Ask the Coach: How do I increase my mileage?

Dear Coach,

How should I increase my mileage?  I took a break from running now I want to go back. 

Omar

Dear Omar,

Increasing mileage depends on what your goals are; however, according to Journal of Orthopedic & Sports Physical Therapy, in a study following 873 runners over a year time period, less injuries were seen in runners that increased mileage by about 10% in a week and the most injuries were seen in runners increasing mileage more than 30% in a week. In addition to the increase in mileage, other injuries recorded in the study were due to poor pacing, speed, sprinting, and other training issues such as not allowing enough recovery time between runs, inadequate stretching and/or cross training strengthening, and improper footwear. Therefore, my suggestion would be to start off at slow and shorter distances, take several weeks to start slowly increasing mileage by 10% a week with 1-2 days of speed training while staying within safe heart rate zone.

If you'd like to take the guesswork out of this, I encourage you to sign up for one our our many Training Programs that we offer through Fleet Feet Sports.  All of our Training Programs are led by experienced coaches and are designed with progressive, safe increases mileage to get you to your goals safely.

Good luck training!

Coach Bethany