Woo first post! Anyway, today I was informed by my army recruiter that there’s a good possibility that my selection will be soonish (2-6 weeks), which is a bit sooner than I had thought. Due to this im thinking of running everyday, varying distances throughout the week? Current 1.5mile time is 12.15. Target time is as low as possible but 10.30 being the ideal aim. Thanks for any responses in advance
I don’t know much about other armies other then the U.S but being able to run well will put you ahead of your peers. Also bodyweight exercises such as pushups, pull ups, and any type of ab work, and get used to walking around in boots. Good luck.
Different athletes respond differently to different protocols, so you’ll have to experiment with your training. A 12:15 1.5 mile means you’re running something like an 8:10 mile followed by a 4:05 half, all things being equal. When I had to get my 1.5 time down, these three workouts helped the most:
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Mile warm-up (75% of goal pace. If your goal is 10:30 1.5, that would be like 8:45).
Rest (walk) 5 minutes.
Mile run, race pace (7:00).
Rest 1 minute.
2 x 400 @ race pace (1:45 or below). Rest 30 seconds only between 400s. -
1200 repeats @ 105% of race pace (so for 10:30 1.5, 4:59s). Rest 10 minutes between sets (very slow jog or walk). Start with two, progress one every two-three weeks.
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Mile repeats, ascending times
Mile 1: as fast as you can go, under 7:00. Rest double the elapsed work time.
Mile 2: The previous mile +25 seconds. Same rest.
Mile 3: Previous mile +15.
That’s what worked for me, anyway. To race fast, train fast. I think a lot of people do too much long, slow running when training for these types of events.
Also, I have no idea what your form is like - but if it sucks, fix it. It makes a HUGE difference. People like to rag on POSE and CHI till the cows come home, but they make a valid point: running in a biomechanically efficient way is much less tiring (and faster) than running hard, poorly. Forward arm swing, midfoot land, relaxed facial muscles, breathing - all the usual cues.
Don’t train every day if you haven’t been running 4-5 days a week prior to now. Running is high impact, and you can easily get shin splints (which kind of suck) or stress fractures (which really suck) from overloading on training volume. Also, taking solid rest from hard workouts (e.g. I have a race on Sunday so I chill Friday and Saturday) can help maximize race times. You’ll still see significant improvement from 3-4 workouts a week.
Good luck.
I personally drop my run time when I have a PT test coming up pretty dramatically by doing short, high-intensity intervals (almost sprints) and progressively shorter rest periods as I get in better cardiovascular shape. Then I take the test and stop running until a few weeks before my next one. 
haha (I’m in ROTC)
Thanks for the replies guys. The variation keeps things interesting, running the same distance on the same route 3-4 times a week soon saps the enjoyment out of it. Been thinking about doing one weighted run a week, 10kg weighted vest, any advice on these? Never done them before. Thanks again in advance of any replies
Also keep in mind that once you have your form down, other forms of cardio and running (sprinting) directly correlate to your endurance. For instance, I almost never train longer distance than a sprint, have two lower body lifting sessions per week, weigh 208 at 15% BF and my time is around a 12minute 1.5mile for the PRT (US Navy). My buddy rows on weekends, uses an ergometer during the week when he can get to the gym, and never runs, but gets ~9-10 minute 1.5 mile times (he’s ~180#, 12ish% BF) for his PRT scores.
The people who actually train by running the 1.5mile regularly are anywhere from 8.5 min to 14 min, depending on age, diet, BF%, injury (some due to running)
Might want to find out how often you’re running in Boots and cammies vs sneakers, what kind of rucking (how fast how far) calisthenics used, waterwork etc you will be enduring. It’s easier to do well if you have trained in the appropriate moves and in as much as possible wearing the correct gear. One thing I often saw in candidates in the US military (SOF candidates) when they came into training was that they trained, but the ones that had the worst time of it or washed out trained “their way” rather than doing things that would be expected of them (even though we gave them info ahead of time). For example…they often swam, did cals, rucked…etc, but all too often they didn’t take any days in which they would combine the moves. When suddenly they had to run, swim, perform cals and ruck all in the same day they crumbled.
Just my two cents…while having 24years active and continuing to train troops since then on Ft Bragg… I don’t know diddly about the Scots and their methods. Good luck in your endeavor.
Little update here, been given a rough date for selection of within 5 weeks and ive just managed to develop some lovely shin pain, I dont want to call it shin splints as thats kind of an umbrella term but it bloody hurts. Like a dull ache on the front inside of my shin as soon as I start running and it gets worse the longer i run. Any experience with this kinda thing anyone? Once again any help is greatly appreciated
[quote]gingerlifter wrote:
Little update here, been given a rough date for selection of within 5 weeks and ive just managed to develop some lovely shin pain, I dont want to call it shin splints as thats kind of an umbrella term but it bloody hurts. Like a dull ache on the front inside of my shin as soon as I start running and it gets worse the longer i run. Any experience with this kinda thing anyone? Once again any help is greatly appreciated[/quote]
Hey man I got shin splints when I started to run but I was using crappy shoes. I got a pair asics and they have pretty much gone away now. I also soak my feet in cold water for 10 mins when I get back from my run. I cannot say if the water thing helps as I have only started doing it.
How do you guys pace your 1.5 mile runs when trying to go for a pr? I’m in the same camp as op . I first timed myself for a 1.5 miler on monday and did it in 12:05. I ran flat out the first mile and got kinda winded and had to walk for 30 secs which fucked my time. I’d like to get it to 10:30 in a months time.
I started running in January for the first time so I am only running 3/week to not get overuse injuries.This is what I’m currently doing;
Monday: 1.5 mile timed run, then slow 1.5 mile run back
Wednesday: Same as monday
Friday: 3 mile slow run.
I lift 3 x week and bike 3 x week for 40- 60 mins. Do I need to start doing interval training to knock 2 mins off?
Yeah ive got a pair of asics aswell, I think I know how ive developed shin splints as ive recently ramped up my frequency so I was running 4-5 days in a row then having one rest day. I did however learn that intervals help ALOT in taking time off your 1.5, try them once a week instead of one of your 1.5 days perhaps?
My all time record was last wednesday at 11.05 and I think intervals helped alot in taking 30secs off in about 2 weeks so ill be doing them again. And I run with a stop watch in my hand and I workout before hand where I want to be at what time, I found this helped me learn how to pace myself. Hope some of this helps
[quote]gingerlifter wrote:
Thanks for the replies guys. The variation keeps things interesting, running the same distance on the same route 3-4 times a week soon saps the enjoyment out of it. Been thinking about doing one weighted run a week, 10kg weighted vest, any advice on these? Never done them before. Thanks again in advance of any replies[/quote]
Yeah variation is key, for progression, not just interest. My advice would be to start with this template and build on from there.
Once a week do a sprint/interval workout.
Once a week do a tempo run, meaning fastest pace you can maintain for x distance, usually similar distance to your race/test distance.
Once a week do a long run. Keep the distance within reason though given your training goals. If your test is 1.5miles there is no sense in running 8.
You can also add a day or two of light, easy runs between these days, but they should be considered more for recovery than training effect.
[quote]Juggs wrote:
[quote]gingerlifter wrote:
Thanks for the replies guys. The variation keeps things interesting, running the same distance on the same route 3-4 times a week soon saps the enjoyment out of it. Been thinking about doing one weighted run a week, 10kg weighted vest, any advice on these? Never done them before. Thanks again in advance of any replies[/quote]
Yeah variation is key, for progression, not just interest. My advice would be to start with this template and build on from there.
Once a week do a sprint/interval workout.
Once a week do a tempo run, meaning fastest pace you can maintain for x distance, usually similar distance to your race/test distance.
Once a week do a long run. Keep the distance within reason though given your training goals. If your test is 1.5miles there is no sense in running 8.
You can also add a day or two of light, easy runs between these days, but they should be considered more for recovery than training effect.
[/quote]
Hey man regarding interval training, how would you structure that for improving the 1.5 mile time ? I’m gonna try one and dunno whether to go with 30 second or 3 min intervals.