What’s the Minimum Amount of Weekly Speedwork to Get Faster for Race Day?

Most training plans, no matter the distance, include speedwork. You might see these sessions listed in the form of intervals, tempo runs, or race-pace miles.

“Speedwork benefits every runner, regardless of race distance or goal,” Amanda Katz, RRCA-certified run coach and NASM-certified personal trainer, tells Runner’s World.

Not only do speed workouts help improve speed (obviously!), but they also boost your performance by recruiting and strengthening your fast-twitch muscle fibers, which are different from the muscle fibers you use during a zone 2 training run, as they help produce power to pick up the pace.

Speedwork also trains the muscles to become more efficient at storing glycogen, the carbohydrate your body uses for energy as you run. “The more glycogen your body can store and access, the longer and stronger you’re able to run before fatigue sets in,” Katz says.

Of course, the type and duration of speedwork you do depends largely on factors such as your race distance, experience level, and goal pace. But figuring out how much speedwork you need to gain benefits also comes into play when determining how to get race ready. So we turned to coaches to explain the minimum dose you need, depending on your goals and experience, plus the ideal types to get you to your best race yet.

Speedwork can seem intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be, Al Hernandez, RRCA level 2-certified run coach, and founder of Mile Marker Coaching explains. And you can get in a decent amount of work in a short amount of time.

Many runners equate speed with track work and write it off altogether, but it doesn't need to be that prescriptive, he says, especially for beginners.

Even just one day a week of strides (a sequence of fast but relaxed accelerations, often at the end of a run) or fartlek work (a Swedish word for “speed play” that simply requires you to speed up when you can and slow down when you need to) can help you increase your pace and even improve your endurance. The key is adding it in gradually, just like you do mileage.

“Runners should approach speedwork with patience and intention, and remember to have fun,” Katz says. Jumping into too many high-intensity sessions too quickly can increase the risk of injury and plummet your motivation, she adds.

If your goal is simply to finish your first race, formal speedwork doesn’t need to be the priority. Most beginners actually benefit more from building consistency, durability, and confidence first, Justine Williams Roper, PT, DPT, RRCA-certified run coach and founder of InHer Physique Pelvic Therapy and Wellness, tells Runner’s World. “Your body is already adapting to the stress of running regularly, and piling on hard workouts too early can increase injury risk or burnout,” she says.

For a taste of intensity, Roper suggests beginners learn how it feels to change gears during a run. This can look simple: a few short strides after an easy run, gentle pickups, hill efforts, or simply finishing the last few minutes of a run slightly faster than you started. Start by doing this once every other week.

Another tip for new runners: Focus on time-based efforts rather than holding speed over a set distance, Hernandez says. For example, going at a fast, but not all-out, speed for 20, 30, or up to 60 seconds, followed by 60 to 90 seconds at a recovery jog or even a walking pace.

Once you’re comfortable with running consistently and have built a fitness base, it’s time to add speedwork to your weekly plan. And to cut down on the intimidation factor, it may be most helpful to consider speedwork anything faster than zone 2 running.

For beginners, it can be an especially beneficial tool to help you learn pacing. As you check your speed more frequently over short distances and tap into how you feel at those different speeds, it helps cut down on changing effort without realizing it as you add distance, Hernandez explains.

He suggests you start by adding 10 reps of 20-second strides at the end of one run per week. These efforts should feel fast but controlled and you should go slow enough between each rep to recover (breathing easy, heart rate back down). You’re not doing an all-out sprint here.

A simple way to think about your strides: accelerate smoothly, hold briefly, then ease off, Hernandez says. The goal is also to practice good running mechanics and quick turnover, so focus on tall posture with your arms close to your sides and landing with your feet under you, rather than reaching them far out in front of you.

“Strides are a great place to start,” Katz adds. “They’re short, controlled bursts of faster running that help improve turnover, running economy and efficiency, without adding a ton of fatigue.”

Once you’re comfortable with this weekly effort, Hernandez suggests alternating strides and a once-weekly fartlek-style run, speeding up and slowing down a few times during a scheduled training run. To do a fartlek run, you could run hard from one light post to the next, then jog at a slow recovery speed for the next two, and continue with that rhythm. Or you can simply speed up to a hard effort every 30 to 45 seconds, slowing down until you can fully catch your breath.

As for those new to running in general, hill repeats are another good starter option. Hill work can add strength and power, as well as support running economy, Roper says. At the end of an easy run, add five 10- to 15-second efforts uphill, again focusing on running tall. Jog back down for recovery. As you improve, add more efforts.

For runners who have completed a few training cycles and are now ready to improve their race time, you’ll stick with one speed session per week, but the workouts should become a more important focus of your training. “For many recreational runners, that’s enough to see meaningful progress without constantly feeling depleted,” Roper says.

Katz suggests making your one quality speed session either goal race-pace work or faster intervals.

Again, how you approach your speedwork will vary slightly based on your race distance and time goal, so you have some room to play around and figure out what works best for you. For example, if you’re training for a 5K, one week you could add a fartlek to your calendar, and the next week you could follow a warmup with a 1K run at goal race pace, eventually adding in one to two 1K repeats to help build efficiency.

If you’re looking to PR in the half marathon, you can also work in 1K efforts at goal race pace, but Hernandez suggests upping the number of repeats and lowering recovery as your training cycle progresses. For example, start with a two-mile warmup, then complete five 1K efforts with two minutes of rest in between, followed by a one-mile cooldown. Increase these efforts incrementally to eight to 10 reps. This will teach pacing and fatigue tolerance, according to Hernandez.

You can also use your weekly speed session to judge your fitness level, and whether you’re on track to reach your goals or you need to adjust, Hernandez says. For example, if you find yourself struggling to hold your half marathon goal pace for a 1K, this is a sign that speed won’t translate over 13.1 miles and you need to adjust expectations.

Once you have a strong aerobic base, train consistently, and recover well from workouts, which typically happens after you’ve been running for years, it’s time to approach your speedwork a little differently to support your performance.

At this level, you should add one to two quality speed sessions to your weekly plan. (Though for runners over 50, Hernandez suggests keeping it to one day of speedwork per week, as it may take longer to recover between these hard sessions.)

Your workouts should become more intentional and specific to your goal race, Roper explains.

For example, half-marathoners and those tackling a 10K should work in threshold intervals at a comfortably hard pace, along with hill repeats, or VO₂ max workouts.

Marathoners will benefit from adding in marathon pace blocks, threshold work, long intervals, and tempo efforts mixed into long runs.

Roper also suggests shorter-distance runners add in turnover-focused sessions. This might look like intervals at all-out or mile pace for about 30 to 90 seconds and a minimum of 60 seconds of recovery. The focus is higher intensity and full recovery. “Remember, not every workout has to leave you laid out on the floor to be effective,” Roper says.

How and why you do speedwork will vary based on race distance and your own personal goals. Overall, speedwork improves running economy, efficiency, and mechanics, but the difference is usually found in the type and dosage, Roper explains.

For example, if the goal is a shorter race, like a 5K or 10K, speedwork will typically be a key focus throughout the entire training cycle. “A 5K runner may spend more time working at very high intensities with shorter recoveries,” Roper says.

But that doesn’t mean you can skip out on hard efforts as your races get longer. If you’re aiming for a half or full, aim for that minimum of one day of speedwork per week, with a focus on threshold work, race pace efforts, or moderate sustained intervals, like tempo efforts or mile repeats.

“Marathoners tend to ignore speedwork, and they shouldn't,” Hernandez says. “It comes down to efficiency, and some of that efficiency can only come when you're doing speedwork.”

It can be especially beneficial to emphasize speedwork before the start of a marathon-specific build, Katz explains. Once training becomes more race-specific, the focus should shift to sustained efforts at goal race pace.

Overall, speedwork should be challenging—but fun. Once-weekly speedwork is a great tool to get faster, track your progress, and help you adjust your race-day goals during a training cycle, no matter your experience level.

Jordan Smith

Digital Editor

Jordan Smith is a writer and editor with over 5 years of experience reporting on health and fitness news and trends. She is a published author, studying for her personal trainer certification, and over the past year became an unintentional Coronavirus expert. She has previously worked at Health, Inc., and 605 Magazine and was the editor-in-chief of her collegiate newspaper. Her love of all things outdoors came from growing up in the Black Hills of South Dakota.