My Plan to Achieve a BAD Running Goal

I set a big running goal, something I’ve dreamed about but didn’t have the guts to do….until now. I set a goal to break 19:00 in the 5k.

By Thanksgiving.

Why Is That “Big”?

My unofficial PR is 19:08 from a flat course (laps around a giant parking lot) on a perfect November day in D.C. almost 4 years ago, and given I had a malfunctioning GPS watch at that time, I’m not sure if the course length was accurate. I ran low 19:30s my last two 5k races this summer and high 19’s/low 20s in the races over the past few years before that. So to take 30+ seconds off my 5k time feels quite audacious . In the Cales family it is what we might call a BAG. A Big A** Goal. I think I’ll call it a BAD goal. Bold and Daring.

The Origins of a BAD Goal

I didn’t just randomly find the courage to set this goal and make it public. It was really the result of a fellow runner on the Boise Betties team giving me the nudge I needed to take the steps I needed to feel confident in setting the goal and making it public. Let me explain.

My teammate and I ran a 5k together at the beginning of August and we finished 1-2, and afterward she told me she really thought we could break 19:00 and she thought the Boise Thanksgiving race would be perfect for it. That planted a seed in the back of my mind. Mostly a, ‘Could I? I mean maybe with the right training…’

Then, the following week at Tuesday morning track practice she offered a bit of advice during our cool down. She told me, “If I can tell you anything, focus on speed now. Have fun with shorter distances and running fast before you spend all your time stuck in marathon training cycles.” Said planted seed had now received some water and sunshine.

The 5k Feels Like Home

And I had been having fun with 5ks. I’ve always loved the 5k, I’ve expressed that in past blog posts. I’ve also expressed how I tend to change things up and after training for a longer race I will switch focuses to shorter distances. After Boston 2017, I went back to the 5k. After New York 2018 and the Robie Creek half marathon this past Spring, I went back to the 5k. But what struck me about her words was the idea of putting the same level of effort behind training for a 5k that I would put behind training for a marathon.

The last time I trained for a 5k was over two years ago when I set a goal to break 20:00 again in the summer heat and humidity in DC. I followed a 10-week Runner’s World plan and was able to achieve my goal. But breaking 20:00 wasn’t something new, it was just something I hadn’t done in the year prior. Breaking 19:00 is an entirely new almost unfathomable concept.

A Little Bit of Research and Asking for Help

I looked at the RRCA/Amy Burfoot pace charts and saw that I was about 1-1.5 blocks away from where I needed to be for a 19:00 5k both per past race times and the different paces I can currently hit. At that point, I had well over 12 weeks until the Thanksgiving 5k which meant enough time for 3 mesocycles. This all suggested that, theoretically, I could do it.

I decided that IF I could do it, I couldn’t coach myself through it. And I needed some reinforcement that this was an achievable goal.

So for the first time in my life, I considered hiring a running coach. I’ll admit that in the past while I thought having a coach could be super helpful I refrained because a) I enjoy the research and learning more about the sport and use myself as my own test subject and b) they are expensive!! And I’m cheap. It felt hard to justify when I’m an amateur runner. Hence why I would pay $10 for a Runner’s World Plan.

I’d heard of a few companies through Instagram and know a few people who coach. But to keep it simple I decided to reach out to a particular company because a friend from Wilder is their dietitian and a runner I admire and know from the DMV is one of their coaches. So I reached out to Lift | Run | Perform and asked 1) Is my goal realistic given my current times and the time frame? And 2) Do you have anyone who would want to work with me?

Taking a Leap

I got a response right away and got connected with Coach Montana, who had been a 5k specialist in college. We emailed back and forth and chatted on the phone and she seemed confident we could get me at least into the low 19s by Thanksgiving. The recipe would include, among other things, increasing my weekly mileage compared to what I have previously done for 5k, very tailored quality and speed sessions, and dedication to proper warm-up, fueling, and recovery.  I took a few days to contemplate the whole thing, and then I decided ‘F**k it! Let’s do it!’

So on Labor Day and right after a 13 mile hike to the highest peak in the Sawtooths, I kicked off my training. We’re looking at running 6 days per week, strength training 4 days per week, with Sunday rests days. Weeks 1 and 2 were fun and I’ve already done two speed workouts that combined interval combos and fartleks I’ve never done before and am incorporating strides after more runs. I’m also doing a warm-up lunge matrix and leg swing routine, and religiously foam rolling after runs. (I was slacking). I’m also taking in protein right after runs which I got really lazy about outside of marathon training.

What the Future Holds

I’m excited that this approach is going to help me increase my weekly mileage while protecting me from injuries. I’m focused and trying to be disciplined about this plan. I am able to download my workouts from the VDOT app to my Garmin which saves me from some of the mental math, and it really keeps me honest and accountable. It’s also fun to track the progress and keep a digital log. Something I wasn’t good at on paper either. I’m not sure if there will be any races worked into the plan because I get my training one week at a time—something else that drives the planner in me crazy, but I am trusting the process! It is also a fun surprise to receive the training plan on Sunday evenings, helps keep the scaries away!

Can I achieve my BAD goal? Only time will tell, but I’m excited about this novel experience and seeing where it leads.