One of the most common questions I get asked as a running coach is how can I run further.
Increasing your running mileage will help you progress to tackling longer races for the first time like the 10K, half marathon, and marathon. It also enables you to burn more calories and get an even better workout if weight loss is a goal.
While a simple approach to how to increase running distance would just involve adding mileage to each of your runs, because running is a high-impact sport and stressful on this body, building mileage too quickly is ill-advised.
So, how do you increase running distance safely, and what are the best tips for running longer distances without getting injured?
In this guide, we will discuss how to increase running distance safely so that you can enjoy more miles without getting injured or burnt out.
How Do I Increase My Running Distance Safely?
Although the concept behind how to run further is very straightforward—gradually run a little longer with every long run—it’s important to distinguish that you need to take a measured and conservative approach to increase your base mileage safely.
The 10% rule is sometimes considered the “Golden Rule” in running.
The 10% rule states that you should not increase your training volume by more than 10% from one week to the next.
In other words, if you are currently running 20 miles per week, you should run no more than 22 miles next week and 24.2 miles the following week.
This well-worn rule has stood the test of time for a reason—it tends to be sound advice on increasing running distance safely from week to week.
There’s even some evidence that demonstrates the validity of the 10% rule.
A study1Nielsen, R. Ø., Parner, E. T., Nohr, E. A., Sørensen, H., Lind, M., & Rasmussen, S. (2014). Excessive Progression in Weekly Running Distance and Risk of Running-Related Injuries: An Association Which Varies According to Type of Injury. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 44(10), 739–747. https://doi.org/10.2519/jospt.2014.5164 with 874 healthy novice runners who were followed over one year, found that runners who increased their running volume by 30% or more over two weeks (roughly 15% per week) were more than 1.5 times as likely to sustain a running-related injury than runners who increased their mileage by less than 10%.
Runners who increased their distance too aggressively were more prone to patellofemoral pain (runner’s knee), iliotibial band syndrome, medial tibial stress syndrome (shin splints), gluteus medius injury, greater trochanteric bursitis, injury to the tensor fascia lata, and patellar tendinopathy.
Interestingly, not all injuries seemed to be associated with increased training volume or the 10% rule.
For example, plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendinopathy, calf injuries, hamstring injuries, tibial stress fractures, and hip flexor strains seemed more related to other training errors.
As a certified running coach for the last decade, I strongly believe in the 10% rule to protect my athletes from injuries at all costs and improve their running performance in the safest way possible.
10 Tips for How To Increase Running Distance Safely
#1: Slow Your Pace
Slowing down is the single best way to run farther without stopping.
Running slower reduces the workload on the cardiovascular system, so it becomes easier to breathe.
Moreover, running slower isn’t just a good tip for running further; it’s also a good tip for increasing your run distance safely.
Any run is stressful on the body, as exercise is perceived as physiological stress. However, the further and faster you run, the greater the magnitude of this stress.
High-intensity runs, such as speed work, tempo runs, hill repeats, fartleks, and even regular distance runs where you push the pace to the North side of “easy” (into “comfortably hard”), are taxing on the body.
These workouts can increase the risk of injuries, overtraining and burnout, especially when not offset by adequate rest days and recovery.
The key here is that you shouldn’t increase your intensity and distance simultaneously.
So, if you want to increase how far you run, dial back on the speed. Once your body adapts to increased training volume, you can focus on bumping up that intensity again.
Then, after giving your body a couple of weeks to adapt to those changes, you can again bump up your distance (around that 10% per week mark) while simultaneously paring back speed again.
After your body has had a couple of weeks at the new weekly mileage, you can again look at adding more intensity.
Note that dialing back intensity refers to the pace of recovery workouts and long runs.
You can still keep your speed workouts, which is beneficial for reducing overuse injuries, but you should be dialing back the pace of recovery and distance runs.
For example, if you normally train at a 10-minute per mile pace for your distance runs, dial back your pace to 10:30 or so when you bump up your mileage.
#2: Polarize Your Training
Although it may seem contradictory to what was just said, another important tip for safely increasing your running distance is to polarize your training.
Polarizing your training involves taking your easy runs easy and your hard runs hard rather than floating around in the murky middle where all of your runs are run at roughly the same pace.
Where we were just discussing dialing back intensity, the emphasis here is on dialing back the intensity of regular distance runs, not the hard workouts in your training program.
Following the 80/20 method of running, where 80% of your mileage is done at an easy, conversational pace (about 90-120 seconds slower than your goal race pace) and 20% is hard, can reduce the risk of injuries because the bulk of your workout puts relatively little stress on your body.
Moreover, you can fully recover between workouts, as your body is experiencing different paces and stresses, both of which reduce the risk of overuse injuries and overtraining syndrome.
#3: Target the Long Run
Rather than unilaterally increasing the distance of every run on your schedule per week, target just the long run.
This will isolate the added stress to just one workout rather than being an ongoing added stimulus every day of the week.
You have more to gain in terms of the physiological adaptations to your aerobic system by building your endurance and distance for your long runs.
You can run further by gradually adding 1-2 miles to your longest run per week. So if you have a 6 mile run one week, jump to 7 the next, and 8 the following.
#4: Step Up, Step Down
The 10% rule is a good place to start, but you shouldn’t constantly progress your distance every week.
To reduce the risk of injury, it’s a good idea to make every third or fourth week a step-down week to give your tissues and body more recovery time from the higher mileage.
For example, if you run 40 km per week, you can run up to 44 km in the second week and roughly 48.4 km in the third week.
However, instead of bumping up to 53 km in the fourth week, you should step back down to 44 km and begin another three-week progression.
Therefore, your second week would be 48.4 km, and your third week could be 53 km.
Then, you could drop down to 50 km or so and start a new build from there.
It doesn’t have to be an exact science in terms of the math you use for the step-down week, but taking a relatively easy week once a month is a good practice for keeping your body healthy.
#5: Fuel Properly
Getting adequate calories, plenty of each macronutrient (carbs, protein, and healthy fats), and all the vitamins and minerals you need will ensure your body has the resources and fuel it needs to support your training and repair damage.
It is also important to dial in your hydration and ensure you consume sufficient fluids and electrolytes.
#6: Support Your Recovery
By caring for your body, you can reduce the risk of injury when you ramp up your mileage.
To nurture your tired muscles, foam roll, stretch, get enough sleep, ice sore tissues, and fuel right after your workout.
You can also switch out a running day for a low-impact cross-training day such as cycling, swimming, or rowing.
#7: Hit the Trails
Running on softer surfaces like trails, grass, cinder, and running tracks will reduce the impact stress (ground reaction force) that your feet and legs are subjected to compared with running on hard surfaces such as asphalt roads or concrete.
This can reduce the risk of stress injuries as you are increasing weekly running mileage.
However, if you don’t normally run on soft surfaces, you shouldn’t suddenly jump ship and start doing all your training off-road.
Ironically, this can increase the risk of injury because running on uneven surfaces such as trails and grass requires lots of stabilizing work from small muscles controlling your feet, ankles, and hips.
These muscles don’t have to work nearly as hard when you run on smooth surfaces like a treadmill or road, so they are prone to overuse injuries if you suddenly ramp up your mileage on uneven terrain.
To strike a happy medium, you can gradually start incorporating more of your increased running distance on softer surfaces or do one or two trail runs per week.
Another good option is to find running routes that enable you to take a trail or run along the grassy part of a park for a mile or two instead of running on the road.
In this way, you create a hybrid run with some off-road mileage and some standard road terrain, which enables your body to have a variety of stresses and strains.
This, in turn, reduces the repetitiveness of running, which usually leads to overuse injuries.
#8: Replace Old Running Shoes
What runner doesn’t love a new pair of running shoes?
Although it’s always important to run in shoes that are not worn out to provide plenty of support if you are increasing your mileage, it’s particularly important to make sure your running shoes are in good shape.
Replace old running shoes every 300 to 500 miles, depending on your body weight, the durability of the shoe, your injury risk, and the terrain you run on.
When your running shoes are too worn out, the materials that provide the support and cushioning your foot needs are no longer up to snuff.
This can increase the risk of injury and make your legs feel heavy and tired because more of the vibrations or oscillations from running and the impact shock are transferred to your feet and legs.
#9: Rotate Your Running Shoes
In addition to replacing your running shoes before they are too worn out, another good tip for how to safely increase your running distance is to rotate your running shoes.
Rotating your running shoes involves having multiple pairs of running shoes to choose from when you go running.
You can then wear different running shoes on different days, enabling you to cycle through your running shoe rotation from day to day.
For example, you might wear a cushioned neutral training shoe like the Hoka Clifton for your recovery run on Monday, a lightweight shoe like the Saucony Fastwitch for your speed workout on Tuesday, and then go back to your Hokas for your distance run on Wednesday.
Studies have found2Malisoux, L., Ramesh, J., Mann, R., Seil, R., Urhausen, A., & Theisen, D. (2013). Can parallel use of different running shoes decrease running-related injury risk? Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 25(1), 110–115. https://doi.org/10.1111/sms.12154 that rotating your running shoes can reduce the risk of running injuries by up to 39% because rotating running shoes ensures the shoes provide the cushioning and stability they should.
If your running shoe rotation includes different types of shoes, the injury risk may be even less because your feet and legs are facing a different set of stresses throughout the week, which minimizes the repetitive nature that leads to overuse injuries.
#10: Strength Train
When increasing mileage, you want to ensure you are as strong and fit as possible to protect your joints and body from the impact of running and avoid overuse injuries.
Any distance runner knows that strength training is an important part of their ongoing training cycles and should be a part of everyone’s routine to make them better runners.
Those legs need all the help they can get for those longer runs and constantly increasing high mile weeks.
Add two sessions of strength training per week to your marathon training plan or any distance you are working toward. Include compound exercises such as squats, lunges, glute bridges, planks, calf raises, and push-ups.
If you are getting help from a personal trainer, make sure they know your running goals so they can arrange your workout accordingly and get you ready for race day.
Most importantly, listen to your body and be patient. You can run further.
If you are a new runner and looking to build up mileage through a Couch to 5K training plan, we have just the running tips and guide for you.
