Building a Mileage Base

Now that the Winter is upon us and for many of us the race season has come to a close, it is time to start thinking about building a solid mileage base for next Spring. This is especially important if you’ve qualified for the Boston Marathon or something similar (although outside of a race overseas or a triathlon, I’m not sure I can think of anything similar) and you need to improve your endurance and cardiovascular stamina.

By building a solid mileage base now, you will be better served by your speed work in the Spring and your race times will undoubtedly improve. Let’s say you are running 10k a week now and you want to run 15k a week, or rather than running half-marathon distances on a weekly basis you want to run full marathon distances. Winter base building is the perfect off-season training strategy for you.

The Golden Rule

The golden rule in building a mileage base is not to increase your weekly mileage by more than 10% at a time. This is important to prevent over-training and injury. Although I have broken this rule on several occasions, considering the time available there is no reason to rush yourself or risk injury.

I recommend alternating between light and difficult runs and adding no more than 1-2 miles per week to your long run. For example, let’s say that you are currently running 20 miles per week and want to increase your weekly mileage to 30 miles per week.

Week 1

• Day 1: 6 miles
• Day 2: 4 miles
• Day 3: 8 miles
• Day 4: 2 miles

Week 2

• Day 1: 6 miles
• Day 2: 4 miles
• Day 3: 9 miles
• Day 4: 3 miles

Week 3

• Day 1: 7 miles
• Day 2: 5 miles
• Day 3: 9 miles
• Day 4: 4 miles

Week 4

• Day 1: 8 miles
• Day 2: 6 miles
• Day 3: 10 miles
• Day 4: 4 miles

Week 5

• Day 1: 8 miles
• Day 2: 6 miles
• Day 3: 10 miles
• Day 4: 6 miles

As you can see, using the 10% method you can achieve an increase of 10 miles per week in just 4 weeks. I didn’t count week 1 because I assume that is what you are already doing. If you don’t have time for 4 run days per week, you could still apply the same strategy and simply adjust the numbers where needed. You can also apply the same strategy for a larger number of miles, such as when attempting to move from half-marathon prep to full marathon prep. The key is to simply be consistent so that your body adapts to the increased load, and to make sure you take advantage of the long runs. The long runs are very important for building the cardiovascular and slow-twitch base needed for the Spring.

This is also an excellent tool for new or beginner runners who are looking to simply run their first race, whether it be a 5k, 10k, half-marathon, or full marathon. By effectively building a solid mileage base, you are increasing your ability to endure over long runs. That part is fairly straightforward, however the added benefit is that when you start your speed work in late Winter or early Spring, you will have stronger legs and lungs, which will incrementally increase your ability to perform under stress during interval workouts or other speed drills. The goal for most of us is setting a new PR, and this is the strategy that will help you do that.

Even if you don’t plan on running longer races, I still strongly encourage you to give this method a try. An increase of just a few miles can make a big difference when Spring rolls around. If you are comfortable running a half-marathon, then just think of how easy a 10k will feel!

When the Spring nears, we will talk more about speed drills and interval workouts to fine tune your speed for Spring race season, but until then get outside and start building up those lungs!