Running program for spring

(First, my apologies in advance. I am going to start my seasonal flurry of running posts - it is an obsession, after all! But if you are not into this, just skip it!)

Talk about starting behind! I am almost 5 kg over my baseline weight, and have not been running much this winter. I also want to at least run once again in the Corporate Challenge race in the end of May. This year I don't expect to better my best time, as I am not going to be quite as fit), but hope to run at least 7:30 per mile. So here is the plan:

• Phase 1 - get my basic fitness level up, and overall make myself less prone to running injury. This means running 4x per week, 5 or 6 km per run. Emphasis is not speed, but not quitting. Goal is to get my resting heart rate down consistently below 48 beats / minute. I started this last week, and hopefully by mid-April I will be there.
• Phase 2 - build base endurance. Run 4 x per week, two easy runs at 5km, one middle run at around 7, and a long run at 8+ (working up to 10km) at least once per 2 weeks. Every two weeks either the 5 km should be a medium-fast run, or interval work. This phase will continue throughout May. Now, here is the hardest part of all - by race day, I need to be down to 174 lbs (79 kg). Nearly impossible - but I'll try!
• Possibly run a 5K race one or two weeks beforehand - don't run it too fast (or I will quit running before Corp. Challenge - my normal reaction to running races "hard"). Aim for 7:45 per mile average.
• Run the Corporate Challenge. Expect to have an terrible, non-fun time and feel sick for the next day or so. DON'T INJURE!

OK, so far I have been doing well enough. In the last 6 days I have run 4 times - twice 5 km, the other two 5.5 km. Today I did a pretty hard run (enough to feel pretty crummy afterwards), over an uneven grass path (mostly flat) for 3.5 miles are around an 8 minute / mile pace. 5 hours later, while writing this my heart rate is 54, which is pretty good, given there is still heart rate recovery going on.