How Much Should a Long Run Increase?

06 March 2024

The next long-run increase depends on the runner's preparation, health and overall workload. A single generic percentage cannot assess every situation.

A practical approach

Review the current routine and recovery with appropriate guidance. Consider terrain, duration and other activity rather than mileage alone. Keep the next session manageable and do not use a future race entry to force an unsuitable increase.

Change the training demand deliberately

Training demand includes distance, duration, pace, hills and the rest of the week. Increasing several of those together makes it difficult to understand which change was manageable. A simple percentage rule cannot account for every runner or circumstance.

Keep a record of the current routine and introduce changes thoughtfully, with recovery and individual response in view. Do not try to recover missed training by adding all the omitted work to the next few days. A coach or healthcare professional can help when the situation needs individual assessment. The plan is a guide to decisions, not a debt that must be repaid regardless of fatigue, illness or pain. A smaller sustainable adjustment is more useful than a dramatic increase made only to match a calendar.

Make the long run a planned session, not a weekly trial

A long run should have a purpose within the runner's current preparation. The distance cannot be chosen responsibly from a generic rule alone, and it should not become a weekly test of how much discomfort can be tolerated.

Plan a manageable route, supplies and an early-return option. Keep the intended effort clear and use the session to practice appropriate equipment or routine without changing everything at once. Review the whole week and individual guidance before increasing the demand. If the run is shortened, record why and adjust the plan rather than trying to add the missing distance later that day. A useful long run supports the larger routine instead of overwhelming it.

Run hills according to effort and control

A hill changes the demand of a run even when the watch pace becomes slower. Trying to preserve a flat-road pace on every climb can turn the session into something different from its intended purpose. The terrain should be part of the plan rather than an inconvenience to ignore.

Choose manageable hills and use controlled movement without forcing a specific stride pattern from a generic cue. Keep the effort appropriate to the session and allow pace to vary. Introduce unfamiliar terrain gradually, with individual guidance when needed. A hilly route can be useful preparation for a rolling event, but it should not be added to every run merely because a course profile contains climbs.

Know when individual guidance is needed

General running information cannot assess every person's health, injury history or training needs. A coach can help structure training, while medical questions belong with an appropriate healthcare professional. Those roles may work together, but they are not interchangeable.

Ask about qualifications, methods and how a plan is adapted when circumstances change. Avoid promises of guaranteed finishing times or rapid results for everyone. Describe the current routine honestly rather than presenting an idealized training history. Individual guidance is especially useful when a recurring difficulty remains unexplained or the planned event represents a substantial change in demand. A clear professional relationship should make decisions easier to understand, not replace questions with rigid instructions.

An example to work through

A similar distance on a much hillier route can already represent a new demand. Adding more distance at the same time may complicate the adjustment.

What to check

Review the whole workload.
Count terrain and duration.
Use individual guidance when needed.

Sources and further guidance

NHS: Couch to 5K and a gradual approach to starting running