Smash Your Personal Best: 3 Key Training Sessions to Run Faster - Lee Grantham

Aug 13, 2025

Intro: This is a quick summary of Smash Your Personal Best: 3 Key Training Sessions to Run Faster from Lee Grantham. It’s a great watch — we’re breaking it down so you can try the workout today. Be sure to check out the full video for all the details.

Key Points:

Identify your current training base and add three focused sessions: speed intervals, longer tempo repeats, and a race‑specific long run.
Speed work starts with short 400 m–1 km repeats at 5–10 % faster than goal pace (≈3:25 min/km) with 60 s recovery; if that’s too hard, drop to 3:47 min/km (goal pace) or 5 % faster.
Tempo work uses 5 km repeats (or 4 × 3 km) at goal race pace (3:47 min/km) with 60 s rest, building confidence holding the pace.
The specific long run mixes easy, race‑pace, and slightly slower segments (e.g., 5 km @ 3:47 min/km, 6 km @ 20 % slower, 5 km @ goal pace) to teach the body to run the race effort for 10–12 km.
Keep the effort progressive—start easy, then gradually increase the race‑pace portion each week.

Workout Example:

Speed Session – 4 × 1 km at 3:25 min/km (≈10 % faster than goal) with 60 s jog/walk recovery. If 3:25 is too hard, run 4 × 1 km at 3:47 min/km or drop to 4 × 400 m at 3:25 min/km.
Tempo Session – 4 × 5 km at 3:47 min/km (goal race pace) with 60 s rest between repeats.
Specific Long Run – 5 km easy (≈20 % slower than goal), 6 km at 3:47 min/km, finish with 5 km easy. Progressively extend the middle race‑pace segment each week. Tip: Use the Pacing app to input your own comfortable paces and adjust the intervals to match your current fitness level.

Closing Note: Try one of these sessions this week, tweak the paces to fit your current speed, and watch your confidence at race pace grow. You’ll feel the difference on race day – and you can always fine‑tune the workouts in the Pacing app for your personal best. Happy running!