Track or Treadmill Workout for Faster Running Paces: 400 Repeats for a Faster 5K Pace

Hi Everyone!

Yesterday I got in a great running workout on the track. This is a great workout for improving your speed and endurance. If you want to become a faster runner you need to learn how to push your body, and how to pace yourself.

During races, or longer workouts, pacing yourself is key to successfully hitting your goal paces during a run. Most people can’t naturally lock into a pace and hold it there throughout a run. It takes practice to learn your pacing, but it will help you become a much more efficient runner.

The total distance for this workout is 5-Miles, but you can adjust the length of the workout for your own needs. You can do this by decreasing the number of repeats, and adjusting the length of the warm-up and cool down. This workout focuses on developing your Fast Twitch muscle fibers, while also incorporating endurance. More fast twitch muscle fibers translate to faster running speeds.

Equipment: Timer and Running Shoes.

400 Repeat Workout for a Faster 5K Time

Warm Up: 1-Mile at an Easy Pace

Workout:

Six 400 Meter Repeats (400 Meters= 1 Lap on a Standard Track or .25 Miles on a Treadmill) faster than your goal race pace.

After each 400 Meter Repeat do 400 Meters at a light/recovery pace.

Total Laps: 12

Cool Down: .5 to 1 Mile Easy Pace and Stretching

*Judge your paces based on your goal race pace. For example, if you want to run a 7:00 min/mile pace your 400 meter repeats should be 1 minute and 45 seconds.

Sub 30-Minute 5K Pace: 400 Meter Repeats in 2 Minutes and 23 Seconds.

8 Minute/Mile Pace: Each 400 Meter Repeat in 1 Minute 59 Seconds.

Push during your Hard paces, and use your jogging intervals for recovery.

Have fun! If you try this workout let me know what you think!
Melissa

Diet Bet Challenge: Day 9: Jump Away Jiggle and 800 Meter Repeats

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to Day 9 of the DietBet Challenge!

This is a great fat burning, and toning workout. I paired it with a running workout, so I only went through it one time. If I hadn’t paired it with a running workout I would have repeated it up to three times. Choose whichever method works best for you! If you are running go for 1-2 rounds of the workout. If you aren’t running repeat the workout 2-3X.

This series of exercises utilizes compound moves for a full body workout. Keeping the rest time in between each exercise short also increases the calorie burn of this workout.

I paired this with an 800 meter repeat workout. I completed my run in 800 meter (half mile) increments. I chose a challenging pace, and ran this on the treadmill. It can also be completed outside. If your local high school or college has a standard sized (400 meter) track that would be two loops around the track.

I ran six 800s, with short rest breaks in between each half mile. I kept my rest breaks in between each interval to about 1:30 to 2 minutes. When you are first starting with this type of workout you should keep the rest breaks equal to the running time. For example, if you run an 800 in 4 minutes, rest for 4 minutes before the next one. As your cardiovascular system progresses you will be able to decrease the amount of rest time in between intervals. It is important to select a pace that is challenging to you. I followed my run with a walk to cool down.

My workout breakdown was as follows. Remember, if you try this workout select an appropriate pace for you. Also, be sure to warm up! (.5 Miles=800 Meters)

1. .5 Miles: 3:02 Minutes (Treadmill speed 10, Incline 1)

Break

2. .5 Miles: 3:15 Minutes (Speed 9.5)

Break

3. .5 Miles: 3:07 Minutes (Speed 9.6)

Break

4. .5 Miles: 3:00 Minutes (Speed: 10.1)

Break

5. .5 Miles: 2:58 Minutes (Speed: 10.1)

Break

6. .5 Miles: 2:56 Minutes (Speed 10.2)

Total Distance: 3 Miles

Total Run Time: 18 Minutes, 18 Seconds

I find that I always have more energy as the run progresses so I picked up the pace a little bit. The first mile or so of a run is the hardest for me, as my body warms up and transitions into running mode. Jesse tells me that is the sign of a true distance runner. 🙂

I hope you guys enjoy the workout!

Melissa

Don’t forget to check-in on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter once you have completed your workout!

Click the link to get your own Gymboss Interval Timer!

Beginner: 10 reps, 30 second interval
Intermediate: 15 reps, 45 seconds,
Advanced: 20 reps, 60 seconds

1. Mountain Climbers (timed)
2. Lunge Jump
3. 3-Way Frogger
4. Squat Jump
5. Spiderman Push-ups
6. Lunging Side Kick
7. Plank Reach Stretch
8. Ninja Jump
9. Knee Drop Plank
10. Knee Tap

Repeat 1-3X

Day 20: Cardio Challenge: Mile Repeats or Cardio HIIT

Hi Everyone!

Day 20 was a cardio challenge day for me! I have picked out my first few races this year, and it has motivated me to run. There are two workout options for today. For those of you that aren’t runners I have included an alternate cardio workout option below, so check out the video below.

For my workout I did mile repeats. If you are a runner, especially if you want to improve your endurance and speed, this is a great workout

Mile repeats should be done slightly faster than your race pace.

How do I know what my race pace is?

The easiest way to know your race pace is to go out and run a race and see what you can do it in. Your speed will vary depending on the length of the race (you should go faster per mile in a 5K than you would in a half marathon).

The other option is to challenge yourself to do a 5K (3.1 miles) as quickly as you are able to. This would be a mock race. I recently did a mock 5K on the treadmill to see where I was at pace-wise with running. An outdoor time trial will be more challenging because there are fluctuations in elevation. You can use Runner’s World’s Pace Calculator to help you figure out your pace per mile.

My 5K pace per mile was 7:16 min/mile, so for mile repeats I did them at 6:58 min/mile. I wanted to work on both endurance and speed so I did 4 mile repeats at this pace. I rested for about 2 minutes in between each mile. You can increase the rest as needed. Ideally your rest should be closer to half the time that you ran (so mine should have been 3:29).

My workout:
Warm-up (Jump rope, walk, jog, or dynamic warm-up).

Mile 1: 6:58
Rest: 2 Minutes
Mile 2: 6:57
Rest: 2 Minutes
Mile 3: 6:59
Rest: 2 Minutes
Mile 4: 6:58

Cool Down: Walk 5 minutes.
Total Running Time: 27:52

Don’t forget to adjust the speeds to your own pace. I was not always a runner, and I built up to the speed I have now. (Read: Running Made My Cry…How I Became a Runner if you want to know more about my experience.) I am slowly but surely creating a blog with running workouts, tips and advice at www.BenderRunning.com. I haven’t had as much time as I would like to work on it, but I am going to keep adding to it.

I hope you enjoy today’s workout.
Melissa

PS Don’t forget to check in on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter after your workout!

Alternate Cardio Workout(s):

All Levels: Max reps during each 50 second interval, 10 seconds of rest between exercises.

1. High Knees
2. Jump Kick (right)
3. Jump Kick (left)
4. 3 Way Double Mountain Climber
5. High Knees
6. Squat Jump
7. Mountain Climber
8. Lunge Jump
9. Lunge Kick (right)
10. Lunge Kick (left)
11. High Knees
12. Surfer
13. Burpee
14. Low Jacks
15. Pendulum

Repeat 1-2X

Or try this 10 Minute HIIT:

10 seconds Rest, 50 seconds Max Effort

1. High Knees or Jump Rope
2. Surfer Burpee
3. Side Kick Hop (right)
4. Side Kick Hop (left)
5. Mountain Climber
6. Lunge Jump
7. Squat Jump
8. Russian
9. Frogger
10. High Knees

Jump Away Your Jiggle and 800 Meter Running Interval Workout

Hi Everyone!

My workout from last night is posted below. This is a great fat burning, and toning workout. I paired it with a running workout, so I only went through it one time. If I hadn’t paired it with a running workout I would have repeated it up to three times.

This series of exercises utilizes compound moves for a full body workout. Keeping the rest time in between each exercise short also increases the calorie burn of this workout.

My workout breakdown was as follows. Remember, if you try this workout select an appropriate pace for you. Also, be sure to warm up! (.5 Miles=800 Meters)

1. .5 Miles: 3:02 Minutes (Treadmill speed 10, Incline 1)

Break

2. .5 Miles: 3:15 Minutes (Speed 9.5)

Break

3. .5 Miles: 3:07 Minutes (Speed 9.6)

Break

4. .5 Miles: 3:00 Minutes (Speed: 10.1)

Break

5. .5 Miles: 2:58 Minutes (Speed: 10.1)

Break

6. .5 Miles: 2:56 Minutes (Speed 10.2)

Total Distance: 3 Miles

Total Run Time: 18 Minutes, 18 Seconds

I hope you guys enjoy the workout!

Melissa

Spice Up Your Cardio Routine

Hi Everyone,

You may have noticed that I like variety in my workouts, which is why I have shared over 300 different workouts with you in the past 16 months. The same is true of my cardio. I don’t repeat the same cardio routine day after day (boring!).

Many people swear by fasted cardio, and do their running or walking in the morning before having breakfast. I always eat something before working out. This is an individual decision, and you should take into account how your stomach reacts, and what your energy level is like during your workout. If I don’t eat something I feel like I have no energy.

A typical pre-workout snack for me is a banana cut in half with some organic peanut butter spread over it, or a whole wheat sandwich thin or slice of Ezekiel bread with peanut butter. Sometimes I combine the two, and make a small PB Banana sandwich. If I am feeling particularly tired I also have a small cup of coffee with some coconut milk. This is also my normal pre-race meal.

When deciding what type of cardio to do each day I take into account any additional workout that I have done, how my body feels, and what I did the day before. For example, if my workout of the day is a high intensity interval workout (HIIT) I will most likely walk, or do steady state cardio at an easy pace on the treadmill. If the HIIT workout was particularly intense or consists of multiple rounds I count that as my cardio, and don’t add anything additional.

Walking:

When walking on the treadmill I love to use the incline function to increase the intensity of the workout. Walking on an incline is a great way to increase your heart rate and cardiovascular function. You can also double the amount of calories you burn, as compared to walking on a flat surface.

I generally start with 1-2 minutes with no incline for all walking to warm up, and I keep the pace around 4.0-4.2.

Walk 1 (Total Time 35-45 Minutes):

-Minutes 1-2: No Incline.

-Minutes 2-10: Select a challenging incline that makes you sweat, increases your heart rate, and breathing.

-Minutes 10-12: No Incline.

-Minutes 12-20: Increase the incline challenge by 1-2%.

-Minutes 20-22: No Incline or very low incline (1.5-2.5%).

-Minutes 22-30: Moderate Incline.

Cool Down: 5 minutes at no incline, decreasing to a comfortable pace.

Walk 2: Incline Intervals (Total Time 30-45 Minutes):

-Minutes 1-2: Warm Up, no incline comfortable pace.

-Minutes 2-30: Alternate incline every two minutes, varying between very challenging, and easy paces.

-Cool Down: 5 minutes walking at a comfortable pace, allowing your heart rate to return to normal.

Walk 3: Incline Challenge (Total Time 20-35 Minutes):

-Minutes 1-2: Warm Up, no incline, comfortable pace.

-Minutes 2-15 (or 30): Maximum incline that you can maintain for an extended period of time.

-Minutes 15-20 (or 30-35 for longer workouts): Cool Down, no incline, comfortable pace.

Running:

For the purposes of this post I will stick to describing indoor running on the treadmill. In the warmer months I do 99% of my running outdoors.

Run 1: Steady State Cardio (30 Minutes):

-Warm Up.

-Minutes 1-30: Run at a comfortably challenging pace. You should be sweating, but should be able to carry on a conversation.

-Cool Down: 5 Minutes

Run 2: 3 Mile Pace Climber (Time varies depending on your mile pace):

-Warm Up.

-Mile 1: Comfortably Challenging/Conversation Pace.

-Mile 2: Increase the speed to a pace where you can still talk, but it is challenging.

-Mile 3: Race Pace speed.

-Cool Down: 5 minutes

Run 3: Treadmill 5K (Time varies depending on mile pace):

-Warm Up

-Select a pace that is reflective of your 5K (3.1 mile) race pace, or slightly faster. If you are training to increase your 5K speed you can decide based on your goal pace and progress from there. Complete 3.1 Miles at this pace.

-Cool Down: 5 minutes.

-Run 4: 3 Mile Interval (Time Varies):

-Warm Up.

-Mile 1: Comfortable Pace.

-Mile 2: Race Pace.

-Mile 3: Comfortable Pace

-Cool Down: 5 Minutes.

Run 5: 30 Minute Interval Variation (30 Minutes):

-Warm Up.

-Vary Interval every 1-2 minutes, alternating between easy, and challenging paces.

-Cool Down.

Run 5: Long Run:

*I typically do my long runs outside, even in the cold months, but they can be done on a treadmill.

-Run at a comfortable pace for desired distance or length of time. This can vary from 45-60 minutes for me on the treadmill. Outside I focus on miles and will do 8-13 miles.

Need Motivation:

-Sign Up for a 5K, 10K, or a Half Marathon in your area! Every time you run or walk you will know that you are training for something. It can be a great motivator to train and stay consistent with your cardio!

If you liked this post you may also like:

Challenging Treadmill Workout Breakdown

How To Run a Ladder Workout

Power Interval Workout with Treadmill

Fat Burn Body Sculpt

A Week of Summer Running

Running Made Me Cry: How I Became a Runner

Power Interval Workout with Treadmill

Hi Everyone,

This was my workout last night. It’s a combination of treadmill intervals and body weight exercises. If sweat is liquid awesome, then I was pretty darn awesome during this workout!

If you don’t have a treadmill you can substitute: 10 Minute Bombshell Fat Burn It is a 10 minute cardio based interval workout. So you would be doing intervals exactly the same length that I did without worrying about the treadmill. You can also substitute jump roping, or steady state cardio if you prefer. The breakdown for the treadmill workout is below.

I listed the paces and speeds I did on the treadmill workout. You can adjust them based on your comfortable pace, and your sprinting pace. The idea is to alternate 1 minute of a comfortable but effortful pace, with 1 minute at a quicker pace. By minute 5-6 you should be at a pace that feels closer to a sprint but can be maintained for a minute. Then you start working your way back up. Make sure you warm up before doing this workout.

Enjoy!

Melissa

Beginner: 5-10 Minutes of cardio, 10 reps
Intermediate: 10 Minutes of cardio, 15 reps
Advanced: 10 Minutes of cardio, 20 reps

Part 1: Interval Cardio on the Treadmill

Listen to your Body, and adjust the cardio to your level. Steady cardio, Jump Rope, or the 10 Minute Bombshell Fat Blast workout can be substituted.

Part 2:

1. Chair/Side Squat

2. Up/Down Dog (Dive Bomber)

3. Reach Through Situp

4. Lunge with Kickback (right)

5. Lunge with Kickback (left)

Part 3: Repeat Cardio Workout

Part 4:

1. Hip Press (right)

2. Hip Press (left)

3. Bicycle

4. Sumo Pushup

5. Ab Twist

Treadmill Workout Breakdown

Hi Everyone,

Yesterday I planned on filming a video, but Jesse had to go over to his brother’s house so I switched up my plan, and did a treadmill workout instead.

I alternated my speed throughout the workout. I went through this twice, so my running time was 40 minutes. I also did a 5 minute cool down, walking on the treadmill after completing this workout.

This workout ranges from a 12 min/mile pace to a 6:40 min/mile pace, you increase by .5 on the treadmill each minute. You can adjust this workout for your own level to make it faster or slower. You can even adjust the length of the intervals, so that you start out doing 30 seconds at each pace, and build up to 60 seconds.

The chart below shows the breakdown that I used.

Treadmill Workout

Repeat

I filmed a new workout today, so that will be posted shortly! As with any workout, be sure that you are working to your own level. Going faster than your body can handle will not benefit you. The best path is to slowly build up your level of endurance. As long as you are working at your bodies optimal level you are getting great benefits and increasing your level of fitness.

Have a great day!

Melissa

Fat Burn Body Sculpt

Hi Everyone!

This was my workout from last night. It is a super sweaty workout, that mixes cardio with body shaping. I alternated 20 reps of 5 different exercises with 1 mile on the treadmill. If you don’t have a treadmill you can do this workout as your cardio: 8 Minute Cardio Fat Stripper or you can jump rope, speed walk, or do high knees.

As I mentioned in my post Running Made Me Cry…How I Became a Runner I want to improve my 5K time so I am running some extra miles and adding in some quicker paces.

I really enjoyed this workout. It was a nice challenge, that got me super sweaty. It was a nice challenge.

I hope you guys have a great day!
Melissa

Beginner: 10 reps
Intermediate: 15 reps
Advanced: 20 reps

1. Step Up (right)
2. Step Up (left)
3. Hip Lift
4. V-Up
5. Cheek to Cheek Plank

Run 1 Mile or 8 Minute Cardio Fat Stripper

1. Hydrant (right)
2. Hydrant (left)
3. Squat
4. Bicycle
5. Walking Pushups

Run 1 Mile or Cardio

1. Standing Side Crunch (right)
2. Standing Side Crunch (left)
3. Tricep Dip
4. Superman Twist
5. Forward Fold Lift

Run 1 Mile or Cardio

Go Hard Home Workout: Melissa Bender

Hi Everyone,

Today’s workout is intense! I interspersed the reps with cardio blasts on my treadmill to maximize the burn. I interspersed mile runs in between the reps. If you don’t have someplace to run, or access to a treadmill, I recommend doing the 15 Minute High Intensity Cardio Fat Burn workout, or the 10 Minute Bombshell Fat Burn workout along with this workout. You could also chose to do 5 to 10 minutes of jump roping during the cardio burst sections of the workout.

Push yourself and go hard the entire time! Move through the reps as quickly as possible, while focusing on maintaining proper form.

Let me know what you think of the workout, and how long it takes you to get through it. I will post the breakdown the way I did it below. If you are doing one of the cardio workouts I have linked above you can do it at the end of the workout, instead of in between.

Have a great night,

Melissa

Go Hard or Go Home Workout

Beginner: 10 reps

Intermediate: 15 reps

Advanced: 20 reps

Cardio Burst: I did a 1 mile run (7 minutes, 40 seconds). You can do 5-10 minutes of jump roping, or wait and do a cardio workout at the end.

Side Lunge Kick (right)
Side Lunge Kick (left)
1 Leg Deadlift (right)
1 Leg Deadlift (left)
Lunge Jumps

Cardio Burst: I did a 1 mile run (7 minutes, 34 seconds)

Scissor Ab Combo
Angel Abs
Leg Lift/Hip Lift
Butt Shake/Hip Twist
Bicycle Abs

Cardio Burst: I did a 1 mile run (7 minutes, 30 seconds)

Pushups
Oblique Drop (right)
Oblique Drop (left)
Ball Pull In/Glute Squeeze
Rotating Side Plank

Note: I did 3 miles of running during the workout. I maintained a pace that I could hold while talking, but one that still had me working. If you don’t want to run or jump rope try one of these cardio burst workouts:

15 Minute High Intensity Cardio Burn

10 Minute Bombshell Body Fat Burn Cardio

Make Me Sweat: Melissa Bender Fitness Workout

Hi Everyone,

This workout was fantastic! It is a bit different. I couldn’t go through the actual workout on video because I used my treadmill for the cardio bursts. The breakdown for this workout is a bit different, and the entire workout takes 40 minutes to complete. The picture below the workout breakdown is of me when I finished the workout. You can tell I worked up a serious sweat!

Enjoy the workout! It’s a tough one!

Melissa

This workout is made up of 8 5-minute intervals. After each strength training interval you will spend 5 minutes engaged in cardio. I ran on my treadmill for each cardio set. Other options include jump roping, high knees, or you can split up the cardio burst from the Cardio Blast: Bombshell workout It is 10 minutes long, but uses the interval timer so just split it up, and repeat.

For the strength training intervals you should do 5 rounds of 10 seconds of rest, and 50 seconds of work. Do the maximum number of reps that you can during the time limit. I will share my numbers below.

Round 1: 5 minutes (10 seconds rest, 50 seconds max reps)
1. Squats
2. Lunge (alternating legs)
3. Forward Leg Pulse (right)
4. Forward Leg Pulse (left)
5. Side Lunge (alternating legs)

Round 2:
5 minutes of cardio. You should be sweating the whole time.

Round 3:
1. Hip Lift
2. Bicycle
3. Rock the Boat
4. Cheek to Cheek Plank
5. Superman

Round 4:
5 minutes of cardio.

Round 6: (repeat round 1)

1. Squats
2. Lunge (alternating legs)
3. Forward Leg Pulse (right)
4. Forward Leg Pulse (left)
5. Side Lunge (alternating legs)

Round 7:
5 Minutes of Cardio.

Round 8: (repeat round 2)

1. Hip Lift
2. Bicycle
3. Rock the Boat
4. Cheek to Cheek Plank
5. Superman

This is me after the workout. Very sweaty! My reps are below. Feel free to share your reps below, or at least keep track of them at home.

Round 1:

31 Squats

19 Lunges Alternating Legs

70 Forward Leg Pulse (right)

70 (Left)

20 Side Lunges

Round 3:

15 Hip Lifts

43 Bicycles

20 Rock the Boat

29 Cheek to Cheek Plank

38 Superman

Round 5:

32 Squats

22 Lunges

71 Forward Pulse (right)

71 Forward Pulse (left)

35 Side Lunges

Round 7:

18 Hip Lifts

41 Bicycle

27 Rock the Boat

41 Cheek to Cheek

57 Supermans

I ran 2.85 miles total in the 4 5-minute cardio segments.

Enjoy!