How fast is the average athlete that puts in 70+ miles a week?

David45 is this you

washington1776therealone wrote:

David45 is this you

Nah, not a guy trying to feel better about himself, just a guy wondering how fast the average person gets putting in ideal mileage.

It all depends on talent, weight and age. 70 mpw alone doesn't say a thing.

Male

2:30

5:40

20

42

Given that a lot of people probably can’t run 70 mpw and stay healthy, this is very difficult to answer.

Heck I have had 2 all conference awards in college and I’ve never run close to 70 mpw due to injury issues.

Talent beats training wrote:

Male

2:30

5:40

20

42

You really think so? About 80% of the guys on my XC team run sub 20 on like 30 miles a week. I know that an XC team is a VERY biased sample, but even our relatively "untalented" runners break 20 if they work hard enough.

David46 wrote:

Given that a lot of people probably can’t run 70 mpw and stay healthy, this is very difficult to answer.

Heck I have had 2 all conference awards in college and I’ve never run close to 70 mpw due to injury issues.

The new and improved david is a winner and not a whiner? Who woulda thought?

Anyways, I guess I shoulda been more specific. If your average 16:30-18:00 HS 5K XC guy that just runs the coach prescribed 35 mpw successfully moves up to 70 mpw and sustains it, how fast would they get?

70 mpw for, say, 8-12 consistent months without injury and with 2 workouts per week (one fast, one higher volume) for an averagely-talented runner under 40yo should be:

1:57

4:24

15:59

32:59

Consistent mileage, over time, can turn an average runner into an above average runner with the right mentality.

The average marathon runner does 70MPW and runs 4 hours so I was pretty generous.

Talent beats training wrote:

The average marathon runner does 70MPW and runs 4 hours so I was pretty generous.

No chance. I bet the average one 35 mpw and yes runs around 4 hours. They have a few weeks over 40 when their long run is a huge percentage of that. Otherwise 6 mile runs 4x a week plus long run. Some run 3:15 on that, others 5:15.

krispy kremlin._._._._ wrote:

70 mpw for, say, 8-12 consistent months without injury and with 2 workouts per week (one fast, one higher volume) for an averagely-talented runner under 40yo should be:

1:57

4:24

15:59

32:59

Consistent mileage, over time, can turn an average runner into an above average runner with the right mentality.

No way, the average runner does not have the speed to run 1:57 or 4:24 off of any mileage

2:15

5:00

17:40

37:00

2:55

Talent beats training wrote:

The average marathon runner does 70MPW and runs 4 hours so I was pretty generous.

70mpw for the average marathon runner? Fkn LOL

krispy kremlin._._._._ wrote:

70 mpw for, say, 8-12 consistent months without injury and with 2 workouts per week (one fast, one higher volume) for an averagely-talented runner under 40yo should be:

1:57

4:24

15:59

32:59

Consistent mileage, over time, can turn an average runner into an above average runner with the right mentality.

pfft maybe if you're a slow loser. I think every male born with 2 legs should be able to go sub 4 in the mile if they train at least 9 miles a week. a guy trying out for my xc team who played pickup basketball once when he was 13 and was bedridden in the hospital for 6 years with a coma before he sprung up one morning and immediately jogged a 4:15 off 0 miles a week and no warmup. he was like 11th or 12th on our team that year and got cut for being an untalented nobody

At 70 for me:

800: 1:53

1600: 4:12

5k: 14:45

10k: no thanks

Talent beats training wrote:

Male

2:30

5:40

20

42

2:30 guy who runs 70mpw can probably run ten seconds faster in 1600. And with 5:30 and 70 mpw, he could probably run 18:30 and 38:30.

If you think 20/42 is what the average guy could run with 70mpw, then 800/1600 would be much slower than 2:30/5:40.

krispy kremlin._._._._ wrote:

70 mpw for, say, 8-12 consistent months without injury and with 2 workouts per week (one fast, one higher volume) for an averagely-talented runner under 40yo should be:

1:57

4:24

15:59

32:59

Consistent mileage, over time, can turn an average runner into an above average runner with the right mentality.

Seems close. I'm mid 30s doing constant 58-59 mpw and I'm at 16:2X, 33:5X now. Given sustainable training of 70 mpw for a year I'm sure I could pull 15:59. Btw I've no speed (400 pb is only 61).

krispy kremlin._._._._ wrote:

70 mpw for, say, 8-12 consistent months without injury and with 2 workouts per week (one fast, one higher volume) for an averagely-talented runner under 40yo should be:

1:57

4:24

15:59

32:59

Consistent mileage, over time, can turn an average runner into an above average runner with the right mentality.

Yeah, just like the average student with an IQ of 105 could get a PhD in astrophysics if they studied 40 hours a week instead of 20.

The above average wrote:

800?

1600?

5K?

10K?

FWIW, I only averaged 70 mpw for one season (9th grade cross country) and my times for that year (including 8th grade track) were 2:18, 4:58, 17:52 & ~40 min. Not sure it’s enough to affect the average but there are likely at least a few other poorly coached youths forced into that kind of mileage too early who can’t handle it well for long.