THE BLOCK
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‹ back to today · THU 06 AUG

Run — long + easy

45 min — 7:19–7:55 /km

  1. Chat pace the whole way (7:19–7:55 /km) — slow enough to talk in full sentences
  2. One rule: no stopping. At this pace 45 min is comfortably past 5K — that box gets ticked today
  3. Watch on: heart rate under ~150. Past it → slow to a shuffle until it drops; shuffling counts, stopping doesn't
  4. The pace that feels too slow at minute 5 is the one that finishes — that's the whole lesson

Pull-up habit — 3 easy reps, 5–6 times through the day

02The ledger — nine weeks, one morning
W1 CALIBRATE 06–12 JUL Set the real numbers. Everything downstream recalibrates from Thursday. 4/4 logged
TUE 07

Trained off-plan — chest, a run, 2 × 12 min bike

  • Counted. The block proper opens tomorrow.
WED 08

Sit-ups — test rhythm, 4 × (30 sec on / 30 sec off)

  • Repeating 30-sec timer: sit-ups for 30 sec, rest 30 sec — that's one round · 4 rounds ≈ 4 min
  • Hit 15 reps in every work block — that matches the test's speed (60 sit-ups in 2 min straight); the rests just chop it up
THU 09

GATE — baseline 5K time trial Baseline 30:00

  • This one sets your starting numbers — fresh legs, honest effort
  • Morning if you can, flat route. Proper carbs 3 h before, nothing new on the day
  • First km deliberately your slowest — you can always empty what's left
  • Hold that rhythm through 4K — the last kilometre is the only one allowed to hurt
  • Side starts burning: slow 15 sec/km, long slow exhales for 30 sec — it passes; don't stop
  • Log the time in the box on this card — every pace on this page shifts to match
FRI 10

GATE — baseline maxes 22 push · 40 situ · 8 pull

  • Fresh, before anything else: max strict push-ups · rest 10 min · max sit-ups · rest 10 min · max pull-ups
  • Strict = chest to floor, chin clearly over bar, no swinging
  • Then finish with shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises · 3 × 15 tibialis raises — nothing else today
SAT 11

Easy run 35 min + 4 strides

  • Jog 35 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 strides: 15–20 sec quick-but-smooth accelerations, walk back after each
SUN 12

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W2 BASE 13–19 JUL Even pace in short pieces. The 400 is the unit of the mission. 6/9 logged
MON 13

8 × 400 m — 2:13 per rep

  • Warm up: 10 min very slow jog (the jog to the park IS this), then 4 relaxed 15-sec bursts
  • Run 400 m in ~2:13 — hard but controlled; end each rep feeling you had 2 more in you
  • Rep 1 AT 2:13, never under it — every second banked early gets paid back double late
  • Recover 90 sec jog, then go again — 8 reps total, then 5 min slow jog home
  • Missing the times? Do fewer reps. Never run them slower — the pace IS the workout
MON 13

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 14

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +10 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 15

Easy run 30 min + 4 strides

  • Jog 30 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 strides: 15–20 sec quick-but-smooth accelerations, walk back after each
WED 15

Sit-ups — test rhythm, 6 × (30 sec on / 30 sec off)

  • Repeating 30-sec timer: sit-ups for 30 sec, rest 30 sec — that's one round · 6 rounds ≈ 6 min
  • Hit 15 reps in every work block — that matches the test's speed (60 sit-ups in 2 min straight); the rests just chop it up
THU 16

Tempo run — 20 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 20 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 17

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 17

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 18

Long easy run — 45 min, first non-stop 5K

  • Chat pace the whole way (7:19–7:55 /km) — slow enough to talk in full sentences
  • One rule: no stopping. At this pace 45 min is comfortably past 5K — that box gets ticked today
  • Watch on: heart rate under ~150. Past it → slow to a shuffle until it drops; shuffling counts, stopping doesn't
  • The pace that feels too slow at minute 5 is the one that finishes — that's the whole lesson
SUN 19

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W3 BASE 20–26 JUL The real event enters: Monday the bleep baseline. Friday: max tests. 0/10 logged
MON 20

GATE — baseline bleep test Baseline

  • This is the actual entrance event — today's number says exactly how far from 10.8 you stand
  • Find 20 m in the park and pace it out (~26 steps) — any free “beep test” app plays the audio
  • Levels 1–6 are free: jog them, don't bounce. Turns: one foot ON the line, turn low, push off flat
  • Keep going until you genuinely can't reach the line before the beep, twice in a row
  • Stamp your level below (e.g. 9.4 = level 9, shuttle 4) — then 4 relaxed 200 m and done
MON 20

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 21

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +10 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 22

Easy run 32 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 32 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 22

Sit-ups — test rhythm, 6 × (30 sec on / 30 sec off)

  • Repeating 30-sec timer: sit-ups for 30 sec, rest 30 sec — that's one round · 6 rounds ≈ 6 min
  • Hit 15 reps in every work block — that matches the test's speed (60 sit-ups in 2 min straight); the rests just chop it up
THU 23

Tempo run — 22 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 22 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 24

GATE — re-test all three maxes

  • FIRST, fresh: max strict push-ups · rest 10 min · max sit-ups · rest 10 min · max pull-ups
  • Strict = chest to floor, chin clearly over bar, no swinging
  • On-track this week looks like ~28 push · 40 sit · 9 pull
  • Stamp all three in the boxes on this card — your sets recalculate from them
FRI 24

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 24

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 25

Long easy run — 50 min

  • Same chat-pace as every easy run (7:19–7:55 /km), just longer
  • Watch on: heart rate under ~150 the whole way — the engine only grows down there. Feels embarrassingly slow = correct
  • Nothing fancy: the slow time on feet is what builds the engine
SUN 26

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W4 BUILD 27–02 AUG The pieces double. Hold the same pace when the 800s get heavy late. 0/9 logged
MON 27

6 × 800 m — 4:21 per rep

  • Warm up: 10 min very slow jog (the jog to the park IS this), then 4 relaxed 15-sec bursts
  • Run 800 m in ~4:21 — hard but controlled; end each rep feeling you had 2 more in you
  • Rep 1 AT 4:21, never under it — every second banked early gets paid back double late
  • Recover 2 min jog, then go again — 6 reps total, then 5 min slow jog home
  • Missing the times? Do fewer reps. Never run them slower — the pace IS the workout
MON 27

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 28

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +10 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 29

Easy run 35 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 35 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 29

Entrance circuit — 2 rounds, test format

  • 2 rounds, minimal rest: 15 burpees · 25 sit-ups · 15 press-ups · 45-sec plank
  • Then ONE set of 3 pull-ups to finish — exactly the real PJFT+ shape
  • If a round breaks down, rest 60 sec and finish it — note where it broke, that's next fortnight's target
THU 30

Tempo run — 24 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 24 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 31

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 31

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 01

Long easy run — 55 min

  • Same chat-pace as every easy run (7:19–7:55 /km), just longer
  • Watch on: heart rate under ~150 the whole way — the engine only grows down there. Feels embarrassingly slow = correct
  • Nothing fancy: the slow time on feet is what builds the engine
SUN 02

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W5 BUILD 03–09 AUG Gate week. Kilometre reps Monday — Saturday tells the truth. 0/10 logged
MON 03

5 × 1000 m — 5:23 per rep

  • Warm up: 10 min very slow jog (the jog to the park IS this), then 4 relaxed 15-sec bursts
  • Run 1000 m in ~5:23 — hard but controlled; end each rep feeling you had 2 more in you
  • Rep 1 AT 5:23, never under it — every second banked early gets paid back double late
  • Recover 2½ min jog, then go again — 5 reps total, then 5 min slow jog home
  • Missing the times? Do fewer reps. Never run them slower — the pace IS the workout
MON 03

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 04

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +10 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 05

Easy run 30 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 30 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 05

Sit-ups — test rhythm, 6 × (30 sec on / 30 sec off)

  • Repeating 30-sec timer: sit-ups for 30 sec, rest 30 sec — that's one round · 6 rounds ≈ 6 min
  • Hit 15 reps in every work block — that matches the test's speed (60 sit-ups in 2 min straight); the rests just chop it up
THU 06

Tempo run — 15 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 15 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
  • Deliberately light — Saturday is the session
FRI 07

GATE — re-test all three maxes

  • FIRST, fresh: max strict push-ups · rest 10 min · max sit-ups · rest 10 min · max pull-ups
  • Strict = chest to floor, chin clearly over bar, no swinging
  • On-track this week looks like ~34 push · 48 sit · 10–11 pull
  • Stamp all three in the boxes on this card — your sets recalculate from them
FRI 07

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 07

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 08

GATE — 5K time trial 26:40–27:25

  • Decision point: inside the window → volume stays. 27:40 or slower → a fifth easy run gets added from W6
  • Miss the window by 45 sec+ → food drops from bulk to maintenance until test day (the standing deal)
  • Morning if you can, flat route. Proper carbs 3 h before, nothing new on the day
  • First km in 5:29, read off the watch AT the 1K mark — not by feel; feel is what blows a 5K up at 4K
  • Hold that rhythm through 4K — the last kilometre is the only one allowed to hurt
  • Side starts burning: slow 15 sec/km, long slow exhales for 30 sec — it passes; don't stop
  • Log the time in the box on this card — every pace on this page shifts to match
SUN 09

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W6 BUILD 10–16 AUG Bleep re-test Monday — the entrance number, measured mid-block. 0/9 logged
MON 10

GATE — bleep re-test 10.0+

  • Halfway check: 10.0 today puts 10.8 on schedule for September
  • Find 20 m in the park and pace it out (~26 steps) — any free “beep test” app plays the audio
  • Levels 1–6 are free: jog them, don't bounce. Turns: one foot ON the line, turn low, push off flat
  • Keep going until you genuinely can't reach the line before the beep, twice in a row
  • Stamp your level below (e.g. 9.4 = level 9, shuttle 4) — then 4 relaxed 200 m and done
MON 10

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 11

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +12.5–15 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 12

Easy run 35 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 35 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 12

Entrance circuit — 3 rounds, test format

  • 3 rounds, minimal rest: 15 burpees · 25 sit-ups · 15 press-ups · 45-sec plank
  • Then ONE set of 4 pull-ups to finish — exactly the real PJFT+ shape
  • If a round breaks down, rest 60 sec and finish it — note where it broke, that's next fortnight's target
THU 13

Tempo run — 26 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 26 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 14

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 14

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 15

Long easy run — 60 min

  • Same chat-pace as every easy run (7:19–7:55 /km), just longer
  • Watch on: heart rate under ~150 the whole way — the engine only grows down there. Feels embarrassingly slow = correct
  • Nothing fancy: the slow time on feet is what builds the engine
SUN 16

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W7 SHARPEN 17–23 AUG Race shapes. 2Ks Monday, a full-dress 5K Saturday. 0/10 logged
MON 17

2 × 2000 m — 10:34 per rep

  • Warm up: 10 min very slow jog (the jog to the park IS this), then 4 relaxed 15-sec bursts
  • Run 2000 m in ~10:34 — hard but controlled; end each rep feeling you had 2 more in you
  • Rep 1 AT 10:34, never under it — every second banked early gets paid back double late
  • After the last rep: 4 × 200 m fast-ish, full walk-back recovery
  • Recover 3½ min easy jog, then go again — 2 reps total, then 5 min slow jog home
  • Missing the times? Do fewer reps. Never run them slower — the pace IS the workout
MON 17

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 18

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +12.5–15 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 19

Easy run 30 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 30 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 19

Sit-ups — test rhythm, 6 × (30 sec on / 30 sec off)

  • Repeating 30-sec timer: sit-ups for 30 sec, rest 30 sec — that's one round · 6 rounds ≈ 6 min
  • Hit 15 reps in every work block — that matches the test's speed (60 sit-ups in 2 min straight); the rests just chop it up
THU 20

Tempo run — 20 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 20 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 21

GATE — re-test all three maxes

  • FIRST, fresh: max strict push-ups · rest 10 min · max sit-ups · rest 10 min · max pull-ups
  • Strict = chest to floor, chin clearly over bar, no swinging
  • On-track this week looks like ~40 push · 54 sit · 11–12 pull
  • Stamp all three in the boxes on this card — your sets recalculate from them
FRI 21

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 21

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 22

GATE — full-dress 5K (tune-up race) 25:10–25:55

  • Morning if you can, flat route. Proper carbs 3 h before, nothing new on the day
  • First km in 5:11, read off the watch AT the 1K mark — not by feel; feel is what blows a 5K up at 4K
  • Hold that rhythm through 4K — the last kilometre is the only one allowed to hurt
  • Side starts burning: slow 15 sec/km, long slow exhales for 30 sec — it passes; don't stop
  • Log the time in the box on this card — every pace on this page shifts to match
SUN 23

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W8 SHARPEN 24–30 AUG Sharpen. The same 800s as week four, five seconds per K faster. 0/9 logged
MON 24

6 × 800 m — 4:09 per rep

  • Warm up: 10 min very slow jog (the jog to the park IS this), then 4 relaxed 15-sec bursts
  • Run 800 m in ~4:09 — hard but controlled; end each rep feeling you had 2 more in you
  • Rep 1 AT 4:09, never under it — every second banked early gets paid back double late
  • Recover 2 min jog, then go again — 6 reps total, then 5 min slow jog home
  • Missing the times? Do fewer reps. Never run them slower — the pace IS the workout
MON 24

Sit-ups — 4 sets of 28

  • 4 sets of 28: fast on the way up, controlled down · rest 60 sec between sets
  • Feet hooked under something if the real test holds them
TUE 25

Push volume + heavy pull-ups

  • Push-ups: 5 sets of 13, chest brushes floor, full lockout · 90 sec rest
  • Weighted pull-ups: 5 sets of 3 with +12.5–15 kg (dip belt, or dumbbell between the knees) · 2–3 min rest
  • Gym, maintenance only: bench 3 × 5 leaving 2 reps in the tank · any row 3 × 8
  • Extra gym is fine here: arms / shoulders / whatever — just nothing heavy for legs, nothing that wrecks tomorrow
WED 26

Easy run 30 min + 4 hill sprints

  • Jog 30 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 hill sprints: 8 sec UP a steep slope, genuinely max effort, walk ALL the way back down between — leg-speed medicine, too short to be cardio
WED 26

Entrance circuit — 3 rounds, test format

  • 3 rounds, minimal rest: 20 burpees · 30 sit-ups · 20 press-ups · 60-sec plank
  • Then ONE set of 5 pull-ups to finish — exactly the real PJFT+ shape
  • If a round breaks down, rest 60 sec and finish it — note where it broke, that's next fortnight's target
THU 27

Tempo run — 20 min at 6:18 /km

  • Warm up: 10 min easy jog (the jog to the park IS this)
  • Then 20 min non-stop at 6:18 /km — “comfortably hard”: short phrases yes, full sentences no
  • If the pace and your breathing disagree, believe the breathing — gasping means slow down, whatever the watch says
  • Finish: 5 min easy jog
FRI 28

Push-up clock + pull-ups + shin armour

  • Set a 10-min timer: at the top of every minute do 9 push-ups, rest whatever's left of that minute
  • Pull-ups: 4 sets of 6 (your max minus 2) · 2 min rest
  • Goblet squat or trap-bar deadlift: 3 × 6, medium weight, smooth
  • Shin armour: 3 × 15 calf raises + 3 × 15 tibialis raises (lean on wall, rock toes up)
FRI 28

Sit-ups — one honest max set

  • One all-out set, stopping one rep before failure
  • Rest 2 min, then one relaxed set of half that number. Done
SAT 29

Long easy run — 50 min

  • Same chat-pace as every easy run (7:19–7:55 /km), just longer
  • Watch on: heart rate under ~150 the whole way — the engine only grows down there. Feels embarrassingly slow = correct
  • Nothing fancy: the slow time on feet is what builds the engine
SUN 30

Rest — actually nothing

  • Nothing. No pull-up habit, no cardio. Recovery is where the adaptation happens.
W9 TAPER 31–06 SEP Taper. The hay is in the barn — arrive fresh, then empty it. 0/3 logged
MON 31

5 × 400 m — 1:48 per rep, big rests

  • Warm up 10 min very easy, then the 5 reps at goal pace — should feel smooth, almost easy
  • Rest as long as you like between reps (walk/jog until fully ready)
  • This is a tune-up, not training — stop while it feels good
TUE 01

Nearly nothing

  • A few easy pull-up singles if you're restless — the hard work is banked
  • Daily pull-up habit stops after today until the test
WED 02

Easy run 20 min + 4 strides

  • Jog 20 min at 7:19–7:55 /km — slow enough to talk in full sentences the whole way
  • Watch on: heart rate stays under ~150. Over it → walk 60 sec, resume slower. Walk breaks are this session done right, not failed
  • Then 4 strides: 15–20 sec quick-but-smooth accelerations, walk back after each
THU 03

Optional 15 min jog

  • Or nothing. Nothing is fine.
FRI 04

Rest — bank it

  • Lay out kit. Plan the route. Sleep.
SAT 05

GATE — bleep test, full send 10.8+

  • This is the entrance bar itself. Fresh legs, cool morning, perfect turns — collect it
  • Find 20 m in the park and pace it out (~26 steps) — any free “beep test” app plays the audio
  • Levels 1–6 are free: jog them, don't bounce. Turns: one foot ON the line, turn low, push off flat
  • Keep going until you genuinely can't reach the line before the beep, twice in a row
  • Stamp your level below (e.g. 9.4 = level 9, shuttle 4) — then 4 relaxed 200 m and done
SUN 06

Rest — actually nothing

  • Legs up. Tomorrow you collect.
TEST COLLECT 07 SEP Sixty-three days buy one morning. 0/1 logged
MON 07

STANDARD DAY — prove the whole bar

  • The real entrance test comes ~October. Today you bank the full standard, with margin
  • Bleep to 10.8 — levels 1–6 jogged, turns tight, nothing heroic before level 8
  • Rest 30+ min, then the PJFT+ circuit: 3 × (20 burpees · 30 sit-ups · 20 press-ups · 60-sec plank) + 5 pull-ups
  • Coffee (~200 mg caffeine) 45 min before · nothing hard in the previous 48 h
03Stamped results 4 logged
Log a result
10 JUL Pull-up max 8 reps strict, clean
10 JUL Sit-up max 40 reps
10 JUL Push-up max 22 reps strict
09 JUL 5K time trial 30:00 Estimated even-pace equivalent — TT cut at 4.39 km after blowing up at 4 km (HR ~200)