Pfitzinger Pete - Advanced Marathoning

• Bite off small chunks. Over a few years,you can double or triple your mileage, but increasing mileage too much at once is almost certain to lead to injury or overtiredness. Unfortunately, there’s no scientific evidence indicating how great an increase over a given period is safe. A commonly used, but unvalidated, rule of thumb is to increase mileage by a maximum of 10 percent per week. Jack Daniels (2005) recommends increasing mileage by no more than 1 mile (1.6 km) for each training session that you run per week. For example, if you run six times per week, you would increase your mileage by up to 6 miles (10 km) per week.

• Increase in steps. When charting new territory, don’t increase your mileage week after week. That approach is very likely to lead to injury. Instead, increase your mileage 1 week, then stay at that level for 2 or 3 weeks before increasing again.

• Avoid speed work while upping your mileage. Don’t increase your mileage during a phase of training that includes hard speed work. Fast intervals put your body under a great deal of stress. Increasing your mileage adds more stress. Save the majority of your mileage increases for base training, when you can avoid intervals.

• Reduce your training intensity. When increasing your mileage, it helps to slightly reduce the overall intensity of your training. By backing off the intensity, you can increase your volume without increasing the strain of training. You can then return the intensity to its previous level before upping your mileage again.

• Not all miles are created equal. When building your mileage, it’s particularly important to train on soft surfaces to reduce the accumulated jarring on your body and to wear running shoes that suit your needs and are in good repair.

• Give yourself a break. Don’t let mileage become a goal in itself. Aimlessly running high mileage can lead to chronic overtiredness and burnout. Your training should be focused on a target race such as a marathon. When you have run your target race, give your body a break before building your mileage for your next goal.

My highest sustained mileage was before the 1984 Olympic trials marathon. With Alberto Salazar, Greg Meyer, Tony Sandoval, and Bill Rodgers in the race, making the Olympic team necessitated no compromises. My previous training had peaked at 125 miles (201 km) per week. At the time, I thought that was all my body could handle.

The trials were held in May. For 8 weeks during January and February, I averaged 143 miles (230 km) per week, with a high week of 152 (245) and a low week of 137 (220). Most of this was run at a fairly brisk pace (5:40 to 6:10 per mile), but I was in base training and didn’t need to do much speed work.

After I cut my mileage to 100 to 120 miles (161 to 193 km) per week for the last 2 months before the trials, my legs felt fresh and strong all the time. Having adapted to the higher volume, I was able to do high-quality intervals and tempo runs while still running well over 100 miles (161 km) per week. While that mileage looks daunting to me now, there’s little question that January’s and February’s high-mileage training contributed to the improvement that allowed me to win the 1984 trials.

Besides the physiological benefits, high-mileage training provided me with psychological benefits for the marathon. When I was coming up through the ranks, 2:10 marathoner Garry Bjorklund revealed to me that he was running 160 miles (257 km) per week. When I asked him if that much mileage was necessary, he said, “It’s not necessary before every marathon, but you need to do it at least once to know you can.”

– Pete Pfitzinger

High-mileage training – and its many benefits – needn’t be solely the domain of the elite. When I was training most seriously, during the 1990s, I averaged 72 miles (116 km) per week, with a peak of 125 miles (201 km) in a week; in 1993, I averaged 95 miles (153 km) per week for the year. All of this occurred while I usually worked 45 hours a week or more at a regular job and put in additional time as a freelance writer.

For many people, our priorities are reflected in how we spend our time. I enjoy running, and I would rather try to be modestly good at it than to simply accept being mediocre, as I would definitely be without hard training. So to the question “Where do you find the time?” the answer is simply “I make it.” I’ve chosen to have running be one of the few things that I concentrate on, and I allot my time accordingly. (Which means you won’t see me at a lot of after-work happy hours.)

For the most part, running a decent amount while living a “normal” life means giving a day’s one or two runs as much importance when planning my schedule as I do work and other obligations. Besides setting aside time for running, this also means getting to bed at a decent hour most nights; allowing time for a few good stretching and weightlifting sessions each week; and not cramming my weekends with activities so that I can use these days to recharge physically and mentally.

If you’re devoted to getting in the miles, you can almost always find ways to squeeze more time out of your schedule. For example, I’ve had three jobs where logistics allowed running to or from work at least once a week. For another job with a horrific commute on the Washington, D.C., beltway, the best solution was to run from the office at the end of the workday so that by the time I started driving home, the worst of the traffic was over. On other days, I would leave the house early to beat the morning rush hour and run from the office before work.

Of course, you might have other high priorities in your life besides running. In the months before a marathon, however, it’s worth setting some of them aside to concentrate on your training. High mileage and the real world aren’t inherently incompatible.

– Scott Douglas

Putting all of the evidence together suggests that your running economy should gradually improve over the years and that there may be ways to help hurry the process along. For marathoners, probably the two most worthwhile ways to try to improve running economy are increasing mileage over time so that your fast-twitch fibers gain the positive characteristics of slow-twitch fibers and running short repetitions (80 to 120 meters) fast but relaxed.

Running short repetitions quickly but with relaxed form – strides – may train your muscles to eliminate unnecessary movements and maintain control at fast speeds. These adaptations may translate to improved economy at marathon pace. Along with improved running form, you’ll gain power in your legs and trunk that may also contribute to improved running economy. Because these intervals are short and are performed with sufficient rest between them, lactate levels remain low to moderate throughout the workout. As a result, they won’t interfere with your more marathon-specific workouts.

A typical session is 10 repetitions of 100 meters in which you accelerate up to full speed over the first 70 meters and then float for the last 30 meters. It’s critical to remain relaxed during these accelerations. Avoid clenching your fists, lifting your shoulders, tightening your neck muscles, and so on. Concentrate on running with good form, and focus on one aspect of good form, such as relaxed arms or complete hip extension, during each acceleration.

These sessions aren’t designed to improve your cardiovascular system, so there’s no reason to use a short rest between accelerations. A typical rest is to jog and walk 100 to 200 meters between repetitions; this allows you to pretty much fully recover before you start the next strider. The most important considerations are to maintain good running form and to concentrate on accelerating powerfully during each repetition. When in doubt, take a little more rest so that you can run each strider with good form.