How much can girls improve their mile time in a few months

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I'm assuming this is high school. What grade are you in and how long have you two been running?

It is high school. We started running at the beginning of our 9th grade year. 15-20mpw. We averaged 20-25 during track. Bumped it up to 30-35mpw this summer

FriendlyLobo wrote:

I'm assuming this is high school. What grade are you in and how long have you two been running?

I'd say 6:15-ish is a respectable goal for the next track season. This is if you don't get injured. Bumping mileage from 30 MPW to 50-65 MPW at the age of 14-16 is not exactly what I would call a smart idea for girls or guys. You would likely have better success overall if you average 40 MPW.

At your age, patience is key. Training is a process. You can't expect to double your weekly average and get better results. Sure running high mileage has many physiological advantages, but it can be detrimental if not built up to over a period of months/seasons.

I promise you, if you can be patient with the process, and build up slowly, you will avoid injury and burnout and set yourself up for success your junior and senior years. 5:10-5:30 is definitely within the realm of possibility by then.

To paraphrase the great Percy Cerutty--Work does things, but intelligent work does things better.

Intelligence in this case meaning working within your abilities to slowly increase them.

Thank you for the advice I might just stick with 40mpw this track season.

I only built up about 5mpw per season. 15-20 during last year's xc. Then in track about 20mpw. This summer I did about 25-30 and I threw in a few 33-35 mile weeks.

But I'm not really sure when to start doing tempos during base. From the start of base training or as the season starts?

People say you should build up your aerobic capacity but at what point is it ridiculous? And when is it too slow? I don't think 12 minute pace will do much maybe 9 minute pace?

Obviously I'm not going to go out and run 70-100 mile weeks.

But I'd like to run decent mileage and build up a good base.

That's a good idea. If you've only been increasing by an average of 5 mpw per season, doubling that total from one season to the next is not a great idea.

First off, you should first consult with your coach on this (and every other question). That being said, for a high schooler your age/ability, I would start tempos after at least two weeks of easy running in base. Start with 10 minutes tempo and increase by 5 minutes every 2 weeks or so. Don't go to the well in base training. Finish feeling like you could have run another 5 minutes at that pace.

First of all, at your age (at any age really), it is not possible to build up your aerobic capacity enough. Building up your aerobic capacity slowly right now is going to help you more than anything else in the long run.

Some might say that you cannot run your base/easy mileage "too slow." I disagree with that sentiment. Too slow is when you are practically shuffling along with no concern for proper form. Remember, easy running, is still running and should be taken as seriously as any workout. For your easy runs, focus on maintaining good form, and controlling your breathing (this is where the term "conversational pace" comes into play). For you, I'd put that pace around 9:15-11:15 pace (based off 6:50 mile). Depending on how much fitness you have gained/how tired you are it may be faster/slower.