How long before I build my endurance?

From e-how, here is an excerpt of Step 3 in their four-step training process:
“You should now be setting one day a week aside for a long run (60–90 minutes) and one day for hill repeats. Now your ready to add a speed workout to your week. A 5K more than any other distance race requires you to have some speed built into your routine and this can be accomplished a several ways. Find a track if you can and incorporate the pyramid idea into your track workout. Start by running a mile (if your long run pace is 9 minutes/mile then aim for a 7 minute mile on the track). Rest for a few minutes then shorten the distance and increase the speed by running 3/4 of a mile at a slightly faster clip than your mile pace. After resting, run a 1/2 mile, rest, then end with 1 lap as fast as you can (this is the top of your pyramid for the day). It helps to keep a journal of your times so you can improve upon them each week.”

Goodness, @Marina. It only takes ~25 minutes to run 5k. Building up to a 60–90 minute run is a big honkin’ deal!

I couldn’t imagine a 60–90 minute non stop run. I’ve done 5Ks, an 8K and a 10K and I still can’t seem to stay under a 10min/mile pace with some short breaks here and there. I think my diet could be getting in the way…

@scrappy, what makes you stop running and start walking? how often are you running now? is it hilly where you’re at? what time of day do you prefer to run?

I just feel like I’m pushing it a bit too much and I need a break. I only run about twice a week on a treadmill and I add in other exercise during the week (cardio kickbox, beach vball, strength training). It’s pretty flat where I live but I could run hills in a local forest preserve. I ran outside a bit more last summer along a lake path. I seemed to run longer outside in the afternoon.

Have you used the “Smart Coach” on Runner’s World .com?
http://www.runnersworld.com/cda/smartcoach/1,7148,s6–238-277–278-0–0-0–0-0,00.html

You just type in you best time, what kind of race you’re training for, how long you have to train, and how often you want to run, and it makes a kickass running plan for you.

@chica—I’ll check out the “Smart Coach”. I feel like running rarely gets easier for me. I’m not quite ready to give up though.

@chica, Fluther’s textile markup will jack around with hyphens, sometimes turning them into em-dashes that will wreck your url.

@scrappy, et al, try this url to get to Runner’s World Speed Coach instead: http://bit.ly/4gdlIP.

@scrappy, hill work is always good (I seem to run farther on hills for some bizarre reason), but you need not go there yet necessarily.

It’s good that you know the time of day and place where you feel you run the best. Try to stick with that as a mental advantage oft times becomes a real physical advantage, too. (Meaning, if you believe you are going to run fast and far, then chances are you actually will).

Treadmills are okay if you’ve got nothing else available, but if you can consistently make your runs outdoors, you should see better results faster.

You might also be trying to run too fast. What kind of pace are you usually at? Can you pull it back just a little bit?

Finally, there are many alternatives, but a popular item that I find immensely helpful is the iPod Nano with the Nike+ kit for tracking your runs. Do you have something to help track your distance and pace? Used in combination with chica’s excellent suggestion, you can find yourself getting excited seeing improvements coming across each time.

thanks rob! i didn’t realize that! How did you make it work?

scrappy, i agree with everything rob said about pace. it might seem counterintuitive, but slowing down is what brought me from only being able to run 10 minutes, to being able to finish 5K. after i slowed down, and was able to run (really slowly) the whole way, then i started to be able to pick up the pace.

i agree about treadmills too. they’re great for burning calories, but for some reason knowing exactly what pace i’m at, and only being able to change it by pushing a button hinders me.

i also agree that it’s imperative that you track your distance. i want the nike + nano kit SOOOO bad, but if you’re like me, and can’t spare the dough, (i had just bought a nano when they announced it) you can always track your distance using google maps. (if you dont know how, just pm me)

Thanks all! I got to the point where I did a 5k, 8k and 10k last year (ran mostly but walked as well) with the help of my iPod + kit. I’ve reverted back endurance-wise and can barely run 2 miles now. I’ll keep at it and slow it down to run farther.

I run and train by running the whole time. It is as much mental as it is physical. You know you have done it before so you know you will be able to do it again.