This spring I have spent some time focusing on the 5k distance. Even though I was still doing long runs, it was helpful to work on my speed as I was returning to running postpartum. My official 5k PR is from 2013, and I am not in a place to hit that time right now, but I did want to get my time down a bit. It seemed like a great time to do a 5k time trial, or better yet, multiple ones!
Due to my pregnancies/postpartum and COVID I’ve been out of the racing scene for a while. I have done some small races here and there but not many. (Actually before my first pregnancy in 2018 I was injured pretty often so it’s really been since like 2015 when I was racing alot). I was kind of shocked to see some of the prices of 5ks! So rather than shell out $45+ just to test my fitness I decided to run some 5ks on my own. I’ll share what I did, why 5k time trials can be helpful, and how to do this on your own.
How I Ran 5k Time Trials to Test My Fitness
I am no stranger to time trials or virtual races. I am referring to these as time trials because they are not associated with any race organization; I ran them completely on my run. Virtual races are certainly an option but there are usually costs to signing up for those. In return you may get some race swag or your name listed on the race results. I wanted to just do my own thing whenever I wanted and however I wanted.
I have done 3 time trials so far. The first was at the end of March, the second was in early May, and the third was last week (early June). They were each about 5-6 weeks apart. This gave me time to put in some good workouts between each effort.
I ended up doing all of mine on weekday mornings and they just felt like a challenging workout. Between the warm-up, cool down, and race, they worked out to about 5-6 miles. I did my warm ups on the treadmill and the actual race part outside. Also, I took some fuel at the end of my warm up to give me a little extra boost before the race.
I chose a relatively flat route around my neighborhood and since it was early there weren’t many cars out. I set my watch to autolap at every 1/4 mile so I could stay on pace. One thing I didn’t have much control over was the weather, but these took place in the spring so the weather was decent. My second one was pretty humid, but otherwise there wasn’t anything too extreme.
I didn’t “taper” for these time trials, but I did back off a bit the week before and made sure to recover well the week after. I also tried to do them following a shorter long run (7-8 miles rather than 9-11).
Reasons to Run a 5k Time Trial
I’ve already shared a bit about my why, but here are some reasons you may consider doing this.
No cost
A 5k time trial is free! If I am going to do a bunch of 5ks I don’t want to be paying over $45 for each of them. Maybe there are less expensive ones, but it feels like there is less pressure when you don’t need to pay for a race.
Flexible schedule
You can do a time trial whenever it’s convenient for you! Our weekends are crazy and I didn’t want to inconvenience everyone by racing at 8am on a Saturday. Instead I could do these at 5am during the week and plan them around other things I had going on.
Flexible course
You can choose your own course to hopefully set yourself up for success. While my course was pretty flat, there are lots of turns that probably slowed me down a bit and I also don’t get a great GPS signal. Another option is to do these on a track.
No pressure (or less pressure)
No one needs to know if you are planning to do a 5k time trial! This means there is much less pressure and you can push yourself as much or as little as you want.
Challenge yourself
5k time trials are a great way to challenge yourself. I like to think of them as a very challenging workout. However, I push myself more than I would during a regular workout.
Monitor progress
Running multiple time trials is a great way to monitor your progress in the distance. Each time you run it you can try to finish a few seconds faster. In the 5k a few seconds is huge!
Work on speed
Doing this type of a time trial is a great way to work on your speed. In a way it is like a fast 3 mile tempo run. Depending on how hard you run it, you may need to recover more than you would from a regular workout. Many long distance runners prefer long, slow runs and these are a great way to help you get faster.
How to Run a 5k Time Trial to Test Your Fitness
Now that you know a little more about why to run a 5k time trial, let’s talk about the steps you can take to actually do it! Sure, you could just go out and run 3.1 miles. Or, you can put a little more planning into it. The nice thing about these is you can do whatever works for you!
Draft out your training
Plan out the workouts you will do leading up for your time trial. I started with strides and fartleks, and eventually added in 400s, 800s, and 1k repeats. Usually 1 workout a week is enough, and the rest of your runs can be easy or maybe some hills plus a longer run. If you are training for another race you can continue to follow that plan, but maybe try to include some faster workouts every few weeks.
Pick an estimated date for your 5k time trial
Decide when it will make sense to do a 5k based on your training. I like to give myself 4-6 weeks to do some workouts before testing my fitness. If you are doing this during half-marathon training you can plan for it about halfway through your training.
Choose your 5k time trial route
Figure out the time of day you will run and then come up with a route that makes sense. You will want to try to avoid having to stop for cars or stoplights. Also consider if there will be lots of runners/walkers out on your path who may be in your way. You can choose how hilly or flat you want your route to be, which is one of the benefits of a time trial!
Adjust your plan the week of your 5k
As it gets closer you can cut back and do easy runs leading up to this. One option is to do it in place of your long run that week and add on a decent warm up and cool down. Or you can do it on your usual workout day. For example, if you usually do speedwork on Tuesdays you can stick with that. Just take some rest or easy runs for a couple days before. You can also look at the weather to pick a day that makes sense!
Fuel before your 5k time trial
Treat this as you would a real race and follow your race day fueling plan. Try to eat 1-2 hours before you run and you can consider having something additional right before you start like a gel, chews, or honey stinger waffles. Make sure to hydrate too!
Do a good warm up
Just like you would do on race day, get in some easy running to warm up before you start. You definitely don’t want to jump in to a hard pace when your muscles are cold. Aim for 10-20 minutes of easy running and consider adding in some strides as well to get your lets moving faster.
Get your head in the game
Use some mental strategies like positive self-talk and mantras to keep yourself motivated, and remember that this is a short distance and will be over before you know it!
Push yourself
One of the hardest parts about a time trial versus a real race is pushing yourself enough! This can be hard to do without other runners or spectators. Try not to be too focused on your watch’s pace, but monitor it every once in awhile to stay on track. (This is why I like the .25 mile autolap so I check in every 1/4 mile to see where my pace is).
Celebrate! And then recover and do it again
Once your run make sure you celebrate your accomplishment! Maybe you hit your goal, or maybe you didn’t. Either way, you put in some good work that will only help you to get faster! Make sure to take the time to recover, and if you want you can do this all over again in a few weeks!
You may also like:
How To Train for a 10k Race: For Beginners to Advanced Runners
Virtual Race Resource Guide 5 Workouts To Help You Prepare For Your Next 5k
How Long Distance Runners Can Train For a Strong 5k
Have you ever done a 5k time trial?
Now it’s time for the Runners’ Roundup! Link up your running and fitness posts below! Join myself, Coach Debbie Runs, Confessions of a Mother Runner, and Runs with Pugs to post your favorite running tips, experiences, race and training recaps, workouts, gear, and coaching ideas.
I’m always amazed by your times when you do a time trial. For me, it’s so hard to maintain my pace when I’m not in a real race situation. Though I do agree with you about the price of racing 5ks these days. Of course, at this point I’d have a difficult time just running 5k let alone racing it. Great post, now you’ve got me thinking about trying this when I’m fully recovered (and my 5k PR was somewhere around 2000 btw 🙂 )
The focus of the Team Wilpers training that I did for a few years was the 5K time trial. Even though I do not like racing a 5K, these numbers helped to shape my training paces for the whole plan. Under rated tool!
You are always so good with these parts of training! While I was working on my speed prior to the hellishly hot days of summer, I never really go all in with a time trial. Maybe I’ll try it when things cool down again.
Great article! Regular 5K time trials are fantastic for tracking fitness progress. I’ve found using athletic tape can provide much-needed support and prevent injuries during these runs. Thanks for the helpful tips—I’m excited to try them out in my next trial!