Fam running 65-70mpw=27:37 10k

HOW DARE YOU?!?!? How dare you imply that sometimes more mileage is not better. The nerve of you. You know darn well that Doug Padilla must be a liar. He MUST have run 150 miles a week. It is the "only way." See, someone started THIS thread with the premise that some great runners run just as well off of moderate mileage as they do off of higer mileage. But the letsrun minions quickly swooped in to attack this idea and put it to rest. It quickly became clear (thanks to said minions) that Fam was either

a) lying

b) not counting morning runs

c) running waaaaaaaaaaaay below his potential

d) ran much better in the past off of higher mileage

e) ALL OF THE ABOVE

The below people (following orders by Trackhead himself) helped us reach the "right" conclusion. I thank them. Follow the below truths the set forth (only problem is: Fam ran 8k in central park in 2002 JUST AS FAST as he did in 2004 after his big jump in mileage. Fam ran nearly as fast in SC off his moderate mileage as he did off of higher mileage. And Fam just ran a STUNNING 10k debut off of a more moderate mileage protocol. Oh well, I will just have to go back to Lydiard school and have my mind re-programmed for thinking these awful thoughts)-

rfdfdfdf wrote:

Doug Padilla ran 13:15 on 50mpw

You can always find a few examples of people running really well off lower than average mileage. However, for every one of those, you will likely find 10 or more who have to run a lot more mileage to be successful. Everyone is different and everyone has to find his/her sweet spot for mileage, but in general, it takes most people more than 50-75 miles per week to really excel at distance events.

This guy will not beat mottram,he losed to him to the road mile last year by over 7 seconds, come on, if his with mottram the last half mile he will losed cause mottram has better leg speed.

Alright alright Lancy.

i happen to know fam personally, and everyone is quoting an interview from 2004. in 2004 he did run a few 100 mile weeks in 2004 and what started as a promising season did not amount up to the times that he wanted to run. my guess is that he has backed off this season. he just came from altitude, and i can promise you he was not doing 100 mile weeks there. if you have ever trained at altitude, unless you are used to it, your body would have a difficult time recovering from that kind of mileage (for those of you that train at altitude on a regular basis, different story). plus he lives in NYC. Tell me where he is running 100 mile weeks at. Besides most elite runners run over 100miles a couple weeks out of the year, they are not averaging 100 miles for a long period of time. why would you run over 65 miles if you are only racing 6 miles. that just breaks down the body. different things work for different people. and if you read his article, he says at the elite level you have to enter every race thinking you are going to win or have a chance of winning. maybe he will not beat Mottram, but he says he is going to give it all he has. fam has always been a low mileage guy, that works for him. different things work for different people. no matter what he is doing he had a great 10k the other week, and hopefully that will continue onto this weekend. curious about this video.

I understood that Doug Padilla ran 60 miles a week. The exception was when he did a short span of 70 mile weeks, after which he set his indoor 2-mile and 3-mile records.

Some very fast times for only 60-70 mile weeks, but he simply liked doing something fast every day, rather than bulk up on mileage, and he was lucky enough to get away with it. Have you ever seen that guy? He's built like the Africans with a very high waist and weighs like 105 pounds!

ya hearme wrote:

why would you run over 65 miles if you are only racing 6 miles.

that is some stupid shit. El G's base phase is over 200km/wk. Geb was running 120-130mpw when he was racing 5k/10k. Mottram is another example.

Padilla is a friend of friend and I am told that he regularly topped out at 70 -- but JD has said on here that even Doug wondered what could ahve been...

Isn't it remotely possible that those 85-100 weeks built the long-term base Fam needed to run a 10K in 27:37??? Just b/c mileage didn't work that same season doesn't mean it didn't work, it might just mean it worked a little later than Fam anticipated.

Impartial Observer wrote:

I do not believe that anyone, including the very gifted, can run in the 27:30s on 65 miles a week. Maybe some genetic freaks can run in the mid 28s off that mileage, but under 28??? Highly doubtful.

You're dead right. But there is one and only one way ...

Think Cathal Lombard.

rfdfdfdf wrote:

Doug Padilla ran 13:15 on 50mpw

And he jogged 100 miles a week.

kwkbrook wrote:

Isn't it remotely possible that those 85-100 weeks built the long-term base Fam needed to run a 10K in 27:37??? Just b/c mileage didn't work that same season doesn't mean it didn't work, it might just mean it worked a little later than Fam anticipated.

Took the words right out of my mouth.

in track and field news magazine it says bekele runs 90mpw.

bekele may do 90 when racing , but he i can safely assume he gets gets anywhere in the 200-300km range, on 2 a days, as said directly from sihine...

Doug Padilla had asthma (to what degree I don't know).

I wonder if that could have lead him train a higher pace at less volume?

MY high school coach ran 14:17 for the 5k, with only two years of running 40 miles a week in mid 1980's. People that say runners are not gifted are stupid. Look at AJ ACOSTA, his freshman year with only 35 miles a week ran 4:18 and 1:59 and he started running his freashman year. My coach in middle school ran a 4:50 mile in middle school with no running experience.

Look at bekele at age 17 ran a 7:30 3k. I cure run 100 mile weeks for the rest of my life and never break 7:30 for the 3k.

My p.r right now is 9:53.

Nobody ever said runners aren't gifted. I know guys who logged a mere 60 miles a week and busted 14 for 5k. But your coach's 14:17 is simply nowhere near a 27:37, and I don't believe that a guy can run that fast running 65 miles a week. I think it's bs. Doug Padilla was a genetic freak, like Alan Webb, who possessed superior mile speed, which translated to a fast 5k but wouldn't to a longer distance than that without additional training. Even Webb had to pump up the volume to get into the 27 range. And Fam, while fast, doesn't have that freaky basic mile speed. As I said before, a mid-28 10k is fathomable for the very-talented, but 65 miles a week... give me a break. Maybe if it was the last four weeks of peaking directly for the race.

I recall in an interview with Shorter years ago he said something to the effect that 90 min. a day gets the job done. That sounds about right for the 10k on up.

Shorter averaged 120 mpw for the DECADE of the 1970's(well over 90 mins per day!), so I'd think with 2 Oly medals (1 gold) that one can safely say he is one of the prime examples of running mileage. He might've run 90 mins per day in his last 2 weeks before peaking...

Fam said he averaged closer to 65 at altitude, which is more like 70-75. Even if he did do easy recovery runs in the mornings, bringing his totals to 80-100 for the week, would the quality have been different? No, it is all about quality, and apparently Fam can recover very well (something that has a lot to do with innate talent). Look at his 8:24 steeple 5 days after his 10k. Anyone who runs 10ks on the track knows that they beat you up, especially the first one of the season. He must be really fit (a), and he must have a phenomenal recovery rate (b). Plus, I agree with what is being said about his aerobic base. The guy has been running competitively for how long now? 12 years? His aerobic base is there. Also, you say 14:17 isn't 27:37? Well, 27:37 is not 26:20, either. I love Fam.