Pace chart · 5K
Every 5K finish time from 15:00 to 45:00 in 1-minute steps, with the pace per mile, the pace per kilometer, and the even-pace split at Mile 1 and Mile 2. Highlighted times open a full page of mile splits and training paces.
Splits assume an even pace from start to finish.
| Finish | Per Mile | Per Km | Mile 1 | Mile 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15:00 | 4:50 | 3:00 | 4:50 | 9:39 |
| 16:00 | 5:09 | 3:12 | 5:09 | 10:18 |
| 17:00 | 5:28 | 3:24 | 5:28 | 10:57 |
| 18:00 | 5:48 | 3:36 | 5:48 | 11:35 |
| 19:00 | 6:07 | 3:48 | 6:07 | 12:14 |
| 20:00 | 6:26 | 4:00 | 6:26 | 12:52 |
| 21:00 | 6:46 | 4:12 | 6:46 | 13:31 |
| 22:00 | 7:05 | 4:24 | 7:05 | 14:10 |
| 23:00 | 7:24 | 4:36 | 7:24 | 14:48 |
| 24:00 | 7:43 | 4:48 | 7:43 | 15:27 |
| 25:00 | 8:03 | 5:00 | 8:03 | 16:06 |
| 26:00 | 8:22 | 5:12 | 8:22 | 16:44 |
| 27:00 | 8:41 | 5:24 | 8:41 | 17:23 |
| 28:00 | 9:01 | 5:36 | 9:01 | 18:01 |
| 29:00 | 9:20 | 5:48 | 9:20 | 18:40 |
| 30:00 | 9:39 | 6:00 | 9:39 | 19:19 |
| 31:00 | 9:59 | 6:12 | 9:59 | 19:57 |
| 32:00 | 10:18 | 6:24 | 10:18 | 20:36 |
| 33:00 | 10:37 | 6:36 | 10:37 | 21:15 |
| 34:00 | 10:57 | 6:48 | 10:57 | 21:53 |
| 35:00 | 11:16 | 7:00 | 11:16 | 22:32 |
| 36:00 | 11:35 | 7:12 | 11:35 | 23:10 |
| 37:00 | 11:55 | 7:24 | 11:55 | 23:49 |
| 38:00 | 12:14 | 7:36 | 12:14 | 24:28 |
| 39:00 | 12:33 | 7:48 | 12:33 | 25:06 |
| 40:00 | 12:52 | 8:00 | 12:52 | 25:45 |
| 41:00 | 13:12 | 8:12 | 13:12 | 26:24 |
| 42:00 | 13:31 | 8:24 | 13:31 | 27:02 |
| 43:00 | 13:50 | 8:36 | 13:50 | 27:41 |
| 44:00 | 14:10 | 8:48 | 14:10 | 28:19 |
| 45:00 | 14:29 | 9:00 | 14:29 | 28:58 |
Each page has the mile splits for a slightly faster second half, the halfway time, and easy, tempo and interval training paces for that goal.
At each course marker, compare the race clock to your elapsed-time target. That comparison tells you immediately whether you are ahead of or behind your intended pace, and lets you adjust before the gap grows too large.
A GPS watch can accumulate extra distance as it tracks your movement across the road, so its lap alerts may sound before you reach the physical mile markers. Check the course markers, not the watch's laps, to get an accurate read on where you stand.
Track work is measured in 400-meter laps, so translating your goal pace into a lap time makes interval training easier to execute. To convert a per-km pace, multiply by 0.4. To convert a per-mile pace, divide by 4.02.
For a 25:00 5K, the pace is 5:00 per km and 8:03 per mile, which works out to a 2:00 lap.
Abbiss and Laursen's 2008 review in Sports Medicine found that during events longer than two minutes, performance times may be improved when athletes distribute their pace more evenly. By that finding, the first mile is best run close to your goal pace.
Daniels and Gilbert's VDOT formulas read training paces from a race performance. The RRCA pace chart developed by Amby Burfoot warns: "don't begin with a future goal time." So open the 5K goal-time page closest to a 5K you have run recently and use its training paces.
