this guy's book, which helped me about ten years ago move from being a jogger to a real runner: Explosive Running By Micheal Yessis, Ph.D. He emphasizes strength training, flexibility, technique, drills, and form improvement rather than logging excessive miles.

    http://youtu.be/DDpU4zV5Gm0

  • Peter NoyesPeter Noyes
    I am a 32m with the same goal as you! I am 5'9" and 132lb. I have yet to try going all out for 1 mile but I have done a 5:32 mile as part of a Z5+ interval in a longer run. My current vdot is 56 which predicts a 5:11 mile time. I am currently training for a Marathon, but once it is over I plan to do a mile TT for fun. I think I might be in the ballpark.

    I have been training for 2 years very consistently with no down time. I suggest just figuring out your vdot if you haven't already to know your training paces and then do more Z5 work. The short course triathlon plans have a lot of Z5 workouts that you could follow. They peak out with 1200m intervals, but there are also 400s and 800s if I recall.

    I read a book about Roger Bannister and it seemed like he did a ton of 400 repeats at really close to his target pace to crack 4:00, so maybe that is the way to go!

  • David LeventhalDavid Leventhal
    This thread hurts my hamstrings just reading it! Good luck boys! Go getcha a 5 minute mile!!
  • Brian BoylBrian Boyl
    Hey, Peter, when were you at a vDOT of 50 (the score at a 5:48 mile)? That could give some indication as to how long it will take Darren to get there (assuming that he has both your adaptability and dedication - both of which are nothing short of amazing).
  • jalesliejaleslie

    My 14 y/o son started cross country in late August, as his PE for high school.  He had NEVER run (been a "runner") or done any endurance sports (baseball...quit two years ago, and tae kwon do only last few years).  When he started, he was nearly dying every day,  two-a-day workouts 3 days a week, every morning workouts), was the slowest boy on the JV team and probably could have only run an 8:XX mile at best (that may even be generous).  About two weeks ago, after 8-10 cross country meets and around 2 1/2 months of training, he ran a 5:42 mile on the track!  While that's not fast for a high school cross country athlete, just highlights how much it sucks to get old!  He's not genetically gifted athletically either (neither my wife or I are/were athletically gifted)!   

    I realize and acknowledge that the gains get harder as one gets faster, but there is NO WAY I would have improved that quickly at age 42. For him to get from 5:42 to 5:00 will probably take longer than these prior major improvements, but still, he's already faster than me and I've been running consistently for 2.5 years now.  So painful (in a good way when it's your son) to see....

    Ohhhh to be young again....

  • Dave TalloDave Tallo
    Daniels' rule of thumb is a 1-point VDOT increase over each six-week period of concentrated run work. I *think* this is based on an annual run campaign of a 16 or 24 week season; after that, you've maxed out, but would presumably start form a slightly higher vdot the next year, and so on, and so on.
  • Peter NoyesPeter Noyes

    Here is my data:

    I started running in August of 2012 from absolutely 0 fitness base. I was 40 pounds overweight and a complete couch potato. I trained for a December 5K and did it in 27:54. I felt like death at the end of the race. This equates to a vdot of 33. As I continued to train my vdot rose quickly. I joined EN in August of 2013, about a year later. My first vdot test with EN was from Sept '13 and was 51. Starting the new year in 2014 I really attacked my run. I followed the complete get faster plan targeting a half marathon and then did a HIM. I did a vdot test as I transitioned to Ironman training in May and it was 56. I haven't done a real vdot test since then, but I have validated the 56 in a 10 mile race. My bet is that my 5K vdot is more like 58 right now. We will find out in a few weeks!

    Anyway, from my data it looks like it took about 9 months to go from a 50 to a 56 and it is pretty close to the 1 point every 6 weeks of training. Hopefully this helps!

     

  • Al TruscottAl Truscott

    Peter - that is so cool! I love stories like yours. And it looks like you haven;t plateaued yet - that usually takes 3-5 years to reach the asymptote.

  • Dave TalloDave Tallo

    dude's going to have a VDOT of 82 by January 2018!   

  • Peter NoyesPeter Noyes
    I wish! My long term goal is 60. My gut tells me that will start to approach my limit.
  • Rich StanbaughRich Stanbaugh
    Peter - that is an AWESEOME Chart! Gives me hope!
  • CaltriCaltri
    @Darren: Even though at 5'11" and 155 pounds, this probably doesn't relate to you, (but might to others like me who could stand to lose a few pounds) here is an online paragraph from http://www.electricblues.com/html/runpro.html about how losing some "extra" weight might affect your Vdot:

    "Effects of Excess Weight on Performance

    Ever wonder how much a little extra baggage slows you down? There's a simple formula you can use to calculate a projected Daniels' VDOT fitness level based on a projected weight loss. Simply multiply your current weight by your current VDOT, then divide the result by your projected weight. For example, I currently weigh in at 195 lbs, and based on my most recent races at that weight my current VDOT is around 44. If I wanted to see what my projected VDOT would be if I were to lose 10 lbs, here's the formula...

    195*44/185=46.38

    As you can see, if I drop 10 lbs my VDOT would go up over two points! A 5k time at VDOT 44 is 22:14, while at VDOT 46 it's 21:24. That's a pretty significant improvement for simply losing 10 lbs. You can use one of the links provided farther down on this page to find your current VDOT and the projected races times of your weight adjusted VDOT. The formula works just as well with either pounds or kilograms.

    This is only applicable for those with a little extra fat to lose. If so much weight is lost that muscle mass begins to diminish, race performances will suffer, not improve."

    @Al: time for me to dust that book off and read it again. Thanks for the suggestion.

    @Peter: Thanks for sharing. Really helpful.
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