Your Running Buddy

Here's What That Looks Like

Today

Legs are dead after yesterday's long run. Not sure I can do the tempo today.

Good call flagging that. Yesterday's 14K was solid work — your body needs to absorb it. I'm swapping today's tempo for a recovery jog. Easy pace, 5K, keep it conversational.

Distance: 5.0 km
Pace: 6:00–6:20 /km
Est. time: 30:50
Target HR: < 140 bpm
Effort: 3 /10

Coach's note

Yesterday's 14K landed in zone 2 at 5:35/km average — good session, but the adaptation from a 90-minute aerobic run runs on a ~48-hour recovery cycle, and your last three weeks of intervals are already banked. Stacking tempo on unrecovered legs is a 10–15% injury-risk bump for a fitness gain you won't see before the 10K anyway. What easy running at zone 1 does right now — capillary density, mitochondrial efficiency, glycogen restocking — is exactly what you need before we sharpen 12 days out. Two quality sessions left before taper. Those are the ones we protect.

Am I falling behind if I skip the tempo?

Not even close. You're 18 days out from your 10K, and your last three weeks of intervals are already banked. One swapped session doesn't undo that. Pushing through fatigue is how you get injured, not faster.

What about the 10K — any special prep?

Two weeks before race day I'll drop in a sharpener — race-pace intervals at 5K distance so your legs remember what fast feels like without draining them. Then we taper into race week. You'll feel restless — that's the plan working.

What if I'm still tired Thursday?

Then we adjust again. Thursday's currently a strength session — if your legs need more time, I'll shift it to mobility work and push strength to Saturday. The plan bends around you, not the other way around.

The Plan — tap a session

Yesterday Long Run 14K

Distance: 14.0 km
Time: 1:18:32
Pace: 5:36 /km
Effort: 6 /10

HR 142

The session

Steady long run at true easy pace — the longest session of the build before the taper begins.

01 km walk-to-jog warm-up with 4 × 20s strides to open up the stride.
02 km continuous at conversational pace (5:30–5:45/km, HR zone 2, RPE 5–6).
03 Gentle negative split is fine — a tempo finish is not. If you can't speak a full sentence, slow down.
04 km easy jog cool-down, 5 min mobility, fuel within 30 min.

Structure
Active 3.0km active @5:48/km 136 bpm
Active 4.0km active @5:35/km 141 bpm
Active 4.0km active @5:28/km 145 bpm
Active 3.0km active @5:20/km 149 bpm

Coach's note

Week 8 of your half-marathon build — this is the longest run before taper. Aerobic base is what every other session sits on. You drifted to 5:20/km in the back half, which is fine at RPE 6, but the real sharpening work needs fresh legs, not leftover fatigue. HR averaged 142 bpm — right in zone 2 — which tells me the pace was honest even as it picked up.

Today · swapped Tempo 6KRecovery 5K

Distance: 5.0 km
Pace: 6:00–6:20 /km
Est. time: 30:50

Target HR: < 140 bpm
Effort: 3 /10

The session

Soft surface if you have it — grass, trail, treadmill all work. Conversational means exactly that: you should be able to argue about the weather without gasping.

min brisk walk warm-up. Ankles, hips, knees loose before the run clock starts.
km continuous at 6:00–6:20/km, HR under 140 bpm, RPE 3–4. No surges, no testing.
If your watch shows sub-5:50/km, dial it back — you cannot run this one too slow.
Walk the final 0.5 km. 3 min of calves, hip openers, a quick foam-roll on the quads.

Structure
Warmup 0.50km warmup @10:00/km
Active 4.5km active @6:00/km 138 bpm
Cooldown 0.50km cooldown @6:00/km

Coach's note

Yesterday's 14K landed in zone 2 at 5:35/km average — good session, but the adaptation from a 90-minute aerobic run runs on a ~48-hour recovery cycle, and your last three weeks of intervals are already banked. Stacking tempo on unrecovered legs is a 10–15% injury-risk bump for a fitness gain you won't see before the 10K anyway. What easy running at zone 1 does right now — capillary density, mitochondrial efficiency, glycogen restocking — is exactly what you need before we sharpen 12 days out. Two quality sessions left before taper. Those are the ones we protect.

Watch for
HR above 150 at conversational pace = still fatigued. Cut to 3 km and call it a win.
New soreness that isn't muscle soreness? Walk home. We don't bank fitness from sessions we shouldn't have run.
Log how your legs feel at 3 km — that's our data point for Thursday's decision.

Thu Strength 40m

Est. time: 40:00

Effort: 5 /10

The session

Runner's strength — single-leg work, glutes, calves.

Coach's note

If Thursday's check-in says the legs need another easy day, this shifts to mobility and strength moves to Saturday. The plan bends around you, not the other way around.

Sat · moved Tempo 6K

Distance: 6.0 km
Pace: 4:45–4:55 /km
Est. time: 29:00

Target HR: Zone 3–4
Effort: 7 /10

Coach's note

Today's session, not a lost one — moved to Saturday so it runs on recovered legs. This is the quality work we protect.

Sun Long Run 10K

Distance: 10.0 km
Pace: 5:40–5:55 /km
Est. time: 57:55

Target HR: Zone 2
Effort: 5 /10

Coach's note

Shorter than yesterday's on purpose — long-run length comes down 12 days out so the 10K tune-up gets fresh legs.

in 18d Milestone: 10K Race

Distance: 10.0 km
Pace: 4:55–5:00 /km
Est. time: 49:35

Target HR: Zone 4
Effort: 9 /10

The session

Tune-up race. Flat course, aim for even splits — first 3K to settle, then hold pace.

Arrive 60 min before gun. 15 min shakeout jog + 4 × 30s strides.
First 3K: controlled effort, target pace 4:55–5:00/km.
Middle 4K: settle in and lock the rhythm, HR should drift to zone 4.
Final 3K: if legs respond, nudge pace down. Otherwise hold.

Coach's note

Race-day practice and a fitness checkpoint 24 days out from the half. Flat 10K gives you an honest read on where aerobic power is right now and lets you rehearse warm-up, pacing, and fuelling strategies in a low-stakes context.

in 32d Milestone: 15K Tune-up

Distance: 15.0 km
Pace: 5:05–5:15 /km
Est. time: 1:17:30

Target HR: Zone 3–4
Effort: 7 /10

The session

Final tune-up before race week. Race-day routine practice at a notch below target race pace.

Same warm-up routine you plan for race day.
km at goal half-marathon pace + 10–15 sec/km (around 5:10/km).
Focus on fuelling at 5K and 10K marks — dial in the race-day plan.
Cool down slow, log what worked and what didn't.

Coach's note

Final hard effort before taper. You're not racing this — you're practicing the race. Pace just under target locks muscle memory without costing recovery you'll need for race week.

in 42d Goal: Half Marathon

Distance: 21.1 km
Target: 1:55
Pace: 5:27 /km
Days: —

Target race. Everything is building toward this.

THIS WEEK 24.0km of 45.0km

Running late counts as speedwork, right?

— steev

Why Runners Stick Around

01

I Show My Work

Every workout comes with reasoning. Not just 'run 5K' — I'll tell you why this workout, why this intensity, why today. If my logic doesn't make sense, ask me.

02

I Ask Before I Prescribe

Before building your workout, I ask questions. Your schedule, your soreness, your goals. Context matters. A coach who doesn't ask isn't coaching — they're guessing.

03

Race Day, Sorted

I know about periodization — Foundation, Build, Peak, Taper — and I'll guide you through each phase at exactly the right time. Join the leaderboard and train alongside others racing the same event.

04

Ask Me Anything

Why this workout? Should I run today? What's the difference between tempo and threshold? I answer with context from your actual training, not generic advice from a FAQ page.

Works for: first-timers · comeback runners · PB chasers · busy humans

Poke Around

Just tell me your goal and we'll figure out the rest together.

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Here's What That Looks Like

I Show My Work

I Ask Before I Prescribe

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