A friend of mine is all about the junk miles.
He calls himself Oscar and boy is he moody ;-)
A friend of mine is all about the junk miles.
He calls himself Oscar and boy is he moody ;-)
The Journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step
spot on Flopsy,Originally Posted by Flopsy
i think its more of a problem in road running than in fell,this could be due to mags like runners world giving out training programms with set milages for the week(especially for the London marathon) then it makes peaple concentrate on completing MPW targets and forgetting to put quiality sessions in.
Junk miles are far better than junk food.
Hills and Guinness!
Junk miles are the miles when there is no specific purpose to them. For Gary a junk mile is a run done with me rather than having a day off and resting, the speed he would be running is the equivalent of a rest day so the miles are junk in that they do not improve upon his training. That is not to say that a junk mile can't be enjoyable!
Having said that a junk mile can be a session done incorrectly...but then that is a whole different issue.
Debbie
www.pyrenees-haven.com
I forgot which of the legendary coaches said it but.... "the problem with most runners is that their slow runs are too fast and their fast runs too slow".... sums up junk miles really.
Junk miles to me are any miles without a purpose, that purpose may be part of a schedule for a planned event but it could also be for de-stressing. Speed work creates the runner high for me so a fast run makes me smile and clears the mind.
Pack runs can often be pointless from a training perspective but great for socialising, are these junk miles? don't think so, i think junk miles are probably different for all of us.
The opposite of junk miles, for me, would probably be quality miles. And quality could mean enjoyment, speed, control, energy, 100% effort, commitment, being fully present in the moment. When I'm not doing (any of) those things I guess I am distracted and the miles pass by more painfully & potentially debilitatingly, through either injury, poor recovery or de-motivation, hence the junk tag.
In the past, when I've dragged my attention into the present and realised Im in junk mile mode, Ive just stopped training/running, as I realise that I'm listening more to my ego than my body. So, as many have said here, it may well be about purpose but it also may be about self acceptance.
"You have brains in your head, your feet in your shoes, you can steer yourself in any direction you choose". Dr Seuss.
when your carrying too much lard around like me, junk miles are fat burning miles. i enjoy my miles, so do my dogs.
Short arms and deep pockets. A yorkshire man.
Re: What Are Junk Miles
I think that you need a mix, you need miles in your legs to get the strength to get around a race, you need the quality session a mixture of strength to get up the hills, you need the speed so you can get along the fast sections and good runable sections. BUT you need rest to recover and to build on the training you have done, you need weeks in the year where you rest because other wise you'll burn out. Mixing it up is also good, cycling, swimming etc. Just my idea though
Wasn't that the great US coach Bill Bowerman? If easy running is junk (and therefore a waste of time?) then the world's top distance runners do a lot of junk miles! The thing is they run a lot of fast miles too, but the slower ones still have value because they contribute to overall aerobic development. Didn't Lydiard say the most any athlete could do at a good quality pace was 100 miles a week, but that another 100 jogging would still have value?
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