When someone says "I run 60, 70, 80, 100" mpw, is that an average or the peak?

It depends. Is your long run on Wednesday or on the weekend?

Usually I find that people state their peak +10 as their average mileage.

I guess I say peak training range...so when I say 60-70, that doesn't include scheduled down weeks, race weeks, time lost due to injury or sickness, etc.

I don't think anyone ever adds the total miles for the year and divides by 52 when causally discussing their mileage.

They may specify averages over a certain period.

Or just talk about their high weeks.

My highest week ever is 73 and you average 77.

It sounds like we run nearly the same mileage.

Plenty of people say, "I run 100 mpw." Plenty of people say, "I do as much as 100 mpw". With all of these people it's understood that they're not doing it every single week.

The group of people who actually say they AVERAGE 100 mpw is quite small.

When I say I run 100 mpw, I have a range in training of 90-120. Most weeks are about 105 with a few lower and a few higher.

i work in a running store, and most people say their peak mileage.

It depends on who I am talking to . . .

Joe blow couch potato: "I run 70 miles a week."

Local fast runners: "I'm trying to get my weekly average up . . . I averaged 42 miles over the last 26 weeks and hit 73 a couple of times but had to take some down time because of injuries caused by ramping up my mileage too much."

Personally I try to give an honest estimate of how much I run in a normal, good training week. I typically run between 100-110 miles on a good week, but sometimes I only make 80s or even lower... life happens. So, if someone asks I just say "around 100 a week" not counting tapering, recovery, illness or whatever might slow me down for a week.

When someone asks how much I ran per week, I tell them a range of my base mileage to my in season mileage.

So my training is structured like this.

Base: build up to ~80-85 mpw week MAX, more typically 75-80.

In season: closer to 70-80 per week.

Tapering: drops down to 60-70.

And I take about two weeks off after XC and two weeks off after outdoors.

When people ask what I run, I tell them 70-80 miles. So, less than my max, but probably more than my actual average. In statistical terms, I'm using the mode.

Hope that helps.

I usually think back over the last 3-6 weeks and give a range, i.e "Around 50 to 60".

HighMileageWannaBe wrote:

Just curious. How do you guys think of your mileage?

Typical letsrunner:

I usually take my peak mileage and than add about 40 to it.

Typical kenyan:

I usually take my peak mileage and than subtract about 30 from it.

Typical Sebastian Coe:

I usually take my peak mileage and than not count anything slower than 6 minute mile pace.

Typical Usain Bolt:

I usually don't keep track of my training man because dats too much of a burden, maan.

Typical '60s/'70s U.S. distance runner:

I usually take my peak average mileage and than subtact 20 from it too keep myself hungry.

Typical '80s/'90s U.S. distance runner:

I usually take my peak mileage and than add .2 of a mile for each minute of pylometrics I do.

Typical Hansons runner:

I usually take my peak mileage but then realize I am not talented to ever win anything on any amount of training, so just make up whatever numbers sound good.

Typical Galen Rupp:

I usually take my peak mileage, but am unsure of what that is due to so many miles on the alter-G treadmill and never passing a math class on my own-I just let Uncle Salazar talk to the press about that kind of stuff anyway, especially if I have a cold.

Typical Steve Scott/Todd Williams/Bob Kennedy:

We usually just take our peak mileage, because we are old school and tell it like it is.

Typical Roger Bannister:

I usually just tell people I broke 4 minutes off of 15 miles a week so they think I am as talented as that uncouth bastard Hicham El Guerrouj.

Typical English runner:

We run kilometers, f*** off!

Typical English runner:

We run kilometers, f*** off!

Brilliant, but wrong. I'm a typical English runner and I never heard anyone talk about kilometres per week. I wish we did because I just managed 100 last month ;-)

French, Italians, Spanish - sure. They don't have that magic '100 miles per week' to aim for - 100km is just too normal.

captainrobbo wrote:

Typical English runner:

We run kilometers, f*** off!

Brilliant, but wrong. I'm a typical English runner and I never heard anyone talk about kilometres per week. I wish we did because I just managed 100 last month ;-)

French, Italians, Spanish - sure. They don't have that magic '100 miles per week' to aim for - 100km is just too normal.

Yea, I thought about putting "Typical European runner" but then the "f*** off!" part wouldn't really apply-at least not in the English language.

Typical Lydiard follower wantabe:

I ran 100 mpw last week like Lydiard said to.

If they really followed Lydiard they would have said I ran for a total duration of 9 hours with a mixture of fast aerobic running, moderate aerobic running, and easy aerobic running. The runs consisted of 4 one hour runs, 2 one and half hour runs and 1 two hour run.

"The magic is in a combination of the mans talent, duration he trains, and his heart"

-Lydiarite-

I always give a range. I basically go by a 4 week cycle, and am almost always between 90 and 100 for my 3 up weeks, and 70 for my down week. So I say I run 70-100 miles a week.

Typical Jordan Hasay:

I swim a lot too. Ever heard of me?

the reality of it wrote:

captainrobbo wrote:

Brilliant, but wrong. I'm a typical English runner and I never heard anyone talk about kilometres per week. I wish we did because I just managed 100 last month ;-)

French, Italians, Spanish - sure. They don't have that magic '100 miles per week' to aim for - 100km is just too normal.

Yea, I thought about putting "Typical European runner" but then the "f*** off!" part wouldn't really apply-at least not in the English language.

I can't imagine why on earth English runners would be using the "English system" of measurement ;)

I don't think about the entire year, just around the past couple months. For mean, median, or mode, when I say I run x mpw, I am speaking of mode. but it is likely to be a rough estimate because I don't keep track very well.