The Difference between a 4k and a 5k

In the state of Iowa, girls have been running 4,000 meters for a cross country race, while guys and girls in all states except 10 (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas and Oklahoma) run a 5k race. My freshman and sophomore year I always heard the boys complaining about how much harder 5ks were and how lucky girls were that they didn't have to race a 5K.

This all changed last year though, when the Iowa coaches association voted to change the distance for women to a 5k. Now I got to find out for myself how much harder 5Ks were than 4Ks. Though the extra .6 of a mile doesn't seem like it would make a huge difference, it can severely alter the strategy of the top runners and play into the hands of participants that are better conditioned or more adapt to longer races. The races are run quit differently from one another and involve different training, because as my coach says, any amount of racing until 15 minutes is anaerobic, and for a 4K that is the entire race, while a 5K lasts longer so it is more important to build up the aerobic system and endurance.

Before the beginning of this cross country season, my teammates and I were all really scared to run 5Ks and were rather annoyed, but a little excited, that the distance was changed. We did not know what to expect out of the extra 1,000 meter and were anxious when it came to the day of our first meet to finally discover the mysteries of the 5K. Our coach made the two distances seem very different, and this only added to the wonder, and frustration, at having to learn the strategy to a new race.

As it turns out though, the extra 1,000 meters did not seem to make as much of a difference as we thought! Sure it is a longer race and we may have to go an extra loop around the baseball diamond, but in the end, it feels pretty similar to racing a 4K when it comes down to it. Maybe I only feel that way because I can’t recall exactly what it felt like to race a 4K in the 7 months or so since I last ran one, but nonetheless it seems as if my teammates feel the same way. I have not heard anyone since the first meet mention anything about the new distance in regard to its added difficulty.

The major downfall to the switch in distance comes when one tries to compare their race times from year to year. I for one had never actually raced a 5K before this year and had no idea what sort of time to expect. It is hard for me to compare my times from this year to last year, so I don’t know if I am improving and growing as a runner or not! But in the end I suppose that is ok, because the goal is just to do ones best and strive to succeed.

A positive to the new distance is that many road races during the summer are 5Ks, and so it is a lot easier to get in a few good time trials before the season to see where you are at. Very few, if any road races are 4Ks, so it was always difficult to get a feel for how you would do at the first meet, because you had no opportunity to race a 4k since last year. With 5Ks, you could choose nearly any weekend you wanted to find a race and go see what you can do in a race like setting!

For more information and an interview on the topic with one of the elite women runners in the country, please visit http://espn.go.com/high-school/girl/story/_/id/7906220/in-10-states-girls-run-shorter-cross-country-races-boys-why. Keep in mind that it is slightly outdated seeing as Iowa has adopted the new distance.