Three Simple Ways to Increase Your Mileage without Dying!
So, let’s talk about gaining distance WITHOUT dying! There is simple, effective ways to increase your distance and overall weekly mileage without injuring yourself or losing your love for running! So often, I hear runners struggling with confusion with how to simply, grow their mileage. Often times, I find it is a problem that begins with vision/goals and breaks down even further in application.
Runner’s often get these amazing dreams of running multiple miles at a time, increasing distances and running marathons over night and then get discouraged when they (we) realize increasing our mileage takes work and TIME!
But, I want you to know that is possible and even, dare I say, SIMPLE to increase mileage by implementing these three, effective steps.
Let’s dive in, shall we?
1. Start by realizing your goals. This could be a goal distance, a race or overall mileage per week, but you need to have a goal in order to achieve your added distance. I know how easy it is to settle for our comfortable mileage if we are either not chasing after a goal or have someone to hold us accountable! So, write down your goals. Take time to think about what distance or race you want to hit and then put in on the calendar. Give it a timeline! Goals with attached time lines are much more likely to happen than vague ideas and hopes.
2. Pick one day a week that will be your designated ‘long run,’ day. Most often, runners use Saturdays or Sundays as their long run days. However, pick what day works for you and start by adding an additional 10 minutes onto your average run. So if you normally run 3 miles, run an extra 10 minutes after hitting 3 miles on your designated long run day. This will help your body practice stretching to longer distances, without flirting with injuries, since we are doing this ONLY one day a week!
3. Incorporate cut-back weeks. I like to add these into my/my clients training plans (especially if training in higher mileage) to allow the body (and mind) to refresh, heal, and recover before jumping into a big week of training. This looks like a cutting back 15-20% of your weekly mileage which will help you hit big goals, the following week! I like to incorporate these about every three weeks.
And just like that, with consistency, practice, and dedication, I promise your distance will grow and you will hit distances you didn’t realize you had in you!
Hope you all have an awesome day!
Questions of the Day
- So tell me, are you running any upcoming races?
- What is your current mileage goal?