5 km running program under 17 minutes in 8 weeks

If you get under 17 minutes on the 5 km distance, you can look forward to competing for podium places at many fitness races – you are now an expert. For many runners, 17 minutes is a magic limit. In just 8 weeks, you can improve your 5 km time significantly – by about 1 minute. The program is tailored to you, who can currently run 5 km in about 18 minutes and are looking to cut 1 minute off in just 8 weeks. If you run 5 km in 19 minutes or 20 minutes, you can also follow this program, however, you must follow the alternative pace suggestions at the bottom of this page.

Useful links before you get started

• Necessary knowledge about speeds, interval breaks and intensity
• General information about the 5 km distance and the structure of 5 km running programs
• General structure of running programs
• Same program over 12 weeks of training.

Download: 5 km under 17 min in 8 weeks

Here you can download the 5 km running program for experts for free, which in 8 weeks can get you under the tough 17 minutes. You can see the program as an image below or simply download it as a PDF.

The build-up of 17 min in 8 weeks

Number of training sessions per week (quality + quantity)

There are 5 weekly training sessions that are necessary to cut the last of your 5k time. The two primary training sessions are Tuesday (interval training) and Saturday (tempo run), however Sunday (easy run – long) is also a relatively hard day. The easy run on Wednesday is intended as a recovery session before training at marathon pace the following day.
In this shortened 8-week version, you start by training 53 kilometers per week and peak at 66 km per week. If you are not used to these training volumes, it is recommended that you choose a milder program.

Types of training

In this expert 5K running program you will find all types of tempos. The different tempos are: 1) easy running, 2) marathon pace, 3) tempo/threshold training, 4) VO2 max training/interval training and 5) Speed ​​training. I recommend a 2 km warm-up before and a 2 km cool-down after tempo runs, a 2.5 km warm-up before and a 2.5 km cool-down after VO2 max training and a 3 km warm-up before and a 3 km cool-down before speed training. There is no warm-up before easy running or marathon pace running as the intensity is relatively low. However, it doesn’t hurt to do some dynamic stretching exercises (high knees, heel kicks, lunges…).

In weeks 1 and 5, you run the interval training as speed training. In weeks 2, 3, 6 and 7, the interval training is run as VO2 max training. Week 4 is recovery week. Week 8 is a tapering off to your 5 km race, which is scheduled for Sunday.

Alternative tempo suggestions

Here you can see what pace you should run the different training sessions at if you want to be under 17 minutes. If you can run 5 km in 19 minutes today, you should not expect to be able to get under 17 minutes in 8 weeks. You can expect to cut about 1 minute off your current time. You can use the numbers from the chart to determine what pace you should run at. The times are based on Jack Daniel’s training philosophy and are determined based on your current level minus 1 minute (your goal).

If you are slower than 20 minutes for 5 km, I recommend you train after 5 km in 20 minutes instead. There are two programs you can choose from here: 8 weeks – 12 weeks.

If you have any questions about getting under 17 minutes in 8 weeks or questions about the running program, please use the comments box below.