I have been looking at my running log from last year and have been a bit disappointed in one aspect. I had hoped to run 100 to 200 miles more this year than last year. But, going into my half marathon training this summer, I realized that I was behind even just keeping up with last years miles. I don’t remember how many miles I was behind, but it was not more than 50. I knew that if I stayed on pace through my training, and pushed just a bit more that I could catch up. Now I am fewer than 20 miles behind last year.
Last year I was helped in the higher mileage early in the year because I ran two half marathons. The training schedule early in the year kept my mileage up. This year I only had the one half marathon. Which is actually encouraging. I know that I have put in the miles even though I did not have a specific training plan pushing me to do the work.
This week I have really been able to bank some extra miles. I have not done a run longer than 5 miles since my half marathon, but I have stayed on the road better after the race than I did a year ago. This week I have run 3 days and plan to run 2 more. Last year during this week I only ran twice.
I will leave town on a trip next Tuesday. If I can run a few days while I am gone, I may make up the mileage difference before the start of December. Then I will just have to run more often than I did last year (or longer) and I will at least run a few more miles than in 2006. As a new runner, I would think that I can add more miles each year for a few more years to come.