Race Information
- Name: Broad Street Run
- Date: May 3, 2026
- Distance: 10 miles
- Location: Philadelphia, PA
- Website: https://www.broadstreetrun.com/
- Time: 1:00:xx
Goals
| Goal | Description | Completed? |
|---|---|---|
| A | 1:02:00 | Yes |
| B | 1:05:00 | Yes |
Splits
| Mile | Time |
|---|---|
| 1 | 6:10 |
| 2 | 6:05 |
| 3 | 6:05 |
| 4 | 6:03 |
| 5 | 5:59 |
| 6 | 6:04 |
| 7 | 6:00 |
| 8 | 5:59 |
| 9 | 5:55 |
| 10 | 5:46 |
Background
30 M
Current peak MPW: 48
Previous peak MPW: 44
I've been running for most of my life, competitively in high school and college where I set my lifetime PRs (4:48 mi, 17:21 5K, 27:22 8K). Post-college I took a long break from running entirely, then spent several years doing some very inconsistent training with lots of setbacks due to injuries. I was unable to break 20:00 in the 5K during this time, and could not get above 30mpw.
2025 was the first year I managed to get some consistently good training under my belt post-college. I did a couple of Pfitz plans and managed to run 18:37 for the 5K, and 1:28:30 for the half marathon. Despite these successes, I also experienced a lot of setbacks with Pfitz's plans. They definitely left me feeling pretty cooked by the end, forcing me to take a decent amount of time off after each of my goal races due to minor injuries or general fatigue.
Earlier this year, I discovered the "Norwegian Singles Method" and found the idea of highly sustainable, consistent training very appealing after my experiences with Pfitz. I got /u/spoc84's book and threw myself into NSM beginning in February.
Training
I'm sure most people reading this have already heard of NSM by this point, so I won't go into too much detail here. I peaked at 48 mpw, with the classic 3 sub-threshold, 3 easy, 1 easy long run schedule.
I started the method around 5.5-6 hours per week (38-42 mpw) and gradually increased to 6.5-6.75 hours per week (45-48 mpw). The most difficult adjustment was trying to keep my heart rate <70% max on my easy runs. I started out having to slow down to 10:00/mi most days, but as the weeks went on my paces started picking up across the board.
My peak mileage is not much higher than my peak under Pfitz, but the main difference is that my training now feels so sustainable that I can repeat the same week again and again without needing down weeks. For comparison, my monthly mileage leading up to my half marathon with Pfitz was:
127 mi
135 mi
124 mi
Compared with my last 3 months with NSM:
154 mi
180 mi
194 mi
I think the consistently high mileage I am able to do with NSM has really paid off, and I feel like I can still do more mileage than this.
Pre-race
Woke up and had a small breakfast around 4am. Got to the starting area around 6:30am and did a 12 minute easy warmup.
Race
Based on my training, I knew that it was theoretically possible for me to hit 6:06/mi pace, because the 10x3 minute sub-threshold intervals I do every week are supposed to be done at approximately 60 minute race pace. Knowing this and actually doing it are very different, though. This was 40 seconds per mile faster than my half marathon PR pace from just 5 months ago. I was afraid I was setting too ambitious of a goal, so I hedged a bit by planning to go out around 6:10/mi and increase from there based on feel.
I managed to cruise through the first 5 miles at, or under, my target pace. I was keeping an eye on my heart rate, aiming to not exceed my LTHR during the first half. When I hit mile 5 at sub-6 pace and I was still under my LTHR, I knew it was time to just let it rip.
Mile 6 was a bit slower, but I absolutely teared through the last 5K. I was steadily picking up the pace each mile, and even managed to close the last half mile with a kick at 5:30/mi pace. I crossed the finish line feeling incredibly strong.
Post-race
I think what I'm more impressed by than my overall finish time is that:
My last 5K was only 15 seconds slower than my PR
My last 10K was a 4 minute PR, closing at 36:38.
This race completely exceeded my expectations in a way I still can't believe. Not only did I completely shatter my goal time, but I also know that based on that last 10K, I could have run so much faster.
My eternal gratitude to /u/spoc84, the LetsRun thread, and the people at /r/NorwegianSinglesRun for popularizing this very simple, very effective form of training. I really thought that there was no way I'd ever come close to my college PRs, but now I feel like the sky is the limit.
Made with a new race report generator created by /u/herumph.