Seb Coe did not do low mileage. He did high mileage but did not add it all up to his total because those miles were slow.
You can probably win Foot Locker in high school with 40 miles per week (and actually, many have), but to be an Olympian, you better hit at least 80.
Kenyans are such big liars and are bamboozling American joggers nationwide! They claim to do their easy runs at 8:00... 9:00... 10:00 minute pace per mole!!! That is just way too darn slow.
I've read so many threads from this site where a high schooler has an LSD (Long Slow Distance) Summer and then race like dirt during the season.
I've been preaching this for such a long time: run your easy days fast and do speed work year-round. The Newbury Park team does this and have the best cross country team in the nation. They have 4 athletes who are serious contenders for national high school records.
I ran under 4:30 in my first year of running. If you want to be like me, follow this cross country schedule loosely:
Day 1 10 miles
Day 2 3-5 miles
Day 3 8x800, double rest
Day 4 3-5 miles
Day 5 4 miles FAST
Day 6 12x400, 2 minute rest
Day 7 3 miles
Day 8 3x2, 10 minute rest
Day 9 3-5 miles
Day 10 OFF
Oh yeah, and Newbury Park also operates under a 10 day schedule.