I had run 10 miles that Monday morning — not bad for me as I worked to come back from the injuries that derailed my training all through 2019. Still, a voice in my brain told me “it’s not enough.” Instead of taking a positive step, I allowed my mileage monster to convince me that I still wasn’t doing enough.
Running high weekly mileage has been important to me for about five years. I remember when I decided to focus on bumping up my total miles. I was in the middle of my two straight years of qualifying for the Boston Marathon but still missing the cut. Boston was all that mattered in my running world.
Then I read an article featuring Deena Kastor. In it, she discussed how her running changed when she retired. She was happy to have more time for her family along with less weekly miles. Then the article said she had dropped from 115-120 miles a week to 70-80.
My first thought was “70-80 miles is more than I ever run in a week!” My second thought was “I should be running a lot more miles if I want to get faster and run Boston.”
That’s where my mileage monster started. Since that moment, my weekly miles have never been enough.
A lot of positive things have come from running more miles. When I started hitting 80+ miles in a week, my body adapted. I learned how to run through fatigue and still hold pace on tired legs. My confidence skyrocketed. I lined up for marathons knowing I had put in the work required for my goal time. That was a great feeling.
Higher mileage through 2015 helped set up huge breakthroughs for me in 2016 — my first sub 3 hour marathon which secured my first Boston Marathon. Then came six sub 3s in 2017 and my next breakthrough with a 2:42 in Phoenix and a 2:45 in Boston in 2018.
But when I started to struggle with injuries last year, my inner voice added to my issues. Each running reboot came with my mileage monster telling me to run more. Before I was ready. And at the expense of doing more strength and stretching.
I get comments from people all the time about how many miles I run. Most of them aren’t positive. But I know my body and my training — high mileage works for me. I topped 3,000 total miles for four straight years before injury knocked me down. Still, I totaled 2,738 miles in 2019, even with more than a month and a half completely off.
My highest yearly total came in 2017 when I ran 3,653 miles for a 10-mile daily average. Still, my brain wanted me to total 4,000 for the year.
I also hate tapering before a race — and I race a lot. The week before I ran my PR (2:42:46 at the Mesa-Phoenix Marathon in 2018), I totaled 101 miles. That included 22 on Friday, 13 on Saturday, and 20 on Sunday. Then I ran 16 total on Monday, just five days before racing on Saturday.
My current struggles aren’t tied to running more miles than my body can handle. They are a result of trying to get back to my optimal high-mileage training too quickly. And letting my inner mileage monster dictate unhealthy training.
Last May, I knew my hip flexor was too tight. I went out for a workout anyway. Then, when my hamstring tightened as a result, I pushed through to complete my mile repeats. The next day I struggled to walk. And still I limped two miles in hopes that I could shake everything loose and continue.
That poor choice led to six weeks of no running and missed races I had on my calendar.
2019 was my toughest running year by far. And it came from the same inner emotions that led me to success in previous years — never settling and always wanting more.
So what can I do now to make 2020 a true comeback year?
First, I must prioritize my strength and stretching. Without it, I can’t handle medium mileage, much less 80+ miles a week.
Second, learning to say no to that mileage monster. Occasionally. So far, I’ve done well this year. I’ve run a lot of miles, but I’ve also run 3-4 miles on days when I can tell my legs aren’t ready to be pushed more. My brain still tells me that 10+ is what I should be running. But I’ve started to override that voice enough to allow myself recovery.
Third, consistency is more important than hitting big numbers. There are two completely different ways to total high-mileage months. When I’m running and racing well, I tend to stay at the same level weekly. When I’m struggling, I have lower weeks followed by super high weeks in an effort to hit my goals. Running 80 miles a week on average with alternating 60 and 100 mile weeks doesn’t work for me. I need to focus on putting in the work every single week and not trying to play catchup.
As I wrapped up my January training, I felt discouraged. I didn’t feel like I had done enough weekly, and my paces were still dragging behind what I want them to be on long runs. And my easy runs felt difficult and stressful.
Then I got my Strava monthly update email. I ran 319 total miles, my most in a single month since March of last year.
That’s a big deal. I needed to zoom out and look at the larger picture.
I’m on the road back. My running is progressing in the correct direction, even if it’s happening slowly. I just need to learn to override my mileage monster when it’s leading me away from healthy training.
So next time you see me run 15 miles the Monday before a race weekend, just know the mileage monster won a battle. And hopefully my legs are back in 2018 shape and able to handle it.