10k Race Week Sharpener

Workout - 10k Race Week Sharpener

• 10min @ 9'00''/mi
• 4 lots of:
  • 3min @ 5'32''/mi
  • 2min 30s rest
• 2 lots of:
  • 1min 30s @ 5'15''/mi
  • 1min rest
• 2 lots of:
  • 1min @ 5'20''/mi
  • 1min rest
• 10min @ 9'30''/mi

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Intro

A breakdown of “Race Ready - The Final Week | 10k Challenge” from The FOD Runner, a solid taper guide. The key ideas and a workout are below. The full video has more.

Key points

• A proper taper uses short, focused sessions to hold fitness without high volume.
• This is a classic taper: 4-5 × 3-minute repeats at just-faster-than-tempo, then short “gear-shift” efforts (90-second and 60-second bursts).
• Three race-ready habits: reduce gluten and avoid high-fiber foods 48-72 hours before the race, and skip glute-specific strength work this week in favor of upper body, core, and light strides.

Workout example

Warm-up: 10-15 min easy jog + dynamic drills

Main set (choose one):
  - 4 × 3 min at slightly faster than tempo (≈5:30-5:35/mile) with 2-3 min easy jog recovery
  - OR 5 × 3 min at the same intensity for a bit more volume

Gear-shift finisher:
  - 2 × 90 sec hard (≈5:15/mile)
  - 2 × 60 sec hard (≈5:20/mile)
  - 60-second easy jog between repeats

Cool-down: 8-10 min easy jog + stretch

Practical tips

• Nutrition: drop gluten on Thursday and swap it for gluten-free options. Cut high-fiber foods 48-72 hours before the race to keep digestion settled.
• Strength: skip glute-focused work this week. Stick to upper body, shoulders, traps, lats, core, and light core drills.
• Race-day prep: hydrate well, do a few short strides after your warm-up, and keep the session under 45 minutes.

Closing note Run this workout this week. Adjust paces in the Pacing app to your fitness.

References

• Race Ready - The Final Week | 10k Challenge - YouTube (YouTube Video)