Corrida de Houilles 2026: eight weeks to December 27, every workout on your Garmin

Your training, timed for December 27

The plan lasts 8 weeks, starting on Mon, November 2.

1. Weeks 1–2

   Base

   Nov 2 → Nov 15

   Settle the routine, ease into interval work

2. Weeks 3–5

   Development

   Nov 16 → Dec 6

   Raise the ceiling (VMA) and the ability to hold pace (threshold)

3. Weeks 6–7

   Race-specific

   Dec 7 → Dec 20

   Learn race pace

4. Week 8

   Taper

   Dec 21 → Dec 27

   Arrive fresh and sharp

Two 3.1-mile loops through central Houilles

Both 10K races start on Rue Gambetta and finish in central Houilles, on the same line: the Populaire at 3:15 p.m., then the Course des As, the international elite race, at 5 p.m. The course is two 5 km (3.1-mile) loops with 32 m (105 ft) of climbing, according to the organizer's course page, which describes its circuits as fast and suited to good times.

Time limit: 1 h 15 min. One aid station on the course and one at the finish. For its 54th edition, the race holds the French athletics federation's Gold road label and the World Athletics Road Race Label; its 10K races are qualifiers for the French championships. A 5K starts at 2 p.m., and kids' races from 1 p.m.

Three workouts for a fast two-loop 10K

On a fast course, a 10K comes down to holding your pace from the first mile to the last, and to starting the second loop as fast as the first. Three workouts your assistant creates and sends to your watch:

• — MAS: 15 min warm-up, 10 × 1 min at 100% of MAS (maximal aerobic speed), 1 min jogging recovery, 10 min cool-down.
• — 10K pace: 5 × 0.6 miles at goal pace (around 90% of MAS), 90 s recovery.
• — The two loops: 2 × 2 miles at 10K pace, 3 min easy between them, checking that the second block is as fast as the first.

Running Workout's 10K plan builds these kinds of workouts week by week, with three, four or five sessions depending on the version you pick; paces come from your MAS read from Garmin.

From November to Christmas: eight weeks of short days

Starting on November 2, the plan runs through the shortest days of the year: many workouts will happen after dark or over lunch. Race week is Christmas week: it's the lighter taper week, and December 25 falls on a Friday, two days before the race.

Starts are in the afternoon, at 3:15 or 5 p.m.: on weekends, schedule one or two quality sessions at that time. Missed a week in December? Your assistant reads your Garmin activities, reviews the week and reshuffles the rest of the plan without trying to catch up.

Registration and race day

Registration is online only, on protiming.fr, until Sunday, December 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m.; there is no on-site registration. Your French federation (FFA) licence or Parcours Prévention Santé (PPS) must be uploaded to your runner account by December 20. The organizer warns that the races regularly sell out.

Bib pickup is at the race village on Saturday, December 26, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, December 27, from 10 a.m. until one hour before each start. Access by RER A, Houilles–Carrières-sur-Seine station.

Frequently asked questions