How to SAFELY Increase Your Running Mileage

It is obviously the goal for nearly every distance runner to increase their distance. Certainly, adding more miles to your program is still the best way to build endurance and to be a better runner. If this is done carelessly though, it is also the best way to invite injury.

Most runners simply are not very accurate, consistent or prudent in adding mileage to their program. The "10 percent rule", in which runners add 10% more mileage every other week is often used to increase mileage. But you would do better to be even more conservative than that.

If you followed the 10 percent rule, how far would you be running in three or four months? Way too much. There is a limit to how many miles you can safely add and how fast you can add them. Modest and consistent training is all important, and the slower you build the better.

Smart runners learn to stretch consistently, while very gradually adding strength work and mileage, but not necessarily intensity. Limit additions to your weekly mileage to only five percent every other week.

As you reach 30 to 35 miles per week, level off until you become very comfortable with this amount. Make this your solid base before adding more miles. Except for those few runners lucky enough to be born with great joints, most begin to see a breakdown around this point unless they pause to establish a strong foundation. Base training is fundamental to staying healthy and building confidence. The injury rate begins to soar once an individual begins to run beyond 40 miles a week. Be very careful about how much mileage you add as you approach that amount. The mileage should include the long run coupled with one speed session during the week (see Kick's tips on speedwork for more details). This will lead to consistency and improvement.

The most important and often underrated component of a good running program is rest. The body adapts and gets stronger only if you give it a chance to recover after vigorous workouts. All too often, the runner's ego might stop you from listening to common sense: smart training means responding when your body says it's time to do less. Don't feel that you have to train harder than you really need.

As you build mileage, keep in mind that rest and recovery are essential. This means not only should you take a rest day after your long run (and you certainly should), but also that you should think in terms of an entire week of rest after high-mileage efforts. Every two or three weeks, indulge your legs with a rest week by cutting down your weekly mileage by 10 or even 20 percent. The next week, you can resume your normal mileage again.

The overall lesson to be learned here is to build miles very, very gradually, with plenty of stretching and plenty of rest.